Customer Reviews

Coombs' Printed Circuits Handbook

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I was looking for a book that would teach me enough about the current technology in electronic component packaging and multilayer PCBs that I wouldn't feel like a fool working with manufacturing engineers, PCB layout people, PCB manufacturers, and assemblers. I think I learned quite a bit; now people think I have years of experience with these technologies.

I really like the format. Each chapter in this book is written by a different person: there are people from HP, TI, IBM, Motorola and dozens of others that offer theory and practical knowledge.

I think this book is quite useful, but I also think two things are necessary to make it work: (1) moderate electronics/PCB background and (2) a more experienced co-worker who can answer any questions that you have.

This book is a must for any engeneering department involved in printed circuit board design as well as production engineering, quality engineering,etc. It is the most comprehensive book of its kind that I have seen. The new edition includes leading and bleeding edge technologies and goes into great detail. This is not a basics book. If your looking for a reference guide to the full spectrum of the printed circuit board industry, this is the one to buy

The only reason I give this book a 4 star rating is because of the information that was removed from fourth to fifth edition. To serve as a complete reference you must buy both editions. The topics covered are significantly different.

Excellent books. Must have for any person involved in Printed circuit board industry.

I agree with the majority of the reviews here. This is an invaluable reference book. Put it this way, this book will likely save you at least one re-spin on a complex board. That alone will pay for it's cost many times over.

Cheers,

If you are thinking of starting a factory to fabricate or assemble PCBs, and you need a surface knowledge of the industry to impress your banker, then this book is for you!

If you are looking for information on designing better boards (like me), you will be sadly disappointed. This book flat sucks. For one thing, there is little continuity and lots of overlap, as each chapter is written by different people. Each chapter is short, very general, and reads like a bad IEEE journal article.

There is a lot of info, and I suspect the various authors are real smart folks. However, it bears repeating...this book flat sucks. If I knew how to return a kindle copy I would.

Sincerely,
Chris Chaudoir, BSEE
Sr. Systems Engineer

This is a good book that has been around in earlier editions. The editor has done a credible job of finding knowledgeable people to write for him. I have used all of the earlier editions of this book at one time or another and have found it helpful along the way but it needs updating more often to avoid becoming a history book.

Buyer beware I was mis-lead by the statement below:

COOMBS' PRINTED CIRCUITS HANDBOOK features:
* CD-ROM with the entire book in searchable format.

This is not the case for the sixth edition of this handbook according to McGraw Hill.

One of the reasons I bought this book was because of that statement which is true for the 5th edition but not the 6th.

By the way it is available for Kindle at $100 Plus $339 for a Kindle. Also once you have bought the book it is available on-line for $27 more.

Otherwise the content of the book looks like it will be very useful as stated by the other reviewers.

I have been away from designing printed circuit boards for a decade (switched to ICs), but with the advent of RoHS (reduction of Hazardous Substances), the evaluation of my IC designs was being both directly and indirectly impacted by Lead Free Soldering. This book got me up to speed, and is an invaluable resources in understanding what impacts going lead free has had on costs, and performance of circuit boards.

It is an interesting study on the (probable) unintended consequences of Government decree. The do-gooders (mainly in Europe) decree electronics will reduce or eliminate lead....and the series of reliability consequences that follow: whisker growth, higher temperature profiles for soldering components with lead-free solders, the unavailability of good lead replacements in solders), the stresses on Vias and through-holes due to higher temperature soldering profiles....all impacting reliability.

There is also various summmaries on CAF formation (conductive anodic filament growth). High temperature, high voltage, and impurities exacerbate CAF. So if you are involved in the burn-in of circuit boards, as I am, to evaluate my IC designs, every IC design engineer should be aware of the impact of circuit board performance at elevated temperatures. For that matter, every design engineer involved in high temperature electronics > 85C should be aware of CAF.

Plus it is in every circuit designers interest to have a basic grasp of materials, and processes involved in making and assembling components on circuit boards. This serves as an invaluable resource for the professional electronics engineer, or manufacturing engineer involved in designing or manufacturing reliable products, and has a great wealth of information.

I bougth this book to have a reference on the desing of PCB. (How wide to design the traces, what distance should i use betweeen traces...) I found it prety useless.

Nevertheless, it is a goog book to undestand the process and manifacturing of PCB, if this is your business

Complete coverage by a number of writers with diverse backgrounds. The highest praise I can give is that I use it daily!