Project Cases

So I have built several projects yet they all sit out in their nakedness for the whole world to see. Its time to cover them up. I thought this thread might be a good place to start discussion.

I have cases, some components, etc - but I was wondering if anyone had any tricks / tips to pass along?

Also, where does everyone go for cases? I bought some inexpensive no name Chinese cases from ebay, and so far so good!?!

Does anyone go all out at front panel express or landfall systems?

Thanks in advance and hope to see some pictures of finishes projects.

 

http://www.par-metal.com/ was a pretty popular shop here in the US for bigger amps. They can do some basic hole punching, too, but Front Panel Express is basically the go to for fancy plates. They also make nice, budget toroids as well through http://www.antekinc.com/

For small stuff, I usually grab a Hammond extruded case.

I have read good things about Modushop as well. I will likely roll the dice with a China case from Aliexpress or eBay for my next project, while making my own plates on a hopefully finished by then CNC machine.

 

Most of my gear is DIY, and i would use either Hammond, Par-Metals, or HiFi Galaxy (Italy). I haven't bought any retail gear since 2007 when i sold off most of my stuff.

HiFi Galaxy was great bang for the buck and they are very nice for being in italy. Right now most of my builds are Par-Metal chassis frames (buy without front and rear plates) and get two front frames for the front and rear. Par-metals frames actually don't cost too much more than Hammond. My balanced Beta22 case was $55 and the Gamma3 case was $36 before shipping.

For front panel express it's very expensive but very convenient once you have some templates and reference builds/macros made up. Expect to pay 50-100 per plate. It's very nice to be able to just load the AMB files and press the purchase button and have it arrive at your doorstep 5 days later.

For silksceening, you can do that in adobe illustrator or export FPD to CAD files. Since i also was into DIY guns, i learned all about the vendors for coatings and finishes beyond anodizing (ie black nitride/melonite, Nickel Boron, Ceracoat, and prep work to achieve certain finishes).

I use Goldpoint for stepped attenuators, but they are very expensive. I also like their CNC volume knobs.

Locust Design/Cyro Parts for hookup wire - i have a liking for their mil spec hookup wire. They have shielded and
unshielded. I have used whiplash audio TWag for signal before but it's very pricey. I use their Vampire RCA's.



For screws and standoffs i use McMasterCarr.

I would like to use Hammond if i can fit things since they're cheap and obtainable from the same places i get passive components from - Mouser or Digikey. If you plan to FPD, don't even bother with metal front plates, get the Hammond plastic plates for cheaper and throw them out or use them for a mock up run.

You can still make a Hammond look professional...my M^3 came out decent. Aside from the very light engraving everything came out pretty good. Basically i feel more proficient in navigating FPD after this expensive lesson.



Some of my projects are not encased...i made the TPA Dual Mono Opus DAC in 2007. That was my first experience with the Wolfson chips and DIY sources in general. Although i never cased it, 7 years later i made the Gamma3 which is based on the same DAC.