OrCAD price drop - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: Bassman59
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 06, 2020, 04:38:25 pm
content: In today's e-mail, anoffer for OrCAD at a ridiculously low price. I guess the writing is on the wall?

author: mstevens
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: August 06, 2020, 06:03:01 pm
content: Hardly! Staying strategically competitive. I have this Orcad license and a Professional license. Believe me, its worth it!!

author: chris_leyson
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 06, 2020, 06:19:09 pm
content: Allegro was a huge improvement over Orcad PCB and I for one was happy to see Cadence take them over. Not sure if it spells the end for Orcad/Allegro, perhaps they're making more from their Silicon design tools.

author: olkipukki
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: August 06, 2020, 06:59:53 pm
content: USA only, right?The offer done by "EMA is a Cadence® Channel Partner serving all of North America", why non-US local distributors cannot do same in other places?!

author: stn8188
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: August 06, 2020, 07:11:58 pm
content: I see this price once or twice a year, so it's not totally new but I do think they are realizing the huge market share Altium is taking... I'm pretty sure AD18 is the only reason they added dark mode to OrCAD!

author: PlainName
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 09, 2020, 04:07:47 pm
content: QuoteTry it and report back. You might be surprised

author: Ranayna
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 10, 2020, 08:37:25 am
content: From Germany, not logged in to the store:"Sorry, this product cannot be purchased."EDIT: Scrolling down to the contact form gives me an odd choice of countries:United StatesCanadaMexicoFranceGreat BritainIrelandItalyUnited Kingdom ()

author: chris_leyson
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 10, 2020, 09:32:09 am
content: Works from the UK

author: PlainName
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 10, 2020, 12:04:31 pm
content: That is an odd list. Perhaps it's just where the CEO has been on holiday, hence he knows their names.

author: Sal Ammoniac
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 10, 2020, 05:25:23 pm
content: Based on the current low price offer for OrCAD, I downloaded the trial version to give it a test run. I noticed that the build-in symbol and footprint libraries are tiny and don't really contain much.Does OrCAD have something like Altium's Vault, which is an on-line library with thousands of parts?

author: chris_leyson
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 10, 2020, 05:36:43 pm
content: You get 6 months free access to Ultra Librarianhttps://resources.ema-eda.com/datasheets/ultra-librarian-for-orcad

author: AndyC_772
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 10, 2020, 05:47:08 pm
content: I always draw my own symbols. It's a small part of the job in terms of the time it takes, but as a way to make me actually check the data sheet in detail, it's an invaluable discipline and one I'd highly recommend getting into.

author: chris_leyson
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 10, 2020, 08:29:31 pm
content: @AndyC_772, I would second that. Work from the data sheet, use the manufcturers recommended footprint or maybe use a tool like Library Expert as another check. 3D models are a great help as well.

author: mstevens
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: August 10, 2020, 10:32:02 pm
content: Quote from: chris_leyson on August 10, 2020, 05:36:43 pmI'm no professional pcb designer; but all the professionals say NEVER trust another's libraries.

author: Alex Eisenhut
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 11, 2020, 03:22:36 am
content: Quote from: mstevens on August 10, 2020, 10:32:02 pmTrust, but verify. I once trusted, but didn't verify. Footprint was mirrored.

author: Alex Eisenhut
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 11, 2020, 03:23:37 am
content: Quote from: Ranayna on August 10, 2020, 08:37:25 amNothing odd about it, Cadence has another rep in Germany:https://www.flowcad.com/en/products.htm

author: Ranayna
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 11, 2020, 07:39:28 am
content: Yes, I saw that when I was looking for german pricing, and assume that this list is at least a partial list where they don't have a local partner.But it's an odd looking list anyway, especially considering the redundancy of "Great Britain" and "United Kingdom".

author: PlainName
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 12, 2020, 12:51:49 am
content: Note that 17.4 appears to be Windows 10 only, so if you're running W7 you might want to check that it will install and run before taking advantage of this (or other) offer.

author: amiq
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: August 12, 2020, 02:23:54 am
content: Quote from: dunkemhigh on August 12, 2020, 12:51:49 am17.4 will work on win 7.

author: PlainName
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 12, 2020, 02:55:54 am
content: OK, thanks. I happened to look at the requirements and 17.2 listed W7 but 17.4 dropped that.With Microsoft buying up products solely to stiff the W7 support, the possibility is that they could've persuaded Cadence to not just not support W7 but actively prevent it.

author: Dubbie
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: August 12, 2020, 06:12:28 am
content: Regarding drawing footprints. I find it is a major part of my time.The largest is routing, next drawing symbols/footprints and then lastly schematics.Of course reading datasheets is more than all of them.

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: August 12, 2020, 06:42:07 am
content: Seems like a permanent price drop?What's Altium going for these days, at least an order of magnitude more?l remember the day in the Altium staff cafeteria when founder Nick Martin announced the permanent 80% price drop and said "We are burning our bridges, we can never go back to high priced software"

author: jeremy
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 12, 2020, 10:09:33 am
content: I think the list price is somewhere around $7k USD + $2k per year, but I could be remembering wrong.

author: chris_leyson
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 12, 2020, 10:24:54 pm
content: Orcad 17.4 for Windows is Win10 64-bit only, I think release 17.2 might have run on Win7,8.Linux version is RedHat only, might be 64-bit but it's good to see that Linux support.Pricing is about $3.5k for the USA or £3.5k if you live in the UK, not sure why exchange rates don't come into play but Orcad has been at this sort of price level for quite a while, Orcad 9 cost me £3.5k nearly 20 years ago.

author: asmi
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 13, 2020, 03:10:33 pm
content: Quote from: EEVblog on August 12, 2020, 06:42:07 amI recently got AD for ~3600$ (12 payments of $300 per month). But AD needs to be compared to Orcad Pro, which I got few years ago for $1800, and they are broadly on par feature-wise. If you look at MSRP, Orcad Pro I think is $5000 (+$1800/year maintenance sub), as for AD I think it's $9000 (with 1 year of maintenance included), but I don't think anyone actually bought AD at MSRP as they seems to be much more into these cheesy "we will charge how much I think you can pay" sales tactics than competitors. But than again - AD is the end of the line, while Orcad Pro is merely a step towards much more capable Allegro license level. And this is why Cadence seems to be giving away Orcad Standard for cheap - they see it as a way to get you into the ecosystem, so that when Standard license feature set will not be enough for you anymore, you will upgrade the license to Professional (or Allegro) and have a next-to-zero learning curve, because at all license levels it's still the exact same product.

author: PlainName
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 13, 2020, 04:50:40 pm
content: QuotePity. A great incentive to upgrade would be the promise of a grown-up schematic editor in Pro.

author: asmi
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 13, 2020, 05:32:54 pm
content: Quote from: dunkemhigh on August 13, 2020, 04:50:40 pmCapture is a very good product. It needs a bit of love to bring it up to date visually, which - as I understand - is what Cadence is currently working on. But it's very competent even in it's current form. And it's available at all license levels. The only difference between them is in PCB side. And it makes sense, because all progress currently revolves around PCB tech.

author: PlainName
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 13, 2020, 05:56:43 pm
content: Ignoring the aesthetics, the usability (hence productivity) is... not good. Take zoom: ctl-mousewheeel. Fine, you might think, but that needs two hand and mousewheel zoom is much better. Indeed, that's what PCB does out of the box, but the schematic editor is the opposite. And there's no option to change it.Then there's the right-click zoom. Where is the right-click unzoom to counter the very VERY tight zoom you just did because you went to pop up the context menu and accidentally gave the mouse a jiggle?Oh, mouse buttons. Considering Windows mice don't usually come with middle mouse button (it's an awkward mousewheel press on mine), but let's say the price of an extra mouse just for this app is OK. In PCB you click and drag and it does more or less what you expect, but in schematic it pops up that little direction icon and you don't drag - you move in the direction you want to pan and the distance you move sets the speed. Except since it's based on Office code, seemingly, 'fast' is actually pretty slow. It is completely unintuitive for panning like that, particularly compared to to much better PCB.All of the above could be mitigated by having mousewheel zoom without a modifier - you can easily zoom out/in to pan with one finger. Doesn't have to be the default either, just be able to set it somewhere.Oh, and the damn thing pops up full screen every time it starts even though the launch link is set to normal. No high DPI support, 8 point text in the NIH menus, ...

author: asmi
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 13, 2020, 06:36:23 pm
content: Quote from: dunkemhigh on August 13, 2020, 05:56:43 pmIf it's not good for you, use something else. What's the problem? It's not like there is a lack of competitors in this space...My biggest problem with Orcad is not GUI or aesthetics, but symbol/footprint creation. It's a royal pain in the back with that stupid padstack editor. As someone who frequently evaluates new parts, building footprints gets old very quickly. Standard footprints can be handled by Library Expert, but non-standard footprints (which are becoming more popular due to a need to improve heat transfer) is a massive pain in the ass to make.But for the actual PCB work it's far ahead of anything else I ever used, including Altium (Altium's "Rules" thing is a total garbage compared to Orcad's Constraints Manager).

author: amiq
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: August 13, 2020, 08:51:23 pm
content: Quote from: chris_leyson on August 12, 2020, 10:24:54 pmAs I have said 17.40 (and all service packs) will work on Win 7.

author: benwis
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: August 13, 2020, 09:37:32 pm
content: I recently got Orcad Capture CIS/CIP/Pspice and PCB Designer Professional for 1.4kUSD. Capture definitely needs some love in the usability/productivity area but I'm very happy so far. I think I got a pretty good deal out of themPadstack creation is such a bore though, I try to pull parts off Ultra Librarian or SnapEDA and verify. Does anyone know good resources for a starter library, bonus points if it includes the database aspect?

author: mstevens
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: August 14, 2020, 01:03:36 am
content: Quote from: benwis on August 13, 2020, 09:37:32 pmI got a very similar deal and practically begged people here to give EMA Design a call and get a copy. There is nothing out there that competes with this package at this price. NOTHING.

author: Alex Eisenhut
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 14, 2020, 05:00:10 am
content: You can create padstacks in batch mode.Run pad_designer with the -s option from the command line with your batch file.The batch file is in the usual Cadence format of commands with parameters.So use something old and crunky like AWK (love it) to create the script file and you can create entire families of padstacks on the fly.I did this over ten years ago so I don't have details anymore.

author: Pitrsek
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: August 14, 2020, 08:20:50 am
content: Quote from: benwis on August 13, 2020, 09:37:32 pmRegular commercial commercial perpetual license ?

author: PlainName
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 14, 2020, 08:54:27 am
content: QuoteNot just capture. Still on the mouse, in PCB you drag the window instead of the object, so it goes the wrong way to every other app you're used to. Which includes the PCB 3D view! This all smacks of many different and isolated projects being tied together with string to make a product.

author: AndyC_772
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 14, 2020, 01:44:33 pm
content: That may be the case, but the thing to bear in mind is this is a professional tool which is used primarily by people whose job is "PCB design engineer". They use it all day, every day, and features that seem quirky at first are soon committed to muscle memory, and forgotten.I've just finished another PCB with OrCAD this week, and haven't spentanytime thinking about ways in which the software is - at first glance - unintuitive. It may have taken a while to get used to, but now I just get on and use it.

author: mstevens
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: August 14, 2020, 02:23:46 pm
content: Quote from: Pitrsek on August 14, 2020, 08:20:50 amYes!! I did not want to disclose what I paid as I am sure sales works off of commission and maybe they weren't giving the deal to everyone. But yes, what I got was a Professional perpetual license with CIS/CIP/ and Pspice. Also included was 6 months of Ultralibrarian and realize that a license of Spectra is included.At just over $1400, there is NOTHING, NOTHING I tell you that beats this deal. Go back and look through this forum, you will see the thread where I essentially begged people to call EMA Design and get a copy; It IS A PERPETUAL LICENSE!! Oh well, I got my copy.

author: amiq
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: August 14, 2020, 03:15:03 pm
content: Has anyone in the UK had a decent quote for Orcad Pro?Parallel Systems are still quoting the full price for standard (about £2300).

author: PlainName
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 14, 2020, 04:30:57 pm
content: QuoteYes, that's the case with a lot of stuff. But it does indicate that one gets to be biased through usage and product comparisons get skewed by that.But you can't write off new users that simply now, I think. Those professionals who have spent 30 years driving stuff like Orcad aren't going to be around forever, and whatever was easy for the new bunch to get into is likely to gain traction. Having a user interface that is only bearable once you've invested significant time on it would seem like a quick way to drive potential users to the competition (assuming that's better, of course), and it's something that's easy to fix and should've been fixed a decade ago.

author: olkipukki
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: August 14, 2020, 07:46:36 pm
content: Quote from: dunkemhigh on August 09, 2020, 04:07:47 pmThis deal requires HOST ID (akahttps://www.ema-eda.com/resources/library/finding-your-mac-address)and I would assume will cost some money if you need to rehost in a future.What else you can do about it? Is there USB dongle replacement to HOST ID?

author: asmi
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 14, 2020, 07:56:19 pm
content: Quote from: olkipukki on August 14, 2020, 07:46:36 pmYes there is. USB HASP Key was $100 extra when I was getting my license. Istronglyrecommend anyone buying Orcad to get the key, as it will make things much easier - you can install/use SW on several computers (not at the same time of course), you can move installation without involving Cadence support - this is especially important if you let your maintenance subscription lapse, as that service will cost money.

author: amiq
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: August 14, 2020, 08:41:47 pm
content: Quote from: olkipukki on August 14, 2020, 07:46:36 pmIt's simple to change a PC's host ID so a locked license shouldn't be a problem in the future.

author: AndyC_772
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 14, 2020, 09:25:02 pm
content: IIRC I was once advised to buy a cheap wireless dongle with its own MAC address, and have the licence locked to that.I didn't; instead I bought one with the HASP key which was fine until I bought a new PCB with Windows 10. Since I haven't paid maintenance for years, and am still on 16.6 "30th anniversary" edition, installing it on my new laptop was a pain.It did work, though, thanks to some effort finding compatible drivers for the USB dongle, and I've been running 16.6 since February. As is often the case, the software itself works fine, it's just the damn licensing features that are difficult to get working.

author: PlainName
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 15, 2020, 12:52:20 am
content: Got to say that if this were ten years ago a MAC address would be my preference. Used to change those regularly so I could be the green player (and merge into the background) in Doom - it allocated players based on the MAC binary value. To me, that would be much more robust than an easily lost USB stick.But nowadays... drivers tend not to let you do that kind of thing so it's probably pretty difficult. Haven't hard anyone to play Doom against for a while so haven't had to find out.

author: benwis
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: August 15, 2020, 06:49:29 am
content: Quote from: mstevens on August 14, 2020, 02:23:46 pmmstevens was right, but yes. Full perpetual commercial license. My license is tied to the MAC address of one of my network adapters, so I'm not too worried about losing it and that value can be easily changed. I always lose or forget software dongles

author: chris_leyson
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 15, 2020, 02:44:30 pm
content: Capture CIS installed together with an empty Access 2013 database. So under the Capture CIS options menu select CIS configuration wizard... however there is no configuration wizard under the options menu or any other menuMaybe the hotfix broke that feature ? Waiting for Orcad to uninstall and I will give it another try.

author: chris_leyson
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 15, 2020, 04:27:00 pm
content: Well that didn't work, click on Capture CIS 17.4 and it launches Capture. Looks like Capture CIS is not included,will have to see what EMA Design Automation have to say. It would have been nice to have the CIS featureOffer Details: OrCAD Capture & OrCAD PCB Editor (Powered by Allegro) RTFM

author: olkipukki
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: August 16, 2020, 06:11:33 pm
content: Quote from: amiq on August 14, 2020, 08:41:47 pmHow do you change a license host ID?Is there any limited number of rehosts?A bit confused if I want run OrCAD (not at the same time) on desktop and in VM image, what would be your option?

author: olkipukki
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: August 25, 2020, 10:46:33 am
content: I think they will keep this offer until the end of September

author: LTimko
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: September 04, 2020, 08:48:20 am
content: FlowCAD now sells OrCAD PCB Designer Standard with 2 years maintenance for 999EUR:https://www.flowcad.com/en/orcad-standard-promo.htmIt is far from EMA's $530 offer, but CAD softwares in Europe are usually more expensive.

author: AndyC_772
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 09, 2020, 01:03:09 pm
content: I've just received an email offer from Parallel Systems, the UK distributor.OrCAD PCB Standard, permanent licence, inc. 1 yr maintenance,£400+ VAT until Sept 25th (down from £2300).Also, 1 year rental for £230+VAT.

author: olkipukki
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 19, 2020, 04:12:47 pm
content: As far I know, the offer has been extended till December.If somebody missed it, speak to your distributor

author: electrolust
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 20, 2020, 12:08:31 am
content: Quote from: dunkemhigh on August 13, 2020, 05:56:43 pmI like it, but yes it is insane for this not be be settable.Quote17.4 works fine with HiDPI here. PCB however does not. GRRR

author: electrolust
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 20, 2020, 12:11:36 am
content: Quote from: olkipukki on August 25, 2020, 10:46:33 amStill valid today, mid-October. Even cheaper than the $750 I paid just a few months ago. Just buy it.

author: profanum429
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 20, 2020, 02:42:23 am
content: Yep, $630 with the dongle ($100 for that) if you're interested in going that route. I'm about to finalize my order tomorrow; still going to try to get a cheap CIS addon, last attempt resulted in a pretty stupid price, haha.

author: apurvdate
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: October 23, 2020, 12:34:30 pm
content: Seems discounted price is now promoted in other regions as well. I received a promotional email from a dealer in India.Here is the link if anyone needshttps://www.sunstreamglobal.com/products/orcad-pcb-designer/Amount is nearly 630$ after adding taxes.NOTE: I don't know the authenticity of the dealer - not listed as channel partner on OrCad website.

author: Pitrsek
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 24, 2020, 11:23:28 am
content: Actually a good starting point for OrCad distributors would be to start answering emails and calls... you know to speak to people that might actually buy something from you. I feel in such a capable hands alreadySorry for the rant.

author: chris_leyson
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 24, 2020, 01:07:29 pm
content: £400 for 1 year support isn't a bad deal at all. Back when I used Orcad professional Parallel Systems were very helpful usually providing same day support if the problem couldn't be fixed over the phone. The standard Orcad/Allegro package has a lot of useful features disabled but you can still produce good quality PCBs. The CIS option would be nice but maintaining a database of parts is a full time job in itself and Excel or Access will do the job. All of my previous employers have either used Zuken or Orcad and I've stuck with Orcad as it was the first layout tool I learnt. It's all a question of how quickly you can learn the GUI and workflow.

author: nctnico
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 24, 2020, 03:10:54 pm
content: Quote from: chris_leyson on October 24, 2020, 01:07:29 pmNot so much. Create a part once and be done with it. It is not much work to get a component database going. CIS will happily use an MS-Access database so you can use MS-Access to maintain the database.

author: Pitrsek
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 26, 2020, 07:30:55 pm
content: So it seems that we have another episode of "Screw you, Europe!" on our hands. With exception of Great Britain, Ireland and Italy, ema-eda is unable to serve European customers.Price from local distributor is 999eur for OrCad standard(WFH promotion), including 2years of subscription. Regular price is 2.5k, incl 1year sub. No special discount on other Orcad options available at this time. If you tough that database library would be a worthy addition, you'd need add a bit less than 3k for CIS option. So for 4k you get OrCad standard with database lib. Which apart from being out of my "Sunday evening engineering" budget, is also in Altium's "end of fiscal year" price range. If this is a way how they want to grow market share

author: olkipukki
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 26, 2020, 10:49:59 pm
content: Quote from: Pitrsek on October 26, 2020, 07:30:55 pmIn my understanding, EMA EDA serves only USA customers.https://www.orcad.com/buy/cadence-channel-partner-listing?name=1735&country=Quote from: Pitrsek on October 26, 2020, 07:30:55 pmDo you mean FlowCAD guys?I guess mentality of these people - all or nothing

author: AndyC_772
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 27, 2020, 06:48:16 am
content: Quote from: chris_leyson on October 24, 2020, 01:07:29 pmhttps://www.amazon.co.uk/Complete-Design-Using-Capture-Layout/dp/0128176849/Helped me no end - I got a "free" copy included when I bought the software.

author: Pitrsek
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 27, 2020, 06:35:11 pm
content: yes, FlowCAD guys.EMA EDA can serve Italy, Ireland and UK.All or nothing - indeed it seems that's the name of game.

author: AndyC_772
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 29, 2020, 09:47:44 am
content: Just to confirm, the price of £400+VAT is still available in the UK from Parallel Systems.I've just bought a new copy of 17.4 to get proper support for Windows 10 and high DPI monitors.Apparently PSpice is now also included, so it'll be interesting to see if it's worth using instead of LTSpice. Looking forward to seeing what else Cadence have been up to over the last 5 years.

author: chris_leyson
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 29, 2020, 10:24:26 am
content: Be careful when using PSpice, read the following paper by Mike Engelhardt and you will think twice about using PSpice.https://www.analog.com/media/en/technical-documentation/lt-journal-article/ltjournal-v24n4-01-df-spicedifferentiation-mikeengelhardt.pdf