vectorboards?

[Paul Perry]

At 06:07 PM 10/06/98 -0700, Jim Johnson wrote:
>OK, time to be naive and perhaps a little incredulous:
....rightly so......

>Do you really end up with low noise, clean circuits by doing this? I gather
>then that most of the circuits you're working on are not too sensitive to
>board layout.. even VCO's? 

....well, I'm referring to brand x stripboard.
The thing is, you have to remember that there is a certain
capacitance/inductance
between strips, when you are laying out.
I was driven mad by what turned out to be capacitative coupling between
adjacent strips, until I realised what was going on. 
But, no matter what system you use, stray caps and etc are there.. you just
have to be aware. I never use those plastic protoboards, because for analog 
the inter row cap is too high.. and I'm too clumsy to poke the resistors in
and not knock everything else out.
No way would I lay out a PCB for a couple of modules.. but YMMV.

A quick and dirty but very reliable way used successfully by synth and even
RF people is to build everything on the copper side of raw PCB and cut traces
out with an engraving tool, or just paint with nailvarnish and etch.. again,
not for me, but a good solid structure. Like surface mount, but you can see it 
without a microscope.

paul perry melbourne australia