I decided to order multiple PCB, to save some shipping cost, and also to test some my ideas too…
One of them – DC-DC push-pull converter on SN6505 to power up my VFD. I ordered some Epcos N87 rings, done some calculations in Lite-CalcIT, also researched some available info, and even found a nice book from Ron Lenk “Practical Design of Power Supplies”. One last thing I need to do before designing an awesome VFD control board – some tests. I haven’t done any custom magnetics before, so I’m very excited.
The resulting PCB is rather small (40x50mm), and has everything I need to test SN6505 and custom magnetics.
Also to check the footprint for the RCA connectors I’ve made one quick PCB too.
And finally I ordered parts from DigiKey!
I immediately checked all footprints (I wasn’t sure about capacitor dimensions), and ordered PCBs!
So, JLCPCB, here I come!
I received confirmation almost immediately, also I was impressed how many files they are generating for production (kinda I expected, that machines need a lot of files, but still surprisingly a lot).
And yes, mask colors are free (only +2 days), so I ordered some.
Also I prepared some very complex device to bend the resistor legs:
Yes, it is very simple, but thankfully I need not so many bendings… Still, I wanted to do them as clean as possible.
I started to search parts for other parts (selector, VFD controller) and was really shocked about STM32 prices. Just look at this:
This is really crazy!
To relax a bit, I hacked Ikea furniture a bit:
Yes! Some Ikea + old kitchen moving bracket, and I can put my Revox inside, but still be able to open the cover!
Now I impatiently waiting for my shiny PCBs from JLCPCB!