How about a thread dedicated to honest comments, reviews,pros,cons etc about various PCB fabricators?
First up! :P Any comments about the quality of boards from elecrow.com?
Thanks
https://lowpowerlab.com/forum/general-topics/diy-pcb-printing/msg12994/#msg12994
The two I've tried are probably most suitable for prototyping, but they are:
1. OSH PARK. I have no complaints about the quality. Variable delivery times, but generally about 2 weeks from order to receipt.
2. pcbs.io. I got 5 boards for less than the cost of three from OSH PARK, and the quality seems good enough--again, no complaints. It did however take a month to get them. I'm told by another customer that's unusually long, and the holidays may have had something to do with it (I had ordered them on December 18). I had been promised 4 boards, so maybe the fifth board was unspoken compensation for the delivery delay. Not sure.
pcb.ng looks like an interesting development, in that they aim to do small batch assembly for, IIRC, somewhere around $8 per square inch per board. I've had no direct experience with them, but I hope they (or someone) succeeds at doing quality affordable small batch assembly for the hobbyist market, as it would be a nice resource to have. If anyone is aware of any others like this, please share the links.
My own PCBs.io order is now 3 weeks old and the boards are still showing as "In Fabrication". They are impressively inexpensive but I was drawn in part by the claim that the average processing time is 7-10 days. 21+ days makes them a lot less attractive. I also cannot find any customer support number/email/chat etc to figure out what the heck is taking so very long.
Ah, so maybe my experience with pcb.io was more normal than exceptional. I will say that pcb.io's silkscreening is better than OSH PARK's. I forgot to mention that. It came out clearer, which means I could use a smaller font and have it still be readable. With OSH PARK, I have to pick a bigger font, which sometimes makes it difficult to fit the lettering where I want it.
Nonetheless, I pretty much use OSH PARK, because their delivery to me is about 2 weeks on average, and I don't know of anyone else actually offering (not just promising) that.
Hi ChemE and WhiteHare,
Thanks for using PCBs.io and for your comments. We are a newly built service so we've had some hiccups here and there causing some delays on some panels. Since the beginning of summer, we've had more customers which helps us fill up panels quicker and have been shipping out PCBs weekly.
We are working on some updates to the website which include a contact page. For now, contacting us via your confirmation email or via twitter (@pcbsio) are alternatives. We are beta testing PCB Assembly and taking orders on a manual basis at the moment. If you require such services, we will be glad to work with you on a custom quote.
Thanks again for your comments!
PCBs.io Support
Actually my last order arrived very quickly and I've already soldered things up. I am quite happy with the quality and speed of PCBs.io. If you can also assemble my boards too you will be getting a good deal of business from me quite soon! I'll reach out with my .brd and BOM once I complete my design (which will be including the AB1815! woot!).
That's great ChemE! I'm glad you are happy with your order with PCBs.io.
We can definitely help you with the assembly. Shoot us an email or tweet when you're ready and we can work out the details.
Thanks again!
Where can I get pcbs fabricated with a quick turnaround at relatively low cost?
Thanks
Give PCBs.io a shot!
Thanks ChemE!
Stern0m1,
We can certainly do a custom order and get it to you within a few days. If you'd like a quote, we would need your PCB design files, quantity (specifications if not standard ones listed at PCBs.io) and roughly when you need the boards. Feel free to DM us or contact us via twitter @pcbsio.
Using the standard service, an order going on the current panel will probably ship towards the end of next week so roughly the end of the month (estimated) for receiving the PCBs in the US.
PCBs.io,
Are there any downward limits on passive sizes for your new assembly service? Am I safe to design with 0402? Can I go even smaller?
Hi ChemE,
The downward limit of passive size is 0201, but it is recommended to do 0402 for the most part.
Thanks for your antenna order today!
Perfect, 0402 is still pretty darn small. Thanks for getting me 4 (or 5 :) ) antennas for $1.17 each! I look forward to tuning them using captcha's method and modifying the design to be hopefully even smaller and more effective.
I have done some projects with elecrow and was very pleased. I like the service and the price. Prices are good and very clear. They seem honest. The quality seems ok but I cant really comment on quality because I dont think I'm qualified :).