Panel (outsourcing)
Outsourcing panels produces professional quality, especially for small scale analog-synth manufacture. Some of the firms listed here have been successfully used by well know synth brands.
Aluminium
Cutting, drilling and inscribing
Europe
- frontpanels.de
- GravoPrintec
- Polychromal
- Schaeffer AG, well-known maker of low-production metal front panels, provides the free Front Panel Designer program. Engraving and paint-filling are available.
UK
- The Beast UK Ltd
- PCB-Pool
- Re:Synthesis, Moog style panels.
- Screencraft
USA
- ALCO Metal Fab Inc., electronic sheet-metal specialist. Can do powdercoating and screenprinting.
- Cam Expert, as good as Front Panel Express, 30% cheaper and they can do work that FPE cant like anodizing after machining.
- Epinasty Metal Works
- Front Panel Express LLC, and Canada. Well-known maker of low-production metal front panels, provides Front Panel Designer program free. Engraving and paint-filling are available. Is a division of the German firm Schaeffer, which offers a similar service in Europe.
- Lasergist
- Metalphoto of Cincinnati
- Pretty Lil Panels
Painting and printing
Metalprint is a commonplace process that prints color ink on aluminum, which is then anodized into place. The result is a very high-resolution artwork, better than screenprinting, and tougher than other methods because the anodized oxide coating is very tough and protects the artwork.[1] Many companies offer this service. They typically do not perform drilling, punching, or other sheet-metal fabrication; such operations would have to be performed by a sheet-metal specialist or by the manufacturer. Most Dotcom and all Doepfer module panels are made with the metalprint process.[2]
Europe
UK
USA
- Bay Photo
- Image Wizards
- Metal Mural
- Nor-Cal Powder Coating, powder coater with considerable experience in electronic sheet-metal coating.
- Chemi-Graphic, offers screenprinting and chemical etching on metals or other materials.
PCB
Far cheaper than aluminium, use a PCB fab house to produce 3 mm FR4 panels. Also fiberglass is lighter and stiffer than aluminium. BugBrand synths panels were manufactured using this method, the copper layer and soldermask to the front, with silk-screened labeling.[3][4] PCB front panels need to be designed for normal PCB fabrication.
PCB fab houses known to have been used for PCB front panels
See also
References
- ^ Who does silkscreened panels in the US?, Muff Wiggler forum, Aug 2011, reply by ersatzplanet
- ^ Manufacturing by Eric Barbour, Muff's Modules & More wiki, Jan 2012
- ^ Grant Richter on Cutting Down Modular Costs, Matrixsynth, March 2007
- ^ OldBlue Overview (archive)
External links
- Front Panel Designer
- Schaeffer, Front panel Designers tips and tricks, electro-music.com forum, Oct. 2007
- The Holy Grail of Front Panels?, YouTube, economical aluminium front panel production by pcbway.com
FR4
- PCB material front panels advice, Muff Wiggler forum, Jul 2013
- PCB front panels, Muff Wiggler forum, Oct 2015