Help with selecting CAM software

[mgandy02]

Of the following which one would be ranked highest and has the most capabilitiy for a router? Vectric software, ArtCAM, MasterCAM?

[advt001]

I have demoed Artcam.I run Mastercam daily and recently purchased Cut3d and PhotoVcarve.I had a usable toolpath with the Vectric products within 3 minutes of loading it.Vectric by far the most economical and user friendly.

[ger21]

Depends what you want to make.

MasterCAM comes in a few different levels, each with different capabilities.

Vectric offers several different packages, each with different capabilities.

I've never used it, but I'll guess that the top of the line MasterCAM Router has the most capabilities. But I also thing that both ArtCAM Pro and Vectric's Aspire can do things that MasterCAM can't.

It really all depends on what you want to do.

[Craig_Preston]

Originally Posted by mgandy02 Of the following which one would be ranked highest and has the most capabilitiy for a router? Vectric software, ArtCAM, MasterCAM?

Actually, that is still some very limited criteria. How do you define "ranked highest?"

There are so many capable CAM packages on the market, perhaps if you described the products you will be creating, what your budget, experience, etc. is - then people can provide their opinions based on their experience.

Otherwise, I would recommend going to various websites, perhaps looking in their customer testimonials/case studies sections, and see if other people are doing what you want to do. This will at least help you narrow down the field (although, honestly, most CAM packages do about 80% of the same things whether you are paying $1,000 for a product like our VisualMILL, or $10,000.

The 20% difference typically bumps you into a much higher price point (i.e. simultaneous 5th axis machining send you over $15,000).

[mcphill]

I suggest you look at BobCAD as well. If you read anything negative regarding the software, and it is about version 22 or earlier, it is irrelevant. They V23 version is new and a totally different base code than the older systems. I bought it several months ago, and I can't think of anything I would need to do that it cannot achieve.

The one limitation that I that I would like eliminated (but I don't currently have the hardware to realize, anyway) is 5th and 6th axis CAM support.