Did it happen with anybody here? Failed PCBs...

-_nando-_ · 18th July 2007, 06:05 AM

Hi all,

I'm pretty frustrated as I made a nice development board to work with some SMD microcontrollers on Eagle, and the PCB manufacturer did **** ...

I worked on it so much, trying to figure out what could be wrong, so many nights, weekends, days... How could I expect that the PCB from a "professional" manufacturer could be the problem?! Almost 20 days do find it out... Imagine how much I've burned my brain !

Many short circuits to the ground, failed tracks... And this crap wasn't cheap at all ! I spent 1.100 reais on it, almost 550 usd, + the microcontrolers, and the soldering service. The whole thing was about 2000 reais, so 1000 USD. Pretty expensive !

Anybody here has ever experienced a failed PCB ?

God...

TwoSpoons · 18th July 2007, 06:14 AM

Did you follow all the design rules specified by the manufacturer? Did you request a 100% electrical test on the bare pcb?

PCB faults are not uncommon - just that usually you don't see them because they are weeded out by the pcb manufacturer (but you need to ask them to test!)

-_nando-_ · 18th July 2007, 06:32 AM

Yes, I followed all the rules, they checked the file before make the PCB and everything.

But I didn't request an eletrical test, as it would be an additional cost, and I thought that it wouldn't be necessary.

They made 10 PCBs, 5 are working, other 5 PCBs are faultly.

TwoSpoons · 18th July 2007, 07:06 AM

I've seen 10% failure before, but not 50%. You might want to complain to the manufacturer.

thomas997 · 18th July 2007, 05:04 PM

Is this a 2 or 4 layer PCB? Four layer pcbs should always be electrically tested.

-_nando-_ · 29th July 2007, 07:57 AM

It's two layers.

I'll talk to the manufacturer, this is absurd !

Conrad Hoffman · 29th July 2007, 12:17 PM

I haven't had a bad PCB in decades. I remember fighting with holes that weren't quite plated through, shorts and opens, but quality lately has been good from the people I use. That doesn't mean they can't have a bad day, or that maybe you did things in the layout that were prone to problems. I'd definitely go back to the manufacturer and have the job redone. If they're any good, they'll acknowledge the problem and redo it for free.

dangus · 1st August 2007, 11:57 PM

I've had shorts between traces, a few open or damaged traces, and very rarely a big splotch of unetched copper. One board which has been bought in several batches from the same manufacturer has had open vias so often that it's the first thing I check for when I find a fault. I suspect that's because the via hole diameter is too small, but the manufacturer should recognize that and warn me if they can't do those reliably.

18th July 2007, 06:05 AM	#1
-_nando-_ diyAudio Member Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Sao Paulo	Did it happen with anybody here? Failed PCBs... Hi all, I'm pretty frustrated as I made a nice development board to work with some SMD microcontrollers on Eagle, and the PCB manufacturer did **** ... I worked on it so much, trying to figure out what could be wrong, so many nights, weekends, days... How could I expect that the PCB from a "professional" manufacturer could be the problem?! Almost 20 days do find it out... Imagine how much I've burned my brain ! Many short circuits to the ground, failed tracks... And this crap wasn't cheap at all ! I spent 1.100 reais on it, almost 550 usd, + the microcontrolers, and the soldering service. The whole thing was about 2000 reais, so 1000 USD. Pretty expensive ! Anybody here has ever experienced a failed PCB ? God...

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18th July 2007, 06:14 AM	#2
TwoSpoons diyAudio Member Join Date: Oct 2004	Did you follow all the design rules specified by the manufacturer? Did you request a 100% electrical test on the bare pcb? PCB faults are not uncommon - just that usually you don't see them because they are weeded out by the pcb manufacturer (but you need to ask them to test!)

18th July 2007, 06:32 AM	#3
-_nando-_ diyAudio Member Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Sao Paulo	Yes, I followed all the rules, they checked the file before make the PCB and everything. But I didn't request an eletrical test, as it would be an additional cost, and I thought that it wouldn't be necessary. They made 10 PCBs, 5 are working, other 5 PCBs are faultly.

18th July 2007, 07:06 AM	#4
TwoSpoons diyAudio Member Join Date: Oct 2004	I've seen 10% failure before, but not 50%. You might want to complain to the manufacturer.

18th July 2007, 05:04 PM	#5
thomas997 diyAudio Member Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Vancouver	Is this a 2 or 4 layer PCB? Four layer pcbs should always be electrically tested.

29th July 2007, 07:57 AM	#6
-_nando-_ diyAudio Member Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Sao Paulo	It's two layers. I'll talk to the manufacturer, this is absurd !

29th July 2007, 12:17 PM	#7
Conrad Hoffman diyAudio Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Canandaigua, NY USA	I haven't had a bad PCB in decades. I remember fighting with holes that weren't quite plated through, shorts and opens, but quality lately has been good from the people I use. That doesn't mean they can't have a bad day, or that maybe you did things in the layout that were prone to problems. I'd definitely go back to the manufacturer and have the job redone. If they're any good, they'll acknowledge the problem and redo it for free.

1st August 2007, 11:57 PM	#8
dangus diyAudio Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: Vancouver Island	I've had shorts between traces, a few open or damaged traces, and very rarely a big splotch of unetched copper. One board which has been bought in several batches from the same manufacturer has had open vias so often that it's the first thing I check for when I find a fault. I suspect that's because the via hole diameter is too small, but the manufacturer should recognize that and warn me if they can't do those reliably.

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