PCB Layout for Musical Effects by R.G Keen

[ToneAlchemists]

I found this book by R.G Keen pretty useful for PCB Design for Effects.

Has any one else read this book ? and if so what do you think about his methodology of pcb design for effects pedal?

PCB Layout for Musical Effects by R.G Keen

 

[rwl]

I read it. IMO it was not worth it given the $40 printing cost. If you have it it's worth reading and some of the iterative examples are good.

There's some other good content but it's really out of date - the book is from ~2002 or something. It's really intended for home etching. IIRC he presents software like photoshop as the tool the reader is most likely to use to create layouts. Most of the details don't really translate well to an era of digital layout in KiCAD or similar, with professional fabrication with extremely tight tolerances.

I found the basic principle of laying out components in the order of the circuit and grouping them into "stamps" or small sets of components helpful as a starting point, and I do that for most layouts of any complexity. But I think for PCBs you see around the forum that tend to be inspired by the appearance of PPCB layouts, the basic Keen-style layouts still require substantial massaging are not aesthetically pleasing and require a bunch of additional work he doesn't cover. And there's some beautiful layouts floating around in threads on here, not to mention the PPCB layouts themselves.

The main gap I hoped the book would address is what sounds good in a layout. In the end laying things out digitally when you can have vias and multiple layers and tight tolerances is pretty straightforward if you just want to connect everything. But I would have appreciated 3-4 pages that highlighted clear layout problems which will add noise/ticking/interference/etc. It's expensive/slow/wasteful to test these things yourself.

 

[Nostradoomus]

I read it. IMO it was not worth it given the $40 printing cost. If you have it it's worth reading and some of the iterative examples are good.

There's some other good content but it's really out of date - the book is from ~2002 or something. It's really intended for home etching. IIRC he presents software like photoshop as the tool the reader is most likely to use to create layouts. Most of the details don't really translate well to an era of digital layout in KiCAD or similar, with professional fabrication with extremely tight tolerances.

I found the basic principle of laying out components in the order of the circuit and grouping them into "stamps" or small sets of components helpful as a starting point, and I do that for most layouts of any complexity. But I think for PCBs you see around the forum that tend to be inspired by the appearance of PPCB layouts, the basic Keen-style layouts still require substantial massaging are not aesthetically pleasing and require a bunch of additional work he doesn't cover. And there's some beautiful layouts floating around in threads on here, not to mention the PPCB layouts themselves.

The main gap I hoped the book would address is what sounds good in a layout. In the end laying things out digitally when you can have vias and multiple layers and tight tolerances is pretty straightforward if you just want to connect everything. But I would have appreciated 3-4 pages that highlighted clear layout problems which will add noise/ticking/interference/etc. It's expensive/slow/wasteful to test these things yourself.

That's what I got out of it too...or do now that I've laid out quite a few things. It was a good read when I was just getting into it.

 

[t1redhands]

I read it. IMO it was not worth it given the $40 printing cost. If you have it it's worth reading and some of the iterative examples are good.

Yep, my experience as well. The tips on organizing the board according to "stamps" was very helpful when I was getting overwhelmed by ambitious projects. Otherwise there are YouTube videos that are much more informative and relevant for today's CAD programs.

 

[MattG]

I got this book as a birthday gift, and read it. I agree with most of the comments above: it's not bad by any means, but is woefully out of date.

I kinda-sorta have been doing his "stamp" method, though having it explained explicitly was useful. In particular, it seems obvious now, but I like the encouragement to group clusters of components (i.e. the stamps) such that there need be only one or two traces needed to connect them.

The main gap I hoped the book would address is what sounds good in a layout.... But I would have appreciated 3-4 pages that highlighted clear layout problems which will add noise/ticking/interference/etc. It's expensive/slow/wasteful to test these things yourself.

Yes, this is really what I was hoping to get out of the book, and it didn't address that. Maybe, some of the potential issues you describe are emergent due to the availability of cheap manufactured PCBs with tight tolerance? IOW, if you're etching at home, you're necessarily going to make fatter traces and bigger spaces between traces compared to what JLCPCB can manufacturer for you for less than $10. Presumably, issues like crosstalk and signal coupling and oscillation are more likely when you have small traces that run right next to each other.

The other thing is, his examples show all offboard wiring, including pots all being around the PCB edge. At least in my experience, when you PCB-mount pots, particularly if you have more than three, it gets really hard to keep to the "stamp" methodology, because (1) space for your stamps is now implicitly carved up by the pot holes, and (2) one stamp (say a Baxandall EQ) might include multiple pots, so you either have wacky, non-uniform stamps, or traces running through other stamps to connect the pots.

However, while not really practical, I did walk away with an appreciation for folks making PCBs a decade or more before I got into it. I mean, the thought of using a program like MS Paint, or even using construction paper cutouts and doing it physically... not to mention the effort involved in the actual etching... mad props to the folks who did that! We really are spoiled when we can use quality free software to whip up a valid design, in a few hours, have it automatically validated against the schematic, and spend a fairly small amount of cash to have it professionally manufactured and shipped.

 

[mckillacuddy]

I got this book as a birthday gift, and read it. I agree with most of the comments above: it's not bad by any means, but is woefully out of date.

I kinda-sorta have been doing his "stamp" method, though having it explained explicitly was useful. In particular, it seems obvious now, but I like the encouragement to group clusters of components (i.e. the stamps) such that there need be only one or two traces needed to connect them.



Yes, this is really what I was hoping to get out of the book, and it didn't address that. Maybe, some of the potential issues you describe are emergent due to the availability of cheap manufactured PCBs with tight tolerance? IOW, if you're etching at home, you're necessarily going to make fatter traces and bigger spaces between traces compared to what JLCPCB can manufacturer for you for less than $10. Presumably, issues like crosstalk and signal coupling and oscillation are more likely when you have small traces that run right next to each other.

The other thing is, his examples show all offboard wiring, including pots all being around the PCB edge. At least in my experience, when you PCB-mount pots, particularly if you have more than three, it gets really hard to keep to the "stamp" methodology, because (1) space for your stamps is now implicitly carved up by the pot holes, and (2) one stamp (say a Baxandall EQ) might include multiple pots, so you either have wacky, non-uniform stamps, or traces running through other stamps to connect the pots.

However, while not really practical, I did walk away with an appreciation for folks making PCBs a decade or more before I got into it. I mean, the thought of using a program like MS Paint, or even using construction paper cutouts and doing it physically... not to mention the effort involved in the actual etching... mad props to the folks who did that! We really are spoiled when we can use quality free software to whip up a valid design, in a few hours, have it automatically validated against the schematic, and spend a fairly small amount of cash to have it professionally manufactured and shipped.

Old school isn’t necessarily “woeful”. There’s plenty of reasons I’d rather etch a single board at home than spend my lunch money to have five boards (some of which I may never use) shipped across the Pacific Ocean; or worse, spend a week’s dinner money to have a whole stack made in my own country. I can support the one last electronics shop near me to pick up parts today, use a ruler and la-co marker to layout the exact footprints on hand, jiggle a board or two in the gut bucket and have a working circuit by tonight. Not to mention neutralize the etchant and wash it down the drain.

I also got the Keen book as gift recentlyand I’m most of the way through it now. I’ll definitely reread it. I have huge respect for what Keen has given to the diy pedal world and I’m glad he’s still making a few bucks on it. I wonder if he’d still be up to an updated revision. I’d buy it for sure.

 

[Locrian99]

Is there a modern book that anyone recommends? Ive sucessfully made several pcbs that sound fine. But i know I’m not doing things “best”.

 

[MattG]

Old school isn’t necessarily “woeful”. There’s plenty of reasons I’d rather etch a single board at home than spend my lunch money to have five boards (some of which I may never use) shipped across the Pacific Ocean; or worse, spend a week’s dinner money to have a whole stack made in my own country. I can support the one last electronics shop near me to pick up parts today, use a ruler and la-co marker to layout the exact footprints on hand, jiggle a board or two in the gut bucket and have a working circuit by tonight. Not to mention neutralize the etchant and wash it down the drain.

Agreed, woeful was probably too strong of a word.

Honest question, as I've never done either: what's the effort and final result difference when comparing self-etched PCBs against vero board?

I have huge respect for what Keen has given to the diy pedal world and I’m glad he’s still making a few bucks on it. I wonder if he’d still be up to an updated revision. I’d buy it for sure.

This absolutely, 100%! I definitely got a little out of the book, but even if I didn't get anything I'm more than happy to show my appreciation for all his contributions to the DIY community. I wouldn't think twice about grabbing an updated version of the book!

 

[vigilante398]

Honest question, as I've never done either: what's the effort and final result difference when comparing self-etched PCBs against vero board?

Having done both for years before getting my first CNC machine to mill boards myself, I would say etched boards are going to be less work, but if you're patient you'll be able to get good results with either. Once you get a few boards' worth of practice you'll start to get a decent workflow for etching boards and can do a few at a time reasonably quickly, and they will be easier to assemble as there will be a designated place for everything, and you can generally get circuits into a smaller board with a PCB.

With vero you will be doing every single cut and every single jumper by hand, every single time. You will have to check placement of each component every time because all the holes look the same. Board-mounted pots and switches are all but impossible because of how "traces" work on vero. It's cheap and easy to get boards, but I find the whole process to just be more restrictive.

The pinnacle of my achievements etching boards was when I decided to do a "silkscreen" on the component side with a waterslide decal so I could see where the components needed to go without staring at the build doc for everything, and frankly you can do the same thing with vero to save yourself a few minutes during assembly, but in my opinion PCBs are just going to be the way to go.

 

[mckillacuddy]

I’m terrible at laying out vero so the difference for me is in the prep. To get a board ready to etch you need a laser printer or etch resist pen; with vero you just need a pattern. To cut pads for an etch you need drill bits that are both tiny and durable, and access to a drill press; but you can cut vero traces by hand with a standard bit or a sharp blade.

Once all that’s done though, etched boards are as easy to solder up as anything you’ll get from a fab shop. Soldering vero is more meticulous and you have to pay closer attention to detail with placement and technique. At least I do! I’ve messed up more veros with minor mistakes than any other part of pedal diy