[sdiy] Designing front panels for synths

[Tom Wiltshire]

+1 agree with this.

Interface design is a very well studied area and synths are no different from anything else. Ok, except for the fact that apparently most of the people designing Eurorack gear have never even heard of it - that *is* a bit unusual ;).

There’s loads of good material out there describing useful principles to bear in mind and useful stuff about the way the human perceptual system visually organises elements. This is important to know so that you can logically group functions in a way that people find “intuitive” (that just means “I get it without having to look it up" - e.g., it works at a subconscious level).

It’s mostly not rocket science (although I bet the Apollo designers knew it all!) and as always there’s a degree of art that goes with the science that makes the difference between something that’s perfect fine and workable and something that’s really a delight to use.

T.

==================
       Electric Druid
Synth & Stompbox DIY
==================



> On 13 Oct 2020, at 21:42, Jimmy Moore <jamoore84 at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
> What you're describing Gordon is essentially the basis for UX Design (and graphic design, usability testing, etc. etc).  The totality of that topic may be an impractically tough nut to crack over a single e-mail thread, but definitely makes for some fun conversation.
> 
> Gestalt principles <https://www.interaction-design.org/literature/topics/gestalt-principles> can be a good place to start. I specialize in data visualization for my professional life, and currently work with some very talented UX people.  You may be surprised at how much paper-prototyping goes on, just like Colin suggested. Otherwise, it is a lot of imitation, iteration, and (constructive) design critiques.
> 
> On Tue, Oct 13, 2020 at 2:13 PM ColinMuirDorward <colindorward at gmail.com <mailto:colindorward at gmail.com>> wrote:
> My best panels were made by cutting out a piece of graph paper to panel size, and then playing "chess" with knobs and jacks till I found an ergonomically optimal layout.
> But that only gets you the controls/io positioning. 
> As for surface treatment, I think this is so subjective that it would be impossible to come up with any guidelines to suit all tastes.
> For me, despite that I'm an artist (painter), I still go for a "designed by engineer" look. I just want my modules to be legible, without a lot of noisy distractions to make them harder for me to use/see. 
> Why not just choose an existing style you already like, and copy it? If it's just for personal use, I don't see the harm in following a good example.
> Curious to hear how others approach panel design.
> Cheers,
> Colin
> 
> 
> 
> On Tue, Oct 13, 2020 at 12:41 PM Gordonjcp <gordonjcp at gjcp.net <mailto:gordonjcp at gjcp.net>> wrote:
> No, no, not whether you should use Inkscape or Excel or some CAD package, actually designing them so they look good.
> 
> There's got to be some overlap on this list with people skilled in the visual arts.  How do you lay out the controls, connectors etc. on a panel so they look good, and don't look like the nightmarish "designed by engineer" crap that a lot of stuff seems to be?
> 
> I'm guessing there's some simple but non-obvious principles at work that could be explained if you could get past all the forum discussion of whether toner transfer is better than photoresist or Eagle is better than Illustrator or whatever.
> 
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> Gordonjcp
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