Chessbase 11: How good is it?

I love chessbase products. Just the downloads and all function nicely together. Like a network of computers. I have Fritz 13 and pocket fritz 4 and megadatabase 2010 within fritz, and chessbase app for android.

I've seen the chessbase videos and if it was inexpensive would purchase but the price seems ridiculous. What would chessbase 11 have that fritz 13 doesn't for a club player who likes chessbase stuff. Does the starter package make more sense seeing I have a megadatabase. Does none if it make much sense. Also Would chessbase 9 work just as well if I found one fairly cheap. thx

i have 2009 premium [downloadcb light and upgrade] and it works like a charm. useful for db management. cost 50 euro when i got it, a year or two ago i think.

i have no need for megadb when you get access to the chesslive online db with two keystrokes and an internet connection, plus you could always download the TWIC files and ICCF (a top corr organization) to comprise your own db.

if you want annotated games i am not sure what is the best value.  if you have access to playchess via fritz, if you visit the premium training videos section, the pgns of past broadcasts you view there automatically download themselves on your computer of the broadcasts you see. so you can get some via going to the end of some videos.  and some chess.com articles etc there is some good analysis.

chesspub has a nice collection of 18,000+ annotated games on all systems by GMs and IMs, plus a few surveys, i have a subscription there.

I suggest you try SCID, which is free.  There are many sources for DB in pgn that you can load into SCID (for example, http://icofy-blog.de/icofy-base/, many other sources).  Once you have some experience, examine ChessBase and see if the price is worth its advantages over SCID.

I'm using CB9 with CB BIG DB 2011 and I'm happy. You can message me with anymore specific questions. BTW my BIG DB 2011 is up-to-date thanks to TWIC but I understand TWIC is going "out of business" so I may have to start purchasing new DBs every other year or so.

well u can have it for free but it is illegal

Chessbase products have a decent user interface and have tons of features.

The drawback is they only run on windows and for many people chessbase 11 tends to crash a lot.

If you want something much more solid with fewer features, I would recommend Hiarcs Chess Explorer.

Chessbase 11 is a very good tool, especially for exploring games, learning openings, and for building your own repertoire. You don't need the premium version, just go for the middle-grade.

Wow, they claim to have 5million games in their free DB.  That's pretty impressive.