Hello,
Let`s share some tips and things that we make on protoboards...
1.) Before creating any circuit, I design it on computer. That way I get much better and smaller design. In some cases it`s almost imposible to make something without a design.
2.) When designing, I try to goal for minimum jumper wires, to layout power traces as far as possible from signal in traces, make enough space for larger traces, make a space for mounting holes. I don`t design before I get all the components, that way I can see how big they are and for example how many holes are the legs of specific capacitor apart...
3.) Then I print my design, one with components installed, other only with traces.
4.) It`s always hard to start. I don`t complicate to much, I take a look and start somewhere. I solder more fragile components at last. If my design involves IC sockets, I solder them first and then start from the socket.
5.) For traces longer than 2 holes, I use capacitor/resistor legs or wire. I solder at the beginning and at the end first, to hold it in place.
6.) I cut the protoboard with a ruller and olfa knife, than I bend it over sharp edge to break it.
I design circuits for protoboards in Windows software called DIY Layout Creator, it`s a free software and I would recommend it to anyone that is looking for protoboard designer. I mastered it very fast.
Here is the layout that I created for STK442-090 amplifier:
At first I tought that this schematic is way to complicated and that I will need to make pcb layout and create or order a pcb. After discovering this software and spending some time, creating and perfecting the board I called it job done. This was my first "big" project on protoboard.
Here is the finished product (sorry but I don˙t have photos of underside of the board and it`s already mounted and finished in the enclosure):
Here is another one, it`s a preamplifier (used to match consumer audio level to pro audio level, sorry I don`t have picture of underside of that either):
I will post pictures of traces on the underside in my first next project, I promise. I think that it will be 5band stereo EQ with gain control, low pass filter and bass boost, so this will be quite a lot.
Go ahead share you tips, thoughts and protoboard projects
Let`s share some tips and things that we make on protoboards...
1.) Before creating any circuit, I design it on computer. That way I get much better and smaller design. In some cases it`s almost imposible to make something without a design.
2.) When designing, I try to goal for minimum jumper wires, to layout power traces as far as possible from signal in traces, make enough space for larger traces, make a space for mounting holes. I don`t design before I get all the components, that way I can see how big they are and for example how many holes are the legs of specific capacitor apart...
3.) Then I print my design, one with components installed, other only with traces.
4.) It`s always hard to start. I don`t complicate to much, I take a look and start somewhere. I solder more fragile components at last. If my design involves IC sockets, I solder them first and then start from the socket.
5.) For traces longer than 2 holes, I use capacitor/resistor legs or wire. I solder at the beginning and at the end first, to hold it in place.
6.) I cut the protoboard with a ruller and olfa knife, than I bend it over sharp edge to break it.
I design circuits for protoboards in Windows software called DIY Layout Creator, it`s a free software and I would recommend it to anyone that is looking for protoboard designer. I mastered it very fast.
Here is the layout that I created for STK442-090 amplifier:
At first I tought that this schematic is way to complicated and that I will need to make pcb layout and create or order a pcb. After discovering this software and spending some time, creating and perfecting the board I called it job done. This was my first "big" project on protoboard.
Here is the finished product (sorry but I don˙t have photos of underside of the board and it`s already mounted and finished in the enclosure):
Here is another one, it`s a preamplifier (used to match consumer audio level to pro audio level, sorry I don`t have picture of underside of that either):
I will post pictures of traces on the underside in my first next project, I promise. I think that it will be 5band stereo EQ with gain control, low pass filter and bass boost, so this will be quite a lot.
Go ahead share you tips, thoughts and protoboard projects
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It has me totally in awe.
I didn't mean to upstage your fine build. I've done some perf-work, it is very handy stuff. With practice you get better/bigger. (With age I forget how I used to do it.)
I posted mainly for the far-out point that probably "nothing", no matter how complicated, is beyond the reach of perfboard.
I didn't mean to upstage your fine build. I've done some perf-work, it is very handy stuff. With practice you get better/bigger. (With age I forget how I used to do it.)
I posted mainly for the far-out point that probably "nothing", no matter how complicated, is beyond the reach of perfboard.
We built a prototype 200kVA (pulse) RDCL power converter, all on perf board.
I built all the fiber optic driven GTO gate driver cards with 100A peak drive current for it.
Design integration of a 200 kW GTO RDCL converter | Request PDF
The design and implementation of a passive clamp resonant DC link inverter for... | Request PDF
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As PRR showed, nearly anything is possible on perf / proto board. It all depends on the builders level of patience. The first picture is of a digital music synthesizer I built around 1971. This used all RTL logic chips which contain a single gate or flip flop in an 8 pin can. There are over 300 such chips and 30 or so transistors all wired up with wire reclaimed fro some junk equipment. Could I do this today? No way!
The 2nd and 3rd pictures are of a MC68HC11 SBC that I designed and built in the early 1990s. It was used to learn the "C" programming language as applied in an embedded controller environment. The higher quality perf board and high temp (Kynar I believe) wire wrap wire made this far easier than it looks.
The experience gained led to the EFI boost controller design (4th pic) used on a high performance car to "fake out" the on board electronics in order to make mor power by turning up the turbo boost.
The 5th picture shows an early SMPS boost converter that used an SG3525 controller chip and 4 fat mosfets to make +/- 40 volts to run 4 X Plastic Tiger boards for the main outputs and 1 X Universal Tiger for the subwoofer in a car stereo amp. Only 2 X Plastic Tiger boards are in place when this picture was made.
This was built for my class project when I went to college at age 40. Surrounded by young students the teacher asked us to come up with a project, state its design goals and measurement criteria early in the class. Our grade would be determined by how well we met the goals. I stated that I was going to build a loud car stereo, and the teacher's head would hit the roof of my car when I turned it on........I got an "A".
The 6th and 7th pictures are of a little digital music synthesizer I built a couple of years ago. As you can see the Vector board and wire wrap techniques haven't changed in nearly 30 years. That's because they work well for me.
Pictures 8,9 and 10 are of a small "virtual analog music synthesizer I made using perf board. It can be seen in test here. There have been several software revisions since that video was made and there is now a music keyboard attached. A new video is in the works, but a software bug still eludes my capture and execution.
YouTube
I have found some reasonably decent board material on Amazon that costs far less than genuine Vector board. The 4 X 6 inch size costs about $1 each if you buy 10 at a time and wait for direct shipment from China. In singles on Amazon Prime they are about $4.00 for double sided plated through holes, and less for single sided. Double sided boards are really only needed when SMD parts are used on one side and the connections are made on the other side.
Uxcell a16040500ux0190 3 Piece Double Sided Prototype Universal PCB Print Circuit Board 9 x 15 cm Green, 5.91" Width, 3.54" Length: Amazon.com: Industrial & Scientific
The 2nd and 3rd pictures are of a MC68HC11 SBC that I designed and built in the early 1990s. It was used to learn the "C" programming language as applied in an embedded controller environment. The higher quality perf board and high temp (Kynar I believe) wire wrap wire made this far easier than it looks.
The experience gained led to the EFI boost controller design (4th pic) used on a high performance car to "fake out" the on board electronics in order to make mor power by turning up the turbo boost.
The 5th picture shows an early SMPS boost converter that used an SG3525 controller chip and 4 fat mosfets to make +/- 40 volts to run 4 X Plastic Tiger boards for the main outputs and 1 X Universal Tiger for the subwoofer in a car stereo amp. Only 2 X Plastic Tiger boards are in place when this picture was made.
This was built for my class project when I went to college at age 40. Surrounded by young students the teacher asked us to come up with a project, state its design goals and measurement criteria early in the class. Our grade would be determined by how well we met the goals. I stated that I was going to build a loud car stereo, and the teacher's head would hit the roof of my car when I turned it on........I got an "A".
The 6th and 7th pictures are of a little digital music synthesizer I built a couple of years ago. As you can see the Vector board and wire wrap techniques haven't changed in nearly 30 years. That's because they work well for me.
Pictures 8,9 and 10 are of a small "virtual analog music synthesizer I made using perf board. It can be seen in test here. There have been several software revisions since that video was made and there is now a music keyboard attached. A new video is in the works, but a software bug still eludes my capture and execution.
YouTube
I have found some reasonably decent board material on Amazon that costs far less than genuine Vector board. The 4 X 6 inch size costs about $1 each if you buy 10 at a time and wait for direct shipment from China. In singles on Amazon Prime they are about $4.00 for double sided plated through holes, and less for single sided. Double sided boards are really only needed when SMD parts are used on one side and the connections are made on the other side.
Uxcell a16040500ux0190 3 Piece Double Sided Prototype Universal PCB Print Circuit Board 9 x 15 cm Green, 5.91" Width, 3.54" Length: Amazon.com: Industrial & Scientific
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When I did my city and guilds in industrial electronics pretty much everything we made for projects was on stripboard. We did make our own pcb's once just to prove we could do it.
These days Chinese pcb's are so cheap (£20 for batch of 10 100mm by 100mm) that I don't even bother prototyping. I might do some ltspice simulations to make sure I am happy first though.
These days Chinese pcb's are so cheap (£20 for batch of 10 100mm by 100mm) that I don't even bother prototyping. I might do some ltspice simulations to make sure I am happy first though.
For that size pcb I would rely on my PCBCAD51 software to do some net optimisation and some swap autoplacing.
Swap autoplacing looks at two components at a time and if swapping them results in a shorter net it swaps them. If two components are swapped it starts again from component 1 and sees if it can swap with another component for shorter net. It continues through the whole pcb it until no swaps are needed.
I come from a 41 year career at Motorola where I laid out very dense small RF PCBs that were SMD and contained 600+ components on a 6 square inch board. These were prototype PCB's for cell phones and two way radios. I used Mentor Graphics and Cadence products.
Since the boards often contained circuits that didn't like to coexist such as microphone audio, high speed digital, 5 watt transmitters and ultra high spec receivers that covered 136 to 941 MHz, we could not use any of the auto place, placement optimization, or auto routing tools. Often a complex board (maybe 10 layers of HDI) would take me 2 weeks to place, then 2 days to route. Getting all the parts in the right place before routing a single trace is the key to making a good board that's easy to route. Make your primary signal path whether audio or RF as short and as direct as possible. Build all the support stuff around it.
The same goes with proto board. I start with a pile of parts and a good sized chunk of empty desk. I play with the parts moving them around, usually upside down (leads up) while visualizing the routing. This is where I determine the required board size. If the design is not finalized or is created for experimenting, I leave ample extra space. These kind of designs will likely get done over once or twice before being committed to PCB. If that's the case, I don't pay too much attention to details like mounting holes and wasted space on the first pass.
Once I think I have it close, I take a picture, and print it or display it on a big screen (44 inch TV set). I usually build it in sections such that I can test and optimize each section. If one particular section is more of a guess than a working circuit, I start with that one in case I need to scrap it and start over.
Since the boards often contained circuits that didn't like to coexist such as microphone audio, high speed digital, 5 watt transmitters and ultra high spec receivers that covered 136 to 941 MHz, we could not use any of the auto place, placement optimization, or auto routing tools. Often a complex board (maybe 10 layers of HDI) would take me 2 weeks to place, then 2 days to route. Getting all the parts in the right place before routing a single trace is the key to making a good board that's easy to route. Make your primary signal path whether audio or RF as short and as direct as possible. Build all the support stuff around it.
The same goes with proto board. I start with a pile of parts and a good sized chunk of empty desk. I play with the parts moving them around, usually upside down (leads up) while visualizing the routing. This is where I determine the required board size. If the design is not finalized or is created for experimenting, I leave ample extra space. These kind of designs will likely get done over once or twice before being committed to PCB. If that's the case, I don't pay too much attention to details like mounting holes and wasted space on the first pass.
Once I think I have it close, I take a picture, and print it or display it on a big screen (44 inch TV set). I usually build it in sections such that I can test and optimize each section. If one particular section is more of a guess than a working circuit, I start with that one in case I need to scrap it and start over.
There's some relevant discussion here although I haven't tried VeeCAD myself yet:
Pleased with "VeeCAD" software for Stripboard / VeroBoard
Pleased with "VeeCAD" software for Stripboard / VeroBoard
what is the recommend way to put a ground bus on a perfboard?
when i use a breadboard i usually use one of the "power" rails for ground and make all the ground connections to that one rail.
would it be good practise to have a bare wire running along the outer edge of the board as a ground rail? better to have a rail on each side (like on a breadboard)? any recommendations or ideas?
thanks!
sorry if that question sound silly but i'm only getting started working with perf boards.
when i use a breadboard i usually use one of the "power" rails for ground and make all the ground connections to that one rail.
would it be good practise to have a bare wire running along the outer edge of the board as a ground rail? better to have a rail on each side (like on a breadboard)? any recommendations or ideas?
thanks!
sorry if that question sound silly but i'm only getting started working with perf boards.
Look at the second and third picture in post 11, the side with the red and orange wire. I used some tinned flat strip that's 1/8 inch wide for the ground bus that feeds Eprom and Sram. Ground bounce was a problem withe these early chips and the flat stuff works great.
The music synthesizer in the last three pictures uses ordinary tinned wire for the ground bus. The blue board contains pots and rotary encoders so relatively thin wire in a 2 X 4 grid worked fine. The red wire wrap wire is the 3.3V B+.
The Vector board (middle picture) runs a Teensy 3.6 Arduino compatible micro computer and a 44/16 stereo interface, the two small plug in boards. There is a thick ground wire running from each board to the edge ground, and a small piece of copper screen connecting all the grounds together. This helps keep the digital noise out of the audio.
Lordy.
...How did they replace your skillset? Thats quite the specific set of skills (ahem, apologies Liam Neeson) you'd have at that stage, and I don't imagine there's a conveyor belt of folk behind you capable of that kind of work!
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