Leon Heller wrote:
How about compact PCI? http://www.picmg.org/test/compci.htmEurocard-size boards and a hard-metric 2mm connector with 220 pins! Lots of cases, power supplies, etc.
Hi Leon,It certainly is a nice bus! My feeling is that it is overkill for what we need and it will cost an arm and a leg because it is an industrial and not consumer based product. You wont find any useable parts in anyones junk box I guess.
The major problem with the initially proposed Rose-Bopla enclosure is that there is no airflow. You cannot get the heat out of it. An enclosure needs vent holes or slots at the top and bottom between the preferably vertically mounted boards. OK, we could probably provide air-vents, but will it suffice?
I do like the idea of a cube PC chassis like the Aria. We could still mount our own DIN41612 backplane in it, PCI cards with gold connectors are going to be a headache in the long run for homebrewing.
All digital boards can be without RF shielding inside the Aria, with attention and proper shielding only of the ADC / Codec portions on the boards required. And of course all the oscillators and clocks deserve proper attention to make them RF tight.
The other (cheap) option would be to mount boards in 5 1/2" drive-bay enclosures. Perhaps fit two boards into one bay, take the power from the PC...
just another 2c! 73, Helmut