Pre-canned if you want it up and running and move on with your life. Otherwise, you can spend a lot of time tinkering, though you will have more flexibility in the future. Most of the pre canned systems do have cameras that can work elsewhere, though.
Probably the best idea if you get a system is to get an IP based one. A lot of the entry level systems and cams are still coaxial based and that absolutely will limit you in the future. It's now possible to get a 10 MP IP camera for $300. It's a piece of crap, but it shows where things are going.
I have a few hikvision cameras and I don't use a DVR software of any kind. I have them all recording to local storage. Hikvision are fairly unique among IP cameras in that they have a built in DVR function. Some other brands do as well, but not many. What this means is you can play back video directly from the camera (it tapping your network storage, obviously); so there is a timeline function if you login to it with a browser or through its mobile app. Although it's not as full functioned as a stand alone one, it's been good for my needs.
Thus:
Windows machine with some file share locations
cameras
POE switch
This is a recent setup and I obsessively research before buying cameras. In this price point ($100-150 for 2-3 MP cameras) hikvision seems to be the defacto first go-to these days. Dahua is a close competitor. Foscam is well represented on Amazon but I think they are worth skipping and genuinely not worth bothering with.