[ROBSCIX]

I am designing some new boards here but I am unsure if it is more cost effective to use a board house or just etch them myself. These designs are very small and the tracings are very thin.

 

[ezkcdude]

I use ExpressPCB. My last order was 100 boards:

 

[ROBSCIX]

Wow, those look quite nice.

 

[cobaltmute]

My first revision of my DAC. These were all bad as U2 was the wrong footprint.



amb made a good note about wrong footprints. Before you send you board out to production, print it out and ensure that your parts fit and have clearance.

 

[ROBSCIX]

Can't you make some type of adapter board to add that fixes the U2 footprint, instead of wasting a lot of boards?

 

[cobaltmute]

I had a thread about that a while back. The issue is that the U2 is supposed to be a PCM2707, which dwarfs the U2 footprint. When I did my corrected boards, I learned there were other issues, so I'm just chalking it up to a learning experience.

I think they do look good though.

 

[timmyGCSE]

bumping this thread..
may look to make a simple pcb, say a cmoy circuit just for the fun of it. I made PCB's back in college using a UV light exposure box, but if I use fred's method that will mean UV exposure is unneccesary night? I just do the toner thing then use this:
PCB Etch Powder : Etching Equipment : Maplin

to etch, then drill?

 

[Fred_fred2004]

That etching powder should work fine, just remember the persulphates need heat to work or the chemical reaction will stop. I just make it up with very hot water and give it a shake every now and then,

cheers
FRED

 

[AndrewFischer]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ROBSCIX /img/forum/go_quote.gif I figured this thread will allow people to post pictures of their work and ask questions of the more experience designers. ... what software and procedure do you use?

I set design parameters, and then design the device. I generally start out with a 'cookbook' design and modify it as needed. Sometimes I do a paper and pencil and other times I'll simulate with SPICE. I don't breadboard first but rather start with Rev 001 PCB. I do schematic capture and layout with Cadsoft Eagle on MacOS and Windows.

I use Advanced Circuits and Olimex for low volume boards. I've done one or two with SunStone's value proto service but now favor Olimex for ones or twos. I've also ordered a couple qty. 100 runs from SunStone.

Pictures:

Pulse Stretcher. Used to connect fMRI to a PC.

Ultrasonic pre-amp. Op-amp and connectors are on the other side of board. Don't have a photo.

Ultrasonic amplifier and power supply. The op-amp I used is dwarfed by the TLE.

Pellet dispenser interface. Sunstone.

Audio Device. (not hi-fi) Olimex.

 

[Abby123]

I use Eagle to design PCBs, because it's relatively easy to use and creates Gerber files, which are the de-facto standard for PCB production.

For PCB prototyping, I use BatchPCB for really small boards - five or six square inches or less. For larger boards, I use Sure Electronics' listings on eBay - five or six double-sided boards, up to sixteen square inches each, for $50 shipped.

For small quantities of production boards, I like MakePCB, because they offer all kinds of options (board thickness, copper weight, finishing, et cetera) at reasonable prices, and produce some really high-quality boards (better than Golden Phoenix, IMO); I also use OurPCB on occasion, as their service is first-rate and their prices vary anywhere from highly competitive to absolutely unbeatable.

My typically cynical observation, after having produced a goodly number of PCBs over the years, is that hobbyist end-users have five principal concerns about finished PCBs. In order: 1, what colour are they; 2, are there mounting holes; 3, how crisp and legible is the silkscreening; 4, how smooth are the edges; 5, does the thing actually work as intended?

You could make a huge 5x7 inch CMoy or A47 PCB with dozens of vias and a just generally ridiculously bad layout, and people would still buy it if it had smooth edges, crisp silkscreening, was blue, red, white, or black, and fit perfectly in a $60 Hammond aluminum enclosure.

I also like to design PCB with eagle software.
It contains a schematic editor that is useful for the construction of circuit diagrams. The software can run on anything including windows and mac.
It is also low on capacity as it can take a maximum of 200 MB with an installer of 25 MB. It comes with both freeware and a low-cost ware that can design any PCB.