For what it's worth.....I've had a Hypertherm 1000, went to a Thermal Dynamics Cutmaster 82, and presently a Hypertherm 65. In my opinion the Hypertherm is the better machine.
I prefer the hypertherm products and i'm sure it would be an upgrade but if you are interested I have a thermadyne cutmaster 82 with the cpc interface board already installed ($180 i think) and a couple hundred dollars of consumables that i'll sell for 2k plus shipping. It's only been used once still has the tags on it and still has the factory installed nozzle on it. I bought it as a backup / manual cutting machine but i don't use it.
Admin, I apologize of offering items for sale is against the rules, please delete this and let me know