Vectric Aspire Vs Artcam Insignia

[powderdaft]

Hi All, probably a well covered topic but I can only seem to find responses to old ish software and not the latest versions. I am in a position to buy either one of these software packages for similar cost so was wondering which one was the best value for money, and best overall.
I know it will depend on what I intend to do so initially I will only be doing 2 – 2.5d stuff on panels/signs etc but imagine I will progress onto 3d.
I have seen the trial versions and Vectric seems to be very user friendly and has good add-on such as weave tools which are a breeze to use. With Vectric there is support to a degree but many useful training videos.
Artcam seems to be (or assumed to be) the industry leader and appears to be a tool which is not as easy to learn, but has great backup and support.
I am sure both will be more capable than me but which one would be considered to be the best one and best value for money? The weave function is available in Aspire but not in Insignia so I am concerned if there are other features missing. A side by side comparison would be very useful.
Also my machine, AXYZ 4010 recommends Artcam and will support it but I don’t want to be pushed down this route if Vectric is more suitable.
Whatever software I choose I will stay with so I need to get it right.
I am swaying towards Vectric for the seemingly easier to use interface, but is this interface a dumbed down version of Artcam? I want to produce products quickly and not be sat learning software for an extended period.
Any help or comments are much appreciated.

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[SCzEngrgGroup]

CAM, like CAD, is a rather personal choice. What I like, you might find incomprehensible, and vice-versa. What CAD are you using? Personally, I think integrated CAD/CAD has HUGE advantages, and would never go with separate packages again.

Regards,
Ray L.

[graffix11]

Im very happy with Vectrics support. Ive been a user for a few yrs now. I dont see issues going unresolved on their forums either. I also like how they are always updating their software and making it better through the gadget ad ons and general updates which save lots of time.

[ger21]

Aspire was written (originally) by the same person that used to work on ArtCAM. I'm not really familiar with the ArtCAM Insignia features, but I'd imagine that they're similar.

If you only plan on doing 2D to start, why not just start with V-Carve Pro. You'll save a lot of money now, and you can upgrade to Aspire at any time for the difference in price between the two, so it won't cost you any more to wait.
The interface in V-Carve Pro is the same as Aspire, so everything you learn will transfer over seamlessly if/when you upgrade down the road.

[Hirudin]

I wish I had more to offer on this subject, but the only advice I can give is that you'd probably get more replies if you were to post this question in a different section of CNCZone. You'll probably have better luck over here...

http://www.cnczone.com/forums/commer...-wood-routers/

Oh, there's apparently a dedicated, router-focused offshoot of CNCZone: CNC Router Zone-For professional and hobbyist alike! . Perhaps that would be a good place to look as well.

[sagreen]

I have been using aspire since it was introduced some years ago. It is both CAD and CAM, and for the most part its really good for both in terms of a CNCRouter. For instance I sell a video series that teaches you how to build a guitar using Aspire and a CNCRouter

Nice thing about Aspire is that it supports 3D toolpaths out of the box. Artcam Insignia is only 2d to my knowledge.

Hope that helps.
Scott...

[powderdaft]

Thanks all. it seems aspire has most votes at the moment. ...

[cuseguy]

I bought Aspire 4 earlier this year and it still amazes me how simple it is to get quick productive work out of it. It is well worth the money.

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy Note 3.

[ger21]

Also my machine, AXYZ 4010 recommends Artcam and will support it

What kind of support do they actually provide for someone else's product? I would guess only with post processor issues and making sure it works with their machines, but not much else.

Don't confuse training with support. Support is when something doesn't work. Most people don't really need any support, they need training. When it doesn't work because you don't know how to use it, that's due to a lack of training.
If your not paying for training, then you'd typically get your training from tutorial videos and user forums. Both products have both.

The problem with your question is that it's unlikely that you'll find anyone who's used both products enough to give you a comparison.
Looking at this page, Compare features of the different ArtCAM products
it appears that they are nearly identical feature wise.

Both have demos. Play with them both and pick the one you like best. That's the most important factor in the end.
If Aspire has 10,000 users, and you hate it, and ArtCAM Insignia has 500 users and you love it, then ArtCAM Insignia is what you should buy. What everyone else thinks is mostly irrelevant.

If there are any ArtCAM Insignia users hear, they don't post anything about it. Most of the users here are Aspire and V Carve Pro users, so that's what you're going to see recommended the most.

[powderdaft]

Thanks. What I mean about AXYZ support is that they now ship their new machines with Artcam so they should be able to help with any issues communicating with the machine. why do most people on forums use Vectric? Does this suggest Vectric is more for hobbyists than Pros?
thanks

[luix87]

NO VETRIC IS NOT KIND OF GOOGLE SKETCHUP IN ENGRAVING AREA ASPIRE DOES THE JOB VERY WELL AND THE WAY VERY SIMPLE BUT ARTCAM IS LIKE A MASTERCAM OF ENGRAVING DOES EVERYTHING YOU NEED BUT DON`T EXPECT YOU DO 1 DOOR IN 5 MINUTES IS SLOW TO LEARN BUT IN THE FUTURE YOU DO ANYTHING ANY PIECE

YOU ARE FORGETTING 1 THING ASPIRE OR ARTCAM ONLY MADE THE SOLID AND AFTER THAT YOU NEED TO MACHINE THE SOLID IN A CAM PROGRAM ASPIRE IS INTEGRATED WITH ALPHACAM AND ARTCAM IS INTEGRATED IN DELCAM I DON`T KNOW AFTER THE SOLID DONE YOU CAN EXPORT TO A .STL FILE I THINK THESE SOFTWARES AREN`T CAM`S

[ger21]

why do most people on forums use Vectric?

Vectric created a market that didn't previously exist.
When they created V-Carve Pro, there was no other similar product on the market. It was fairly priced, and the majority of hobbiests and small businesses climbed aboard.

Same thing when they came out with Aspire. ArtCAM Insignia used to be a 2D limited version of ArtCAM Pro. Aspire was competing with ArtCAM, at 30% of the price.
Because of Vectric, Delcam has added ArtCAM Express to compete with V Carve Pro, and changed ArtCAM Insignia to compete with Aspire.

Before Aspire existed, you had to spend $7500 for ArtCAM to get similar functionality. Vectric changed the game, and as CNC's became affordable for the masses, Vectric was the one they turned to, because of there much better pricing.

Does this suggest Vectric is more for hobbyists than Pros?

Vectric has the hobbiest market cornered due to their ease of use, and bang for buck factor. But there are plenty of pros that use it as well. But what does it really matter who's using it?

[powderdaft]

Hi All, I've downloaded both demos and been playing for a while. I am used to AutoCAD so ther interface of Artcam seems similar, darker background, icons etc. However, for me it is very difficult to use so I agree with the ghuys who say it takes a time to learn. The iterface seems overly populated and complicated.

Vectric, while i dont like the light coloured background for drawing in (personal thing, I prefer dark backgrounds), the overall interface, icons and speed at which I can pick things up is fantastic. So I will be going for probably V carve initially then upgrading to aspire

I just need to check compatibility with my machine, it has AXYZ DNC software.

Cheers