Chief Architect vs. Home Designer Pro


rbbarnh1
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Can someone explain to me the difference between Chief Architect and Home Designer Pro. I bought HD Pro thinking i could produce Construction Drawings and it seems i am only able to produce 1 sheet at a time. Ive read about layer sets, is that just for Chief A? 

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About $2,300.00

 

There is a comparison on the Chief website, and for the best answer, call and talk to someone in sales.

 

Pro is limited to 1 Layout sheet at a time. You just need to use multiple layouts.

 

Pro has 1 layer set that cannot be changed, Chief has as many as you want, and you can modify them all, and also has annotation sets which are a collection of settings/defaults.

 

There are many productivity enhancements and the ability to create a variety of solids, create symbols and much more. I modeled this wall hung fireplace in Chief. No way to do this in Pro.

 

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Chief has ray tracing to produce a more realistic image.

 

Good for exteriors, very good for interiors.

 

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And various other rendering options.

 

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It's a lot of money to upgrade, but if you are using it as part of a business, it may be worth it.

 

You can download the trial and see for yourself.

 

 

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With Pro the paper size is a limitation as well, the largest it will natively print to is 18" x 24". With Chief Premier you can print to any size imaginable. It is true that HD Pro requires a .layout file for each printed page, 10 pages=ten .layout files. In Premier you have one .layout file that is programmed for up to 1,000 pages within that one file. The greater exchange in terms of money gains you a lot more productivity and choices. But in the end it is your choice to make based upon what you need and want.

 

DJP

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Btw. In my area that price is plenty to approach a draftsman with a autocad file in many formats HD has.... and get a savings on their time plus a double checker for your plans. We are even speaking to a Architect Draftsman team and getting a quote for less than that. I just "sold" HD to a friend that is excited about my renderings video and she needs for her remodeling plans, now. I would only learn CA if it was for business. Not to mention the upgrades and furniture files that linger in the future price tag (maybe furniture extras are given to CA?.. maybe) but you seriously need to have some profitable consistent reason. I would learn HD very well, it seems so close to CA and at least that isn't a waste because I bet it is easier.

 

If you are doing a very complex design, I think that is the point it might take me to purchase CA.

If you remodel like a class B contractor and you need permits and drawings..well then yes.. I think you should consider CA. 

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