Cabinet Sense software, anyone?

[jTr]

Tempting, as it incorporates all 3 programs I utilize to make the ShopBot move:

- Sketchup
- Cutlist Plus
- Vectric

Anyone try Cabinet Sense yet?

jeff

[srwtlc]

Took a look at it after receiving the CutList Plus update email, but the monthly subscription pricing format is a big turn off.

[jTr]

monthly subscription pricing format is a big turn off.

100% agreement on that point, and it's a common reaction to all these CAD/CAM programs.(Sorry, "apps"). I guess I'm wearing down, as this appears to be the way the world is rapidly turning with software. Compared to the big boys (KCD, etc.), this is a much more reasonable outlay.

I've also looked at Mozaik, but was about twice as much monthly, yet there is a teaser point that you can actually purchase it. However, they are very vague regarding actual cost- like after 10 years of monthly payments they may consider it a partial down payment for what appeared to be $20-$30k overall investment. The lack of forthcoming and clarity really put me off.

Over the last two years, my mix of work has evolved more towards filling rooms and entire houses with more cabinetry than furniture, so the $75 is looking pretty reasonable for automating many of the processes. At this rate, it's evolved into a significant amount of hours per month translating projects from Sketchup to Vectric and Cutlist, at least on these more mundane and expansive runs of general cabinetry.

Yes, I know thermwood and CPP are out there, but at almost 10 years in Sketchup, I'm sticking with what I know. It just appears Cabinet Sense has found a way of morphing it into a more streamlined workflow similar to the bigger players, so I'm very interested to see if it's worth the curve. Sketchup does afford a higher level of freedom for tuning your system to your style, based on the wide variety of plugins, including some awesome rendering extensions. Sure is nice to be able to pick these utilities based on your work style vs. coping with what corporate has selected as the best money maker for them...

So, hoping others who may have tried it can give a little feedback for those of us tempted to take the plunge...?

jeff

[dlcw]

I tried Mozaik. It was a couple of things that turned me off. Pricing program was one and the elitist attitude when asking for help and support. They leave a lot to be desired in the customer service department.

eCabinets and Shopbot Link have a learning curve for sure. Great support and customer service combined with a great forum with some VERY experienced users doing and publishing some incredible things. Many have done furniture with eCabinets. I've been using these since 2009 with a lot of success. A whole lot less expensive then other alternatives I see out there. I also like that it is parametric driven. Change one thing and all associations change to accommodate your desired change. I tried doing this with Sketchup but it was just to time consuming.

I use Sketchup for furniture and eCabs for cabinetry (about 80% of my business).

[jTr]

I also like that it is parametric driven. Change one thing and all associations change to accommodate your desired change. I tried doing this with Sketchup but it was just to time consuming.

Don,
That is probably the most interesting part about Cabinet Sense- evidently they've mastered the dynamic components to make it work parametrically as well. If you change the attachment method for a base cabinet back for instance, you can trigger it to automatically adjust all other base cabinets in your model accordingly. This is what's really gotten me interested.

Jeff