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NX Vs. MC: WHAT CAN I GET FOR$$

mkd

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Jun 8, 2013
people here seem to say NX and mastercam are similarly priced

curious what i can get for 10k in NX?

already have a mill/ lathe quote from MC
 
people here seem to say NX and mastercam are similarly priced

curious what i can get for 10k in NX?

already have a mill/ lathe quote from MC

10K- CAD/CAM Modeling, Surface drawings, assemblies, etc and 3 axis Mill and 2 axis lathe meant bea fuzz over 10k though..

I'm not sure if mill turn is another license or not its been few years since I ran NX.
 
yes i have 4.5 axis mill turn and 4 ax mill.

really only interested in the CAM for now.
they call it CAMexpress right?
 
Honestly, NX is so license configurable that you should talk to them and get a quote for what you need.

I've heard people say it's comparable in price to mastercam. I'm not sure what a 5x/millturn license of mastercam costs, but a turnkey 5x + millturn license with a few simulation models + post processors is pushing 40k, with yearly maintenance that will make you cringe.
 
Honestly, NX is so license configurable that you should talk to them and get a quote for what you need.

I've heard people say it's comparable in price to mastercam. I'm not sure what a 5x/millturn license of mastercam costs, but a turnkey 5x + millturn license with a few simulation models + post processors is pushing 40k, with yearly maintenance that will make you cringe.

My (6 month old) quote for NX is roughly comparable to where MC would be when it comes to 3+2 axis and none of their machine simulation stuff (basic toolpath and stock simulation were there, but the full machine simulation is, as far as I could tell, really for complex 5 axis and mill-turn stuff). In general, I thought their pricing was OK - roughly $10k + $2k to maintain.

Where it get really eye watering is on the CAD side. The CAM price includes a shockingly basic CAD package that you can use to do a little model manipulation for the purposes of job setup or toolpath control (patch over a feature for better 3d toolpath, for example). The price starts to skyrocket if you add tools that bring you on par with a basic seat of SolidWorks. If you want to start playing with NXs truly amazing surface capabilities (Realize Shape), you're looking at a seat of NX Mach 3 Industrial Design, which is $25k in and of itself.

In the end, it's hard to justify NX for 3 axis machining when HSM Works is (for all it's development quibbles), pretty damn good for a hell of a lot less money.
 
I got a quote recently for 12k for MCX, 3axis mill with solids (solids is included btw, not an addon these days...). That (I assume) is with all the pre-configured generic posts and the generic machine sims, nothing customized.
 
My (6 month old) quote for NX is roughly comparable to where MC would be when it comes to 3+2 axis and none of their machine simulation stuff (basic toolpath and stock simulation were there, but the full machine simulation is, as far as I could tell, really for complex 5 axis and mill-turn stuff). In general, I thought their pricing was OK - roughly $10k + $2k to maintain.

Where it get really eye watering is on the CAD side. The CAM price includes a shockingly basic CAD package that you can use to do a little model manipulation for the purposes of job setup or toolpath control (patch over a feature for better 3d toolpath, for example). The price starts to skyrocket if you add tools that bring you on par with a basic seat of SolidWorks. If you want to start playing with NXs truly amazing surface capabilities (Realize Shape), you're looking at a seat of NX Mach 3 Industrial Design, which is $25k in and of itself.

In the end, it's hard to justify NX for 3 axis machining when HSM Works is (for all it's development quibbles), pretty damn good for a hell of a lot less money.

Right, and that's a portion I neglected to mention; our licenses are a mach 3 level seat. If you're already buying CAD from NX, the CAM is a fairly good buy.
 
We have a lot of NX mach3 bundles and the cost isn't near 40K from what I've seen. Mach3 is a very common cad/cam bundle that has 3-5 axis milling, drilling, turning and wedm along with very powerful cad. The wedm is so-so from what I heard but it works with solids and you can select faces to cut which is nice. The milling is top notch; I don't have any input on turning other than it looked promising. Siemens did a lot of nice work on volume based 2.5d machining if that's your fancy. The mach3 cad is very powerful and includes assemblies but sans their super high end modeling tools, can import/export a lot of different formats. You probably don't need super high end modeling options unless you are doing part development, lol; it has ridiculously capable tools. What's included in the mach3 bundle is crazy powerful as is. Their cam can program STL bodies with ease as well as being able to program any mix of solids, surfaces and STL bodies together. I program mostly graphite but also program soft and hard tool steels and I use part simulation all the time but rarely machine sim. There are many included machines models which might suit your needs but what I like is you can copy an included machine and tailor it if you like of even create one from scratch. As for posts I have heard a lot of users have started with an included post and made simple tweaks themselves using NX postbuilder which is a graphical based post creator/editor. I was able to develop about 99% of my posts and sought help just for a few items. Special post commands and tasks need a bit more knowledge so some users learn some file code or just pay someone to make tweaks.

I recommend speaking with a VAR about pricing and have an applications person available. If you like what you see you could have them import your model, talk about how you currently do it then let them show you what NX can do for you.
 
NX CAM prices vary based on what's included and how it's bundled. It really depends on what type of programming you need to do, and what kind of CAD you have or need.

We have several "CAM Only" packages, which all include some model editing and Synchronous modeling.
You can also get them with NX modeling or Solid Edge.

Please contact your Siemens PLM account representative or Partner/Reseller to get an accurate quote.

Mark Rief
Siemens PLM Software
 
Last edited:
Please contact your Siemens PLM account representative or Partner/Reseller to get an accurate quote.

Your obviously a dealer, why don't you just quote him now? Oh I forgot...it has to be a big secret and you have to push the 'salesman tactics' in private (just like most other CAM companies)
I'm so glad AutoDesk is turning this industry around so this backroom shit can stop.
 
Your obviously a dealer, why don't you just quote him now? Oh I forgot...it has to be a big secret and you have to push the 'salesman tactics' in private (just like most other CAM companies)
I'm so glad AutoDesk is turning this industry around so this backroom shit can stop.

AGREED! I can go to the Autodesk website and get a price for whatever I want. ;)
 
Your obviously a dealer, why don't you just quote him now? Oh I forgot...it has to be a big secret and you have to push the 'salesman tactics' in private (just like most other CAM companies)
I'm so glad AutoDesk is turning this industry around so this backroom shit can stop.

I am a Siemens employee, not a dealer. I added my signature above. I forgot that it's not automatic in this forum, so sorry for the confusion.

I work on the technical side, and although I am familiar with pricing, I am not permitted to discuss specifics in a public forum.

Mark Rief
Siemens PLM Software
 
AGREED! I can go to the Autodesk website and get a price for whatever I want. ;)

My main point was in regards to Fusion, their new product, and the marketing strategy behind it. The price is plain as day for everyone to see. Not sure if price is laid out this way for their older products or not

I work on the technical side, and although I am familiar with pricing, I am not permitted to discuss specifics in a public forum.

Mark Rief
Siemens PLM Software

My point exactly. Everything is a big secret.
 
Your obviously a dealer, why don't you just quote him now? Oh I forgot...it has to be a big secret and you have to push the 'salesman tactics' in private (just like most other CAM companies)
I'm so glad AutoDesk is turning this industry around so this backroom shit can stop.

Autodesk used to be the worst about it... when did it change? You used to not be able to do dick without your "value added reseller" hounding you. Then they cold call you weekly for months and months, spamming your email ad nauseum...

Anyways, I hate that tactic too, but with NX, I kind of understand. They have hundreds of modular items that they will gladly configure and re-combine, that go beyond their "off the shelf Mach packages" that it is very worth it, for the customer, to call them and say "I need xyz" - Some modules require something else, some can't be had as a standalone... If they were to put a chart together with costs, it'd quickly make everyone's eyes crossed. We're dealing with our reseller right now to reconfigure our licenses from a standard Mach bundle to something more suitable for our needs and better priced. I think the reseller told us to request "mach addon" packages/features to the basic Mach bundle, instead of getting a much more expensive, inclusive mach bundle that may have things we don't foresee using.

My 2 cents. I don't use NX for programming though. I just use the CAD side, and sometimes peak at the CAM/Manufacturing side to investigate stuff.
 
Autodesk used to be the worst about it... when did it change?

In my opinion it has changed with the launch of Fusion. Some companies change, some don't.

So again with NX, why does everything need to be an up-sell. The reason they offer so many different packages is to squeeze every last cent out of the sale. Need to do XYZ, that cost $xxxx more. Need only Z, well first you need to buy AB for $xxxx then you can do Z for an additional $xxxx. Its all bullshit. Make a product, sure offer a couple different levels of functionality but make it easy for the customer to say I need XYZ and know what its going to cost. Imagine how much cheaper NX, or others would be if you didn't have to pay the middleman.
 
In my opinion it has changed with the launch of Fusion. Some companies change, some don't.

So again with NX, why does everything need to be an up-sell. The reason they offer so many different packages is to squeeze every last cent out of the sale. Need to do XYZ, that cost $xxxx more. Need only Z, well first you need to buy AB for $xxxx then you can do Z for an additional $xxxx. Its all bullshit. Make a product, sure offer a couple different levels of functionality but make it easy for the customer to say I need XYZ and know what its going to cost. Imagine how much cheaper NX, or others would be if you didn't have to pay the middleman.
Yeah, well that right there is a bit of a problem. With the complexity of the bundles and restructuring of the distribution channels "some" resellers don't even know how to quote, IMO. based on talking to one and never getting any numbers!!!!
that why i was interested in getting a rough order of magnitude on a public forum before i even bother a reseller.
seems like a kinda simple question; do they bundle a low end package of their fine software that is competitive? Y or N?
 
My point exactly. Everything is a big secret.

Yeah, that's pretty annoying. Even when you ask for a ballpark number, they won't even do that. I mean does it cost $1,000 or $10,000? Shirley they can give you some idea of what it might cost.
 








 
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