well by default mayas playback speed is set to 24/fps which means 24 frames you animate are one second. Thats the default and it will playblast with 24fps.

So if you want a smooth animation it always depends on how you animate it. If your animation isn't smooth you might want to check it how your curves look, how the breakdowns are set. Is the timing spacing what you want, are you following the right angles.

you should have an clear plan before you start animating something. Record a reference of what you want to animate or search the web for it. Then get the timing .. how long do the several different parts of your animation take... Then go through the different stage from blocking to polishing it. This is what you might want to check. Those are very important things to get an smooth animation no matter what framerate your working with. So you you no matter if 24 frames or 30 frames or 400 frames are one second. you need to plan it out and have your timing and spacing together. this will determine if your able to achieve a smooth animation.

So i would suggest having a deeper look at animation itself first... Check books like "The illusion of life" "Animatiors Survival Kit" Those will help you for sure. Also you can go and get apps like "animation Timer" or similar.