Tools research

Being a hobbyist puts specific restrictions on how I'll be working. I do have a monthly budget I can work with, but commercial design software is expensive. I also like commercial quality PCB's for any projects I do that need more then one or two built. I don't want to mess with the etching chemicals and I know from experience the benefits of solder masking, plated feed through holes, and fine runs running between pins without worrying about shorting.

I decided to see if I could kill two birds with one stone. I started searching the web for PCB manufacturing companies that seemed hobbyist friendly that had good design tools usable with them. Hobbyist friendly includes things like simple ordering, reasonably priced low volume production runs, reasonable delivery times & cost, plus Made In The USA! Here I have a choice, but I very quickly decided I was willing to ignore the overseas production facilities to improve my communication, delivery times, and delivery costs. Yes, it might cost a little bit more per piece, but I feel the benefits outweigh the for me personally.

I won't go into the details of all the searches and looking at websites, specs, etc. Since I was choosing a manufacturer and a tool together though, I did download and try out three different tools as part of trying things out from companies that looked good. One tool definitely worked better for me then the others, even if the parts library wasn't up to that of a full professional system. There was a lot of personal tastes in how the tools work and easy of use that was a deciding factor for me. Being hobby grade, I'll be limiting myself to through-hole components just to make things simpler, so a more limited component library isn't much of an issue for me. I don't want to be worrying about about soldering to pads or mass production that's for sure.

I've gone ahead and settled on one company based on the tools, pricing, location, and capabilities. Advanced Circuits in Colorado seems to have good capabilities, a reasonable tool, reasonable pricing, as well as support for commercial tools and production. While I'll be sticking to two layers and won't need their more advanced capabilities, I'm not stuck in an emergency. I don't ever expect to need a flexible PCB or 28 layer board, having very fast turn times on small runs along with fast delivery to me in the Midwest using ground shipping adds up to a nice combination for me personally.

Now, to play more with their design tools!