Is it recommended to use the default rule when setting up PCB Design?

Is there a better way to do it?

You mean the default values in Board Setup when starting a new project?

1 Like

On some PCB’s you damage 10 tracks on a PCB because a 2mm screw is half a mm too long.
Other PCB’'s have very wide tracks because they need to conduct 20A of current in a motor controller.

You have to adapt the design rules to both the job at hand, and to what the manufacturer for your PCB can handle. I have a tendency to not go below 0.3mm wide tracks, as there is a chance that below that boards from some of the cheaper PCB manufacturers may get a little less reliable, but it’s a rule of thumb and not based on real knowledge. I also do not have a need to go to narrower tracks.

For me the “default” is just a random number for track width and clearance. Recently I had a QFP48 with a pitch of 0.5mm, and for that chip the default is pretty close (It seems to be 0.25mm track widht, and 0.2mm clearance).

1 Like

Depending on what you are making you might use other rules but for my boards (hobby) I usually double all the defaults. i.e. wider traces more space larger via holes.

Often the defaults are the smallest recommended for most board mfg. However unless you need these small traces you are much better off making them larger.

And of course as @paulvdh you will have to look further into trace width if you traces carry more than low level signals.

1 Like

I’m not sure if this is what you’re looking for but you might want to check this out:

Thanks for all your responses. I’m pretty much learning from what I read and watch regarding this.

This topic was automatically closed 90 days after the last reply. New replies are no longer allowed.