Online High Technology Multilayer PCB Orders

6-Layer PCBs, 8-Layer PCBs, Up To 16-Layer PCBs Available Online

Epec's InstantPCBQuote™ gives you fast, easy quotes for online circuit board prototypes and multilayer PCBs designed up to 16 layers. This in turn gives you the freedom and flexibility you need to create the custom circuit board you want with just a few clicks.

Most people think of ordering PCBs online only comes with low technology, well not with InstantPCBQuote™. With more than 70 years’ experience in manufacturing printed circuit boards, you can put your trust in Epec, knowing your high-technology circuit boards will be manufactured at the highest quality, without delays. The majority of the hi-tech PCBs that we manufacture can be quoted online at InstantPCBQuote™, but there are a few attributes that the lead time may be impacted without a file review to determine how long processing will actually take.

One of the biggest challenges with online PCB quoting is to ensure that all the attributes are put into the price calculator accurately so that the fabricator understands what they are building, and the customer gets an accurate price quote. This is one of the reasons that we provide our customers with a free DFM service so that we can do an engineering review before you quote your printed circuit board to ensure that we point out any attributes that are a concern and so that we can eliminate any errors in the Gerber data that may cause a delay once an order is placed.

No order is too small or too big. We understand what it takes to produce high-technology printed circuit boards quickly and with the highest reliability. We can do anything from a few pieces in 1-2 days or a production order in as little as 5 days, depending upon what our customers need. Our online InstantPCBQuote™ is the tool to use if you want to quote and order circuit boards yourself or we have customer service and engineering staff available 24/7 to help you get your project off on the right foot.

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Higher Layer Counts & Higher Technology PCBs

Our sweet spot for our online InstantPCBQuote™ is high-quality, high-technology circuit boards up to 16 layers. You can quote multi-layer PCBs, from 1-16 layers, instantly with a variety of materials, copper weights, silkscreen, and soldermask options, which can be quoted using your very own InstantPCBQuote™ account to keep track of your quote and order history.

We offer instant pricing for on all our RoHS compliant surface finishes, along with our higher-end capabilities such as blind and buried vias, controlled dielectric, and controlled impedance used in our high-technology multi-layer PCBs. Listed below are some of the printed circuit board capabilities available at InstantPCBQuote™.

Check out this blog post to understand why we can quote 6-8 layer circuit boards online.

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Our Online High-Tech Multilayer PCB Capabilities Include:

Higher PCB Layer Counts Available

Online PCBs can be quoted up to 16 layers. Any layer count greater than 16 would require a custom quote. Why? Most boards above 16 layers have features that will require additional processing that can’t be properly quoted, and an accurate lead time given without reviewing all of the attributes of the board. However, if you have an instance where you have a 20-layer board with 5/5 lines and spaces, no buried or filled vias, and standard dielectrics, we can turn that board around in as few as 5 days. Using laser direct imaging, we can move quickly from CAM to image the layers to get into lamination very quickly.

Circuit Board Dimensions

Our online PCB quoting calculator allows you to quote a maximum board size of up to 16" x 22" and a minimum board size of 0.5" x 0.5".

PCB Laminate Material Types

We offer a variety of PCB laminate materials, ranging from FR4 130Tg for lower operating temperatures up to FR4 180Tg for higher temperatures. Also offered are Polyimide, Taconic, Rogers, and Nelco laminate material types. Using InstantPCBQuote™, we give you many different laminate options to choose from rather than just giving you just a few options based upon Tg or other value that may or may not be important.

Circuit Board Thickness

Our circuit board thickness capabilities range from 0.021" up to 0.125".

PCB Surface Finish Types

We offer various PCB finishes, including HASL (solder), ENIG, Immersion Silver, Entek/OSP, Unclad, and PB Free HASL. At our domestic facility in Dallas, we have the ability to do apply hard gold and ENEPIG finish as well, but in order to quote these boards accurately, we need to review the Gerber data to understand how much exposed area we will need to plate.

Copper Weights

Inner copper weight capabilities range from 0.5 oz up to 5 oz with outer copper weight capabilities ranging from 1 oz to 4 oz.

Hole Size

Hole sizes can range from a minimum of 0.004” (0.10 mm) and up to 0.01" (0.250 mm).

Blind Via & Buried Via, Controlled Dielectric, Controlled Impedance, and More

We offer the highest-technology options including blind via and buried vias, controlled dielectric, controlled impedance, and more options are available to quote and order online.

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Specific High Technology PCB Attributes that Affect Lead Time

Via-In Pad Technology

Via-in-pad technology is becoming very common in PCBs as the level of technology increases with time. What many people don’t realize about that technology is how it is manufactured and the amount of time it takes. Via-in-pad by design means that we will drill a through whole (VIA) through a pad and then fill the via with conductive epoxy fill. The process of filling the via will add more than 8 hours to the manufacturing process as the material needs to be heated up to a certain temperature prior to filling the via and then it needs to go through a lengthy post process cure as well.

Specified Dielectrics

Many PCB designers will attempt to specify the dielectrics thickness of the layers to get to a certain impedance value that they require for their design. As a PCB fabricator, it is easier for us if we can utilize a combination of dielectric thickness and line width adjustment to get to the required impedance. This is because most fabricators have different common stack-ups that they use based upon their customer base and product mix. This means that if you specify the controlled impedance values, you need to allow your PCB fabricator to determine the best stack-up to get there, and you can save both time and money.

Buried Vias

When vias are buried in inner layers, each set requires a separate lamination cycle, and that requires the entire layup to go back through 50% of the processing for each set of buried vias. On the other hand, blind vias, which connect an outer layer to an inner layer, do not require that much addition processing. For blind vias, most PCB fabricators will use a laser drill to control depth drill the blind via before plating all the through holes if they have made the investment in a laser drill.

Conductive Filled Vias

You can see more of the specifics above in the via-in-pad section, but many designs require this technology to disperse heat away from their components. One of the biggest failures for filled vias is that they don’t take the full processing time required to get a proper cure of the paste in very small holes, and the customer will see voids and outgassing only when they have assembled and begin using the PCB.

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Check out our online PCB quote capabilities page for more information or go ahead and create your free account right now to get started.

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