An alternative might be to use threaded jacks and pots, so you can hold the bracket on with those, and no need for 'ears' to screw it onto the PCB.

Friendly suggestion: Think about the stresses applied to a card when fastened to the case. I dunno about you guys, but I have a couple of cases where the motherboard / slot fit is uh.. somewhat less than precise. It's probably worth trying to accommodate some compliance into the mechanical mount. Those PITA bracket ears are rigid, but do still offer SOME leeway for the bracket to fit independent of the card. I would really hesitate to use anything soldered to the PCB, as they will bear the brunt of the opposing force if the bracket is not aligned well with the slot. The nylon mounts look OK, but probably won't "give" much.

Now, I've distributed a whopping zero products to the market, so grain of salt and all that. Just some food for thought. If it were my project, I would probably pony up for a well-made bracket with good through-PCB screw mounts, even if it costs more than the PCB to manufacture -- but that's me. I know these things add up quickly.

Guys, there are several projects already that need brackets. Why not consolidate the demand and make a "golden standard" VOGONS universal bracket to rule them all?..

I think that would be hard to do. Cards will likely be very different (short of redesigning for a standard back plane), although perhaps a bracket making document would be useful with information for parts and manufacturing.

Haaa legit excited xD

The SnarkBarker also still needs a bracket. Maybe we can find a company that can make both? 😀 And what about the ArGUS?

For my Adlib and Snarkbarker I'm getting a couple of these brackets 3D Printer, I will then cut and drill into it with a dremel..

https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2105827

But nothing can compare to a good old regular metal bracket... all those 3d printed or PCB-made substitutes are just not true!

Those "ears" are the most expensive feature to add to a bracket - IMHO unless someone can produce them at a friend's machinery the cost is prohibitive.
The ARGUS approach is also good IMHO -> make the pcb arrangement compatible with the vibra16 cheap cards so you can buy a random eBay card and steal the bracket.

LABS wrote:

Today I received a first batch of PCBs for the kits in ENIG finish!

Nice! 😎

LABS wrote:

The hardest part was (of cause) making the metal brackets. It took about a month to find a proper solution, because the factory I was hoping for at first, made a sample which was unacceptable. They cut the form somehow ok, but were unable to bend it well. The drilling is in progress right now and the brackets will be ready in 2 days 😀

I probably can make an example brackets for you from FR4 if you'll give me hole positions/sizes. It probably will require some modifications for card, but probably it can be done for the next batch (if there will be any?).
Like this:

It holds up pretty well, can provide some flex, conducts to the case like metal one and can be made any in color (from PCB color palette). And it is not expensive.

Looks very good 😉

root42 wrote:

I am totally for a SB2.0 clone at this stage. Keep it simple. Learn from this project, and maybe you can later make a SBPro clone. But with SB2.0 compatibility you will already be able to play virtually all games that support AdLib or SoundBlaster. It is just a matter of fidelity (stereo / 16Bit if going for SB16 compatibilitz) and OPL3 support, which is not even supported by many games.

Isn't that basically SnarkBarker?

appiah4 wrote:

root42 wrote:

I am totally for a SB2.0 clone at this stage. Keep it simple. Learn from this project, and maybe you can later make a SBPro clone. But with SB2.0 compatibility you will already be able to play virtually all games that support AdLib or SoundBlaster. It is just a matter of fidelity (stereo / 16Bit if going for SB16 compatibilitz) and OPL3 support, which is not even supported by many games.

Isn't that basically SnarkBarker?

Goodness! This quote is a year old! 😀 by now, yes. The Snark Barker is one option. A very nice one. But I will definitely also build the Blasterboard! 😀

I also wouldn't even dare to name the SnarkBarker together with the Blasterboard in terms of its design goal... as much as the SnarkBarker is a very fun thing (and I am very happy with it), the 1:1 clone of the SB also did clone a rather nice noise floor 😁 I'm betting this card is gonna be a world of difference in that aspect, which is why I'm so highly interested in it, too 😀

Finally the brackets are ready and I'm very pleased with the result.

Awesome work! Considering how much time it took to drill and fit a bracket to the SnarkBarker, this is surely gonna be a heaven to put together! 😀

Just a side note, without any real intent to change anything anymore: I just recently found that e.g. Mouser does offer Keystone Brackets with ears, like e.g. the 9202 - it might not fit this version of the PCB, but maybe it could be adapted to fit a future version (if planned). Means it would then maybe just need the remaining drill holes and no fasteners.

MJay99 wrote:

Awesome work! Considering how much time it took to drill and fit a bracket to the SnarkBarker, this is surely gonna be a heaven to put together! 😀

Indeed! The guy who drilled them made an awesome work. And these holders are dead-strong. I was sceptical at first and thought they will give the plastic feel, but they actually do not. The bracket sits firmly to the board, just like with 😳 "THE EARS" 😳

Fagear, how do the parts hold together? Glue? I like that the outputs are signed, I really miss it in bb.

^ I believe pcb-bracket is held with solder joints

Hello! Is it possible to bay assembled board ?

LABS wrote:

Fagear, how do the parts hold together? Glue? I like that the outputs are signed, I really miss it in bb.

Parts are held by fiberglass ledges and solder.

Assembled bracket is attached to the main board either by nuts on connectors (like with metal brackets) or by the same fiberglass ledges and solder.

That's why I told you about some modifications to your "main board". Since there are no connectors with nuts, you have to reserve a little space for large solder pad and add a ledges to the outline of the board.

The most physical stress goes into fiberglass ledges, those prevent bracket from sliding away from the board when inserted and pulled out. The same goes for inter-parts connection - fiberglass ledges keep top small piece from been torn away while applying tension to the bracket when installed.
You can screw in the whole assembly into PC case and it will hold the board in slot even without solder at all. But it will fall apart without solder when not inserted.