Bring out yer Diptrace

[Robert]

Dredging up a thread.. this may be a dumb question, but how are you setting up the pot locations on your PCB?

This is how I do it.

Getting drill guides from Eagle PCB

Hi all, I occasionally make my own PCBs using Eagle, and one of the biggest things I'd like to be able to do is no reinvent the wheel and take advantage of all the Tayda pre-drilled enclosures. But I'm not sure how to accurately create a board layout that would match any of the standard PPCB...

forum.pedalpcb.com

 

[Grubb]

I typically let graphic design drive PCB design unless I’m using a PedalPCB predrilled unit.

Exactly this. Pot location is set by how the front of my pedal is designed to look, then I subtract 16mm from the Y coordinate of the knob position to place the pot pads. All of this is much easier if you design the board with the origin point being the centre of the pedal enclosure and not just the centre of the PCB itself.

 

[bhcarpenter]

You all have inspired me. Here’s a layout based on some DIY classics. It’s a John Hollis Flatline with a Jack Orman Stupidly Wonderful Tone Control (http://www.muzique.com/lab/swtc.htm). It’s my first try at laying out a PCB.

 

[vigilante398]

I'm really excited about this layout so I wanted to share. I already make an Ampeg B-15N preamp with a 12AX7, but I always wanted to try one with a 6SL7 like the original. I wasn't able to get it into a 125B, but it should fit into a 1590BBS.

 

[Passinwind]

I'm really excited about this layout so I wanted to share. I already make an Ampeg B-15N preamp with a 12AX7, but I always wanted to try one with a 6SL7 like the original. I wasn't able to get it into a 125B, but it should fit into a 1590BBS.

View attachment 42144
View attachment 42145

I absolutely love 6SL7 for bass applications, and 12AX7 usually not so much, so...SWEET!

 

[Mentaltossflycoon]

Certainly grabbing my interest there with the 6SL7.

 

[szukalski]

Some more questions for those with some experience..

What's your take on copper pours? Ground on both layers? Ground + VCC?

Pour clearance? Currently looking at 0.25mm/0.01", any thoughts?

 

[Robert]

I put ground pours on top and bottom layers.

0.01" clearance, 0.01" Line Width / Spacing, and 0.013" border clearance.

 

[Grubb]

Some more questions for those with some experience..

What's your take on copper pours? Ground on both layers? Ground + VCC?

Pour clearance? Currently looking at 0.25mm/0.01", any thoughts?

I try and do ground layers both top and bottom. I've done VREF on a plane before, but it was because I was having trouble routing the board without it. I just use the default clearance in DipTrace and have not had an issue with it.

 

[vigilante398]

Someone on here said something that nagged me in the back of my brain until I had to lay this out. If it works the way I expect it to I may have another DIY project for you fabulous folks.

 

[szukalski]

To keep a fine thread going..

What are your thoughts on where to take power for the LED? I see some designers taking it before the reverse polarity protection diode, and others putting it after. Any reason not to go the latter way? If you were using a relay break-out board then you could save on the protection diode there (it's not a high cost but it is another component to manage..).

 

[Grubb]

What are your thoughts on where to take power for the LED? I see some designers taking it before the reverse polarity protection diode, and others putting it after. Any reason not to go the latter way?

Nothing technical from me here, but rather something pragmatic. I tend to copy the power schematic from my earlier designs and reuse the generic parts in each subsequent layout. This has meant my boards have a 9V line for the LED that branches out prior to the diode, as the first circuit recipes I ever copied were laid out that way. Now it's an inherited feature of my later designs. I'm open to improvements if a case can be made that it's more important than mere personal preference.

 

[coltonius]

Some of you guys are really good at this! Here's my first attempt, and I had a lot of help. A lot. It's a proto board of the Cobra Chicken (PTD Rotobone Clone) I'm working on:

 

[JamieJ]

It’s good to keep this thread alive. It’s alway interesting to see what people are doing with making their own PCB layouts.

Here’s a combined fuzz/octafuzz.

Has anyone used JLCPCB SMD soldering service? I plan to use this for this build.

 

[dan.schumaker]

I've been using the SMD service a bit lately. I am only using it to squeeze more into a 1590A It is a different way of thinking how to lay parts out, how to trace around them, but its a fun way to think differently on how to solve the puzzle.

 

[szukalski]

I've been tempted by the SMD service, but they don't do DDP for the EU with it. May have to bite the bullet and try..

In any case, a few of the things I've been working on to share the love.

Chuck's FET/Ge Boost:

A Pharoah Muff, trying to route based on audio path rather than aesthetics:

Proto-board for mini breadboards plus pots:

Chuck's basic relay made for 1590B:

 

[JamieJ]

@dan.schumaker - I have had loads of issues with uploading the CPL and BOM files previously and could never get it to work but I’ve had a breakthrough today with this PCB and managed to get it working! The amount you fit in a 1590A is beyond belief!

 

[Smrtokvitek]

I have this design in a to-do drawer. It is my take on Freia fuzz with an integrated switch and the possibility of midi switching. Nothing tested yet. I sadly don't have the resources to push it to production.

 

[Feral Feline]

Is "PirateCat" the name of the effect or the name of your pedal-company-to-be?

 

[Smrtokvitek]

Is "PirateCat" the name of the effect or the name of your pedal-company-to-be?

Name of the "pedal-company-to-be" sounds about right. I was thinking about naming the pedal Brünnhilde fuzz. It is also a goddess and a cat...

Brünnhilde

1 photograph : print ; sheet 12 x 9 cm. | Photograph shows side view of a cat wearing a winged helmet and breastplate armor in the role of the valkyrie Brünnhilde from the opera Der Ring des Niebelungen.

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