5 ms·

thanks for the link, that company is becoming pretty interesting in terms of user-friendly/comprehensive access to chinese manufacturing

HeWhoLurksLate 6y ago
I got some SK6812 V3 LED'S or whatever the RGBW 'Neopixel' things are from there a while ago- really nice ordering experience, I don't remember having any problems with it, and they include datasheets, which is awesome.
Crosseye_Jack 6y ago
I use them for PCB's - I don't have access an local version of OSH Park, so if I have boards fab'ed locally I am paying though the nose for them. (If anyone has a link to a decent OSH Park alt based in the UK I would love to give them a try) If I need them "ASAP" even tacking on the £17 DHL shipping for 2-4 day shipping they still come out much cheaper than purchasing locally, but I normally just choose "standard" postage which means it takes ~10days from ordering until I have the boards in my hands but drops the shipping cost to ~£4. (shipping costs vary based on size and weight of the order) I've yet to use lcsc for components because I've been burnt in the past from ordering IC's from china and when ordering anything over the value of £15 I often get handed a £8 handling fee from the postal service to process a few quid of import VAT which always grinds my gears, so I tend to shop locally for components. But I do plan to give them a try at some point. EDIT in ref to jlcpcb: Just keep their capabilities in mind and set your EDA/CAD software to mm and not mil to save headaches if you are planning to use BGA's in your design.
- Kliment 6y ago
  Try Aisler - they ship from Germany or US (whichever is closer) and are similar to OSHPark in user experience. About LCSC, they are entirely legit and a very good source. I use them all the time.
  - panpanna 6y ago
    I think Aisler is also sponsoring LibrePCB and accepts their CAD files (i.e. no messing around with gerbers). I'm definitely testing them for my next boards.
    - StavrosK 6y ago
      I tried AISLER once, the PCBs I got were very good quality. They didn't work due to me using tolerances that were too tight (I couldn't easily find their tolerances on their site), they refunded me immediately and I re-ordered the fixed boards. Those were also very good quality. Overall, I have a very good impression of them. If the price is acceptable for you, I would definitely recommend them. Shipping was very fast, too, the boards arrived within the week to Greece.
      - mkesper 6y ago
        Seems to linked better now: https://aisler.net/help/design-rules-and-specifications/specifications https://aisler.net/help/design-rules-and-specifications/spec...
        StavrosK 6y ago
        That still doesn't look very usable, as someone who designed a board, I don't know what the milling and drilling diameters are for. I know about track size, track clearance, minimum via diameter, etc. The way they have it, I need to know about how PCBs are fabricated to read it accurately.
      - panpanna 6y ago
        All things equal, I think I would go with them just because of this: https://aisler.net/help/getting-started/what-are-your-environmental-standards https://aisler.net/help/getting-started/what-are-your-enviro... Chinese PCB fabs are extremely dirty.
        StavrosK 6y ago
- janekm 6y ago
  I would argue if you're using QFNs or BGAs you should be designing in metric anyway as that's the native unit for those.
  - Crosseye_Jack 6y ago
    Well it was more that recently chris gammell was designing a board, had it set to mils while doing his via’s (iirc) to break out the bga pads and using the specs listed on their site. But the conversation from mils to mm introduced a rounding that just pushed him over the limits which then caused the automated DRC on the site to reject his board even though it was “in spec” according to the specs on the site (as they list both mm and mil). And it’s not like you can just get them on the phone and get it nudged though even though some via are a few thousands of a mm out of spec but should be fine irl. The computer says no, so you gotta go back and redo a ton of traces, where a local shop running on higher margins will prob just push the order though after a brief phone call.

HeWhoLurksLate 6y ago

I got some SK6812 V3 LED'S or whatever the RGBW 'Neopixel' things are from there a while ago- really nice ordering experience, I don't remember having any problems with it, and they include datasheets, which is awesome.

Crosseye_Jack 6y ago

I use them for PCB's - I don't have access an local version of OSH Park, so if I have boards fab'ed locally I am paying though the nose for them. (If anyone has a link to a decent OSH Park alt based in the UK I would love to give them a try) If I need them "ASAP" even tacking on the £17 DHL shipping for 2-4 day shipping they still come out much cheaper than purchasing locally, but I normally just choose "standard" postage which means it takes ~10days from ordering until I have the boards in my hands but drops the shipping cost to ~£4. (shipping costs vary based on size and weight of the order) I've yet to use lcsc for components because I've been burnt in the past from ordering IC's from china and when ordering anything over the value of £15 I often get handed a £8 handling fee from the postal service to process a few quid of import VAT which always grinds my gears, so I tend to shop locally for components. But I do plan to give them a try at some point. EDIT in ref to jlcpcb: Just keep their capabilities in mind and set your EDA/CAD software to mm and not mil to save headaches if you are planning to use BGA's in your design.

Kliment 6y ago
Try Aisler - they ship from Germany or US (whichever is closer) and are similar to OSHPark in user experience. About LCSC, they are entirely legit and a very good source. I use them all the time.
- panpanna 6y ago
  I think Aisler is also sponsoring LibrePCB and accepts their CAD files (i.e. no messing around with gerbers). I'm definitely testing them for my next boards.
  - StavrosK 6y ago
    I tried AISLER once, the PCBs I got were very good quality. They didn't work due to me using tolerances that were too tight (I couldn't easily find their tolerances on their site), they refunded me immediately and I re-ordered the fixed boards. Those were also very good quality. Overall, I have a very good impression of them. If the price is acceptable for you, I would definitely recommend them. Shipping was very fast, too, the boards arrived within the week to Greece.
    - mkesper 6y ago
      Seems to linked better now: https://aisler.net/help/design-rules-and-specifications/specifications https://aisler.net/help/design-rules-and-specifications/spec...
      - StavrosK 6y ago
        That still doesn't look very usable, as someone who designed a board, I don't know what the milling and drilling diameters are for. I know about track size, track clearance, minimum via diameter, etc. The way they have it, I need to know about how PCBs are fabricated to read it accurately.
    - panpanna 6y ago
      All things equal, I think I would go with them just because of this: https://aisler.net/help/getting-started/what-are-your-environmental-standards https://aisler.net/help/getting-started/what-are-your-enviro... Chinese PCB fabs are extremely dirty.
      - StavrosK 6y ago
janekm 6y ago
I would argue if you're using QFNs or BGAs you should be designing in metric anyway as that's the native unit for those.
- Crosseye_Jack 6y ago
  Well it was more that recently chris gammell was designing a board, had it set to mils while doing his via’s (iirc) to break out the bga pads and using the specs listed on their site. But the conversation from mils to mm introduced a rounding that just pushed him over the limits which then caused the automated DRC on the site to reject his board even though it was “in spec” according to the specs on the site (as they list both mm and mil). And it’s not like you can just get them on the phone and get it nudged though even though some via are a few thousands of a mm out of spec but should be fine irl. The computer says no, so you gotta go back and redo a ton of traces, where a local shop running on higher margins will prob just push the order though after a brief phone call.