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  • PCB Fabrication Services

    Published on 3rd March 2010 04:22     Number of Views: 135 


    PCB Fab Express;
     Quick online pricing. Your board order will be "aggregated" with a bunch of others and then sheared apart before they are inspected and shipped to you. I suspect that the actual fabrication is done offshore, but the boards ship from California, avoiding overseas shipping costs.
    The board quality is good, although the silkscreen has been a bit fuzzy on a couple of orders.
    Published on 3rd March 2010 04:03     Number of Views: 111 


    PCB Fabrication; Also known as "Quality PCB", this one isn't a U.S company. They're in China- but they do at least have a presence in California. It was an eye opening experience when I first did business with them. I had thought that I had to order jillions of boards before it made sense to go offshore, but I was pleasantly surprised to find that they can be competitive even for as few as ten boards.

    Extras that normally cost a fortune, such as electrical test, extra thick or thin board material, thicker copper, board cutouts and slots are either free or very affordable, and it does not slow down the process.

    You can get pricing online in a matter of minutes. Every order is reviewed by an engineer.

    It's true that shipping is higher than it would be for a company in the U.S. but the boards are good quality and are so inexpensive that in most cases you still come out way ahead to order from them. Shipping usually takes three days.
    Published on 2nd March 2010 03:28     Number of Views: 111 


    Advanced Circuits
    A very large U.S.-based PCB manufacturer. You can get a quote for any of their services online in a matter of minutes. If you need a few full-spec boards, they will produce 2-sided boards with plated thru holes, solder mask both sides, silkscreen both sides, up to 60 square inches, for $33 each with no setup charge. You must purchase at least 4 pieces. Click here for more "$33 each" information
    They also offer "barebones" 2-layer boards (no solder mask or silkscreen) that are very reasonably priced and ship in 24 hours. Click here for Barebones information
    One of the most useful services they offer is a FREE "Design for Manufacturing" (DFM) check. You can upload Your Gerber files and within minutes you'll get a full report. It checks for errors that may cause difficulty in manufacturing oyur board. Click here for Free Design Rule Checks
    ..As if that's not enough, they provide free CAD software called PCB Artist. Click here for PCB Artist information