Where can I get some nice pcb's made?

[tweaked]

I've searched the forums quite a bit and read about a few sources for having custom pcb's made. But I'm not sure which of those mentioned (if any) are really great quality or just the same as the kind I can make at home. Does anybody know where some of the nicer pcb's are being made, such as the type for byoc kits, etc...? It'd be cool to have some made up with the nice eyelets and component mapping, though I understand the cost may be preventive.

[Seljer]

Check the list at the bottom here: http://www.ladyada.net/resources/pcbdesign.html

If you want to get some PCBs made such they come out to about $30 each unless you go into larger numbers (so when you look at how much PnP, copper plated board and etchant you could get for $30....)

[Dirk_Hendrik]

The difference between those made at home and those like BYOC is mainly a matter of money. If it's for a one off you don't want to go that wat as it's pretty expensive.

To get an example,
The boards I make at home on average cost me some 3 dollars. Having one made in the BYOC style (with all the artwork) will have a pricetag of 120 dollars. Having >200 of them made will bring it down to 4 dollars a piece... Since I don't need 200 or more thsi lifetime I'll keep on etching myself.

[markm]

The difference between those made at home and those like BYOC is mainly a matter of money. If it's for a one off you don't want to go that wat as it's pretty expensive.

To get an example,
The boards I make at home on average cost me some 3 dollars. Having one made in the BYOC style (with all the artwork) will have a pricetag of 120 dollars. Having >200 of them made will bring it down to 4 dollars a piece... Since I don't need 200 or more thsi lifetime I'll keep on etching myself.

Same here! 

[$uperpuma]

DIY Etchers Unite! (man, I really should go solder something...)

[Dirk_Hendrik]

DIY Etchers Unite! (man, I really should go solder something...)

Maybe inhale some more solder fumes to relax 

[boogietube]

www.futrlec.com does small runs. I have had no experience with them other than ordering parts. They ship a bit slow, but parts prices are unbeatable.

[$uperpuma]

yeah I just did a quick price quote for a small dual-booster board with solder mask and silkscreening... 50 boards - $111.5 + shipping... not bad

[Rafa]

Etching In House. How to use a very expensive etching setup to make nice PCBs

I dont like that , not really the best value for money when doing just a few PCB
Rafa 

[boogietube]

Sorry wrong link Here's the correct one:
www.futurlec.com

[lovekraft0]

There's Olimex - it's still expensive, but with their panelization/depanelization options, you could get a number of small boards done for a relatively reasonable price. Quality is exceptional, IME.

[tweaked]

Thanks for the great suggestions, please keep them coming if you know of some that haven't been listed yet.

Could someone please also explain to me the terminology one must know when purchasing premade boards (for example the different options) and the general idea behind single vs double sided board? As I understand it, a single-sided board is just the board with the circuit printed on one side (like many of us here make at home), but the double-sided board has the circuit sandwiched between two sheets of board, is that correct? Is there a benefit to this and would you lay out the board differently when doing this?

[Seljer]

double sided means theirs still one layor of the actual board, just there are traces on both sides (so you can place components on both the top and bottom), useful for more complicated layouts so you don't have to use a lot of jumpers and stuff on the top side, but its allready on the board.

solder mask is that green stuff that covers all the board, leaving only the solder pads visible, protecting that traces from oxidation

silkscreening is the artwork for component placement on top

[tweaked]

Thanks, Seljer!

[Paul Perry (Frostwave)]

The other term you hear is "plated thru holes". By far the commonest type of board is the double sided plated thru hole board. In fact it is so common that if you want single sided PCBs from my local board place, it's a wait until they get enough orders to be bothered doing them. The cost isn't much less (for quantity, obviously the initial artwork cost is double!)
Plenty of PCB information on the robotics newsgroups, it's the robotics guys and us stompers that seem to have the numbers in DIY electronics now...

[tweaked]

Thanks, Paul!

So if I'm understanding correctly, in order to get something like a BYOC board I would request a single-sided board with solder mask on both sides (or does it always come on both sides?), and plated thru holes, with silkscreening. Is that right and have I missed anything?

[Paul Perry (Frostwave)]

I havn't seen one in the flesh, but looking at the pics on the BMOC site, they are "double sided  with plated through holes, soldermask both sides, screened legend one side" ('legend' is what they call the screen printed stuff, it's from a geograhic mapping term, and not used correctly either, but that's what it is now - jargon!)
That is by far the commonest kind of board, until you get to computers with multilayer boards.. but you don't want to go there

[tweaked]

Thanks, Paul!

I'll be sure to avoid the multilayer boards