Newbie ?

[AirJordan]

I'm a newbie looking to start of with a graphtec ce3000mk2 24''. My question is, is the cutting software that comes with it good enough to use with corel ? ( cutting master , quick cut ) And if so how will I benifit from also using something like Cocut or Sign tools? Also what version do you recomend in corel ? Should I just go with there lattest version X3 or a different version? Looking for the + and -'s of the different versions.

 

[learned the hard way]

Always go for the latest version. I haven't used it yet, but I hear X3 has some significant improvements over earlier versions. It you're on a budget, you might save some money by buying an outdated version and then just paying for the upgrade to X3, instead of just ordering X3 by itself.

If the plotter you are buying comes with cutting software, you probably don't need CoCut or Signtools.

 

[signage]

the software that cuts from corel works good! You can also cut directly from corel as long as you install the windows driver. The advantage to the cutting software is you get a preview of what you are cutting. This software is from Scanvec from what the graphtec told me.

 

[AirJordan]

OK so if I bought X3 to go along with the stuff that comes packaged with the graghtec I should be set? Or should I still add some other software to it? I don't want to through down the cash for some thing like flexi right now. But I am also not trying to spend the least. I want software that will be most productive and if I need to add some thing I am willing. Any suggestions please?

 

[2NinerNiner2]

AJ - Although I am not familiar with the particular software that comes with the plotter you are interested in, I have used CorelDRAW since Version 1.0 with first my trusty old Roland CAMM1 (beginning in 1987) and now Version 12 on my Roland VersaCAMM SP-300. Initially, I had to use an internemdiary program between CDR and the CAMM1 and that was SignLab 1.02. Today though, with Vr. 12 and the Win XP drivers from Roland, the CAMM1 cuts nicely directly from CDR. I have tried Co-Cut but found it unnecessary for the work I was doing. Your supplied s/w may provide it's functionality such as paneling and weed border. etc. That is what SignLab did early on, as I routinely cut 23 ft x 2 ft vinyl (to go on the sides of commercial jet aircraft), and it did the paneling and extended the inherent max. cutting length of the plotter. Guess what I'm saying is, as you can tell, I'm a big Corel fan and it has served me well since 1987

 

[learned the hard way]

If the Graphtec you are purchasing comes with cutting software, and you buy some version of CorelDraw, then yes, you will be set to cut vinyl.

I have lots of software, but Corel and one of my cutting programs is what I use everyday...the rest just sits idle until I need it every once in a while.