DIL package disappearing? (was: CA3046 replacement)

[The Proteus]

On Tue, 6 Jul 1999, Rick Jansen wrote:

> It would be another thing would be if manufacturers are phasing out the 
> DIL package altogether. Hobby electronics would suffer quite a bit! If I 
> look inside a modern piece of equipment it's all SMD devices though, I 
> guess the industry is getting past the DIL package for production purposes.
> 

Yep. In my travels at Harman International, they moved all of their
equipment to SMD's. It was more cost effective for repairs, and much
easier for automatic device testing. Small SMD's take a little getting
used to, but they are just like DIL packages after that... plus they cut
down on your board manufacturing costs. 

> Although I never tried yet, I assume SOP's (small outline package) 
> ic's are solderable with some experience and patience, a steady
> hand, good eye sight, a magnifying glass, a very fine soldering iron
> and some muscle relaxant. (A beer and solder party!)
> 

	The last project I did was a 4 voice VCO module, and it was
designed in all SMD parts. Instead of having to run a jumper through each
via or pad, or go through expensive PCB tooling costs, I went to my local
store and had what was called a PP&E done... they just print, plate, and
etch each side of the PCB... the board cost me $30 to have done, quite a
bit less than a full board with setup and tooling costs. :-)
	In the assembly arena, I used a standard Weller WTCPT soldering
station, and a fine tip. A definate plus for both aligning and cleaning
the pads on the PCB and board is liquid flux. If you REALLY want to get
into it, a good dental kit would do well for most SMD parts you'd want to
use. Total investment, less than $100US minus the soldering station. 

> I imagine I'd use a sowing needle to push an ic-pin to the board and then
> quickly solder the pin. Maybe there will be thingies that fit into a
> now regular DIL-format pcb, onto which you can solder a SOP ic...
> 

Digi-Key here in the US has products just like this on their catalog, pp.
126. They take any SOIC from 8 to 32 pins, and adapts it for the
corresponding DIP socket. They're not cheap though.. almost $5 in
quantities of 100.

> Anyone some insight in the future of the DIL package?
> 

Wish I had more information on this one... I've temporarily stepped out of
the EE field and moved into IT, as other conversations on here have
proven. ;-) I'll call some people this week and hopefully have more info
for everyone later on in the week. 

> Rick Jansen
 
The Proteus - Morphing the convergence of technology and passion.
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