EDA Tool SetsùPRO's & CON's Between OrCAD & Electronics Workbench 1

[CliffMichael]

I'm interested in practical differences and recommendations between professional OrCAD & Electronics Workbench EDA suites for electronics schematic capture, SPICE simulation, PCB layout, and PCB autorouting tool sets. Looking for cost, performance, ease of use, product support, and overall quality and utility assessment. Thank you.

 

[lcsjk]

I'll try to give more on this later, but I am almost out of time today. I've recently used ORCAD, looked at workbench but not used; Used PADS (new company now), used PROTEL, and EAGLE for PCB layout. So far, Protel was best overall for an engineer, mainly because it has more easy to use features. Pads and ORCAD are both good but both stink in library management, with PADS being 10 times better. If you are not locked in yet, I suggest you take a good look at Protel along with the other two. They announced over a year ago that they were working on a better library management system. ONe thing about Protel is that the component list is set-up as a spread sheet that can be modified to give values, footprints, and other parameters using Excel and then put back into the schematic all at once. This is much worse in Orcad.
One other thing you might consider. Orcad is the oldest and one of the best schematic capture packages. PADS (cadence?) is one of the oldest and most versatile PCB packages and can use Orcad for its schematic. Four years ago, my designer claimed that that combination was by far the best soulution he had ever used. As an engineer, and one who only works with board layout every few months, I find that intuitive is much better for me than versatile. I don't have time to learn where everything is each time I do a new board, and that is the case with Orcad and Pads board layout programs.
Well, enough for now.

 

[radsdau]

I've not used OrCAD for Windows, but did have a lot of experience with schematics using OrCAD for DOS.... the biggest thing it has going for it is it SPEED- it runs fast on a crummy 486. That said, to make it fast you need to set up macros etc, but once done and once you know them all, it's lightning. But that's where it ends... it's pretty clunky from there. But it works ok. No doubt the UI is more friendly in the Windows variants. Pretty pricey too.

I have used Protel a LOT, and with its customiseable menus, keystrokes, and macros, it too can be very productive- but needs a half decent PC to run well. On older versions (98 and pre) the autorouter does some really dumb things; it gets better in later versions, but still makes you wonder sometimes. BUT it'll route a complex board in 100th the time you or I could.

With the fact that Protel comes as a complete suite (start-finish tools) and for the price, it's a great product. A few bugs here and there, but hey- what package doesn't? Feature-wise, I've done several 6-layer boards with BGAs etc (and LOTS more boards too) (using 98 and 99SE) and it does everything I need it to, and more, and fast.

 

[felixc]

You may want to take a look at Pulsonix. A complete suite at an incredibly low price. Infinite number of layers, infinite number of nets. Integrated layout and schematic for instant updates. Almost too good to be true. Has anyone tried it?