I found your intro to DipTrace to be very helpful and well presented. I was hoping to see the followup 2nd video that you alluded to, did you ever do one? Cheers
Wa-a-a-y late to the dance here but just starting out and wanted to thank you for an excellent video. Figure if I mimic these two PCBs 100% it'll be a good head start!
Nice! Honestly, I would recommend KiCAD over Diptrace nowadays. I used to use Diptrace because they had a free version, and it was fairly easy to use, and at that point KiCAD was still very rough around the edges. But now KiCAD is all I use, both for personal and professional projects.
@@AureliusR Sorry. My earlier response seems to have been swallowed up so here goes. Understand returning to KiKad. As an old software developer, I have vacillated back and forth all the time between products. That said, the "old" in the previous sentence means I am still on Windows 7 (and I thought the Windows XP users were raging against the night!) and KiKad doesn't support that. I started out today (March 30, 2023) doing a simple RF preamp circuit and, while stumbling, seemed to have made out OK. Of course, your video was in the background as an example as the preamp was haltingly created. By the way, the current DipTrace offerings are for a non-profit edition that can, once downloaded and installed, be upgraded from 300 pins to 500 pins for an email requesting same. The current non-profit standard that usually sells for $125 and offers four layers and 1,000 pins, is being price cut to $87.50 (30%) until April 15th, 2023. Teetering on the edge of that except I am miles away from that robustness and baby needs new shoes.. Thanks again for your help!
To be honest, I have completely moved to KiCAD as I now use only Linux. So I can't remember, but I imagine you could place a via, and then right-click on it to change the size. For changing it universally, there is probably something in the design rules or board setup that will set the exact diameter around all vias.
This really helped me get started. Now I just need to figure out how to make my own library, which has proven frustrating. Anyone have advice for how to create component libraries?
@@AureliusR I have been learning DipTrace through videos and forums. I've created a master Libraries folder on my PC, with sub-folders for every Library. I've titled these Libraries Resistors; Capacitors; Transistors; etc.. I've designed components and Moved them into these Libraries within DipTrace. But these components do not appear in my PC Libraries' folders. I guess that's okay.... Some of these components are from Mouser/DigiKey and I've modified the footprint/pattern in DipTrace. I am NERVOUS and confused about how to transfer my PC files to another computer so that I may use DipTrace with my custom components and libraries on another computer. THANKS!
@Jacob Horowitz I believe this should work open your PC Libraries > right click lower component area (below Filter Off) > Insert from another library (name maybe slightly off im not in front of DipTrace) and find the part you want and you should be able to aggregate them all into PC Libraries. Alternately you can find the part you want to import and right click part name > copy to another library (again maybe slightly off) and select PC Libraries. You will have to do this for both pattern and component libraries separately. Then you would just find the PC Libraries .eli AND .lib files in windows explorer then you only have to copy those 2 files around any pc. Have been sharing my libraries with custom parts this way between coworkers. Hope this helps!
Hey i dont get the option for discrete/intel in components... i recently downloaded it... i cant find many of the components ..pls help me resolve this issue!!!
What do you mean? If you do auto-placement, it will only place the components on that side of the board. If you want components on the back, move them to the back first and then run auto-placement on that side.
@@AureliusR sorry I couldn’t put my question correctly. I know to “change side” of any components. But issue is when i placed the potentiometer on top side, then on the bottom side other component are leaving the shadow space of pot. Waste of space… how to tackle this. I hope I’m making sence
The auto-placement tool will never place components over top of each other, even if they are on opposite sides of the board. There is no way for the auto-placement to know exactly what type of device it is, if it will interfere with track layout, etc. If you want something like that, just place it manually. Auto-place and auto-route are pretty much never used by anyone who takes PCB layout seriously. They do a crappy job and you end up with bad results! Just place things by hand in a logical way. Practice, practice, practice!
Very helpful as a practical addition to the DipTrace tutorial pdf. Thank you!
Thanks for this tutorial, it was very helpful.
I will begin with simple and small projects.
Like from Brazil.
Glad it was helpful!
VERY HELPFUL...THANKS!
I found your intro to DipTrace to be very helpful and well presented. I was hoping to see the followup 2nd video that you alluded to, did you ever do one?
Cheers
Wa-a-a-y late to the dance here but just starting out and wanted to thank you for an excellent video. Figure if I mimic these two PCBs 100% it'll be a good head start!
Nice! Honestly, I would recommend KiCAD over Diptrace nowadays. I used to use Diptrace because they had a free version, and it was fairly easy to use, and at that point KiCAD was still very rough around the edges. But now KiCAD is all I use, both for personal and professional projects.
@@AureliusR Sorry. My earlier response seems to have been swallowed up so here goes. Understand returning to KiKad. As an old software developer, I have vacillated back and forth all the time between products. That said, the "old" in the previous sentence means I am still on Windows 7 (and I thought the Windows XP users were raging against the night!) and KiKad doesn't support that. I started out today (March 30, 2023) doing a simple RF preamp circuit and, while stumbling, seemed to have made out OK. Of course, your video was in the background as an example as the preamp was haltingly created.
By the way, the current DipTrace offerings are for a non-profit edition that can, once downloaded and installed, be upgraded from 300 pins to 500 pins for an email requesting same. The current non-profit standard that usually sells for $125 and offers four layers and 1,000 pins, is being price cut to $87.50 (30%) until April 15th, 2023.
Teetering on the edge of that except I am miles away from that robustness and baby needs new shoes..
Thanks again for your help!
Very simplified presentation. Great
Glad it was helpful!
Great tutorial. Quick question, how do you make vias and edit the trace diameter (for RF impedance controlled transmission lines?
To be honest, I have completely moved to KiCAD as I now use only Linux. So I can't remember, but I imagine you could place a via, and then right-click on it to change the size. For changing it universally, there is probably something in the design rules or board setup that will set the exact diameter around all vias.
Hey curious what a TB header stands for, and why you didn't use the Con. Battery option?
TB stands for Terminal Block. I used it just as an example, so you could wire in a battery holder or connect a power supply, whatever you want.
This really helped me get started. Now I just need to figure out how to make my own library, which has proven frustrating. Anyone have advice for how to create component libraries?
What problems are you running into, exactly?
@@AureliusR I have been learning DipTrace through videos and forums. I've created a master Libraries folder on my PC, with sub-folders for every Library. I've titled these Libraries Resistors; Capacitors; Transistors; etc.. I've designed components and Moved them into these Libraries within DipTrace. But these components do not appear in my PC Libraries' folders. I guess that's okay.... Some of these components are from Mouser/DigiKey and I've modified the footprint/pattern in DipTrace. I am NERVOUS and confused about how to transfer my PC files to another computer so that I may use DipTrace with my custom components and libraries on another computer. THANKS!
@@AureliusR Do you have any advice for my library issue? I'm still unsuccessful in my attempt to move my library from one computer to another.
@Jacob Horowitz I believe this should work open your PC Libraries > right click lower component area (below Filter Off) > Insert from another library (name maybe slightly off im not in front of DipTrace) and find the part you want and you should be able to aggregate them all into PC Libraries. Alternately you can find the part you want to import and right click part name > copy to another library (again maybe slightly off) and select PC Libraries. You will have to do this for both pattern and component libraries separately. Then you would just find the PC Libraries .eli AND .lib files in windows explorer then you only have to copy those 2 files around any pc. Have been sharing my libraries with custom parts this way between coworkers. Hope this helps!
Once you know how to do it its very simple but I can make a short video for you if you need it, Diptrace handling of libraries is atrocious
Hey i dont get the option for discrete/intel in components... i recently downloaded it... i cant find many of the components ..pls help me resolve this issue!!!
I haven't used Diptrace in a couple years now -- I would recommend contacting Novarm or checking out of the Diptrace forums.
My schematic is not convert into pcb layout.How can i solve this.
What happens when you click Convert to PCB?
when i do auto placement it leave the space underneath the components on the other side of pcb. how to solve this???
What do you mean? If you do auto-placement, it will only place the components on that side of the board. If you want components on the back, move them to the back first and then run auto-placement on that side.
@@AureliusR sorry I couldn’t put my question correctly.
I know to “change side” of any components. But issue is when i placed the potentiometer on top side, then on the bottom side other component are leaving the shadow space of pot. Waste of space… how to tackle this.
I hope I’m making sence
The auto-placement tool will never place components over top of each other, even if they are on opposite sides of the board. There is no way for the auto-placement to know exactly what type of device it is, if it will interfere with track layout, etc. If you want something like that, just place it manually. Auto-place and auto-route are pretty much never used by anyone who takes PCB layout seriously. They do a crappy job and you end up with bad results! Just place things by hand in a logical way. Practice, practice, practice!