Solutions in 2014 for plastic cases...

[Soj]

I have worked on several MIDIbox'es in the past years, it always was fun and working but at the end, the problem was that I ended with a cool gear, but in a poor casing, for example : wood very roughly cut (by myself!).

 

What are the best solutions in 2014 in order to make a custom plastic case, with labelling, some round and square holes ?

Example :

 

 

Is 3D-printing adapted for this purpose ? Are there other solutions ?

As the desired quantity = 1 unit, are there some companies that propose such a service ?

 

Edited May 25, 2014 by Soj

[novski]

Hi Soj

There are such supplyers. They make a good work but the Price is nerver as cheep as a wood case...

Where do you live? Those 3D Printers are mostly regional...

[Soj]

Thanks novski,

I'm in France.

 

What are the names of the supplyers you know ?

 

 

(About 3D printing, I just wanted to know if the general idea of 3D printing can be used to build clean and strong plastic cases? ie it should not be broken easily)

[novski]

Well it always depends on what material you take and in what a strength ists built. They make honeycomb structures between wals and like that it can get realy strong. The main problem is that those Printers for Hobbists dont make big parts and the Professional Prints are expencive... Il have to go throu my bookmarks. I think i have some supplyers saved there...

[ilmenator]

There are plenty of examples for cases laser cut from 3mm acrylic sheets - for an example look at my Mutable Instruments Ambika case. If designed properly, these cases can be very sturdy and solid. Of course, if you drop them from 1.5m they will most probably break, but they definitely take the normal abuse.

[Soj]

Thanks @ilmenator for this nice example!

 

What company would you recommand for this ? (cases laser cut acrylic sheets).

 

Do you have an approximative price in mind for something like the photo I have put in my question ? (Novation LaunchControl) ?

[ilmenator]

Take a look at Ponoko or Formulor and do the price calculus yourself - the costs mainly depend on panel size and time needed for the laser cutter to cut the shapes you have defined.

[mono]

hi soj,

 

another good example for a plastic case is here:

 

http://www.sonic-potions.com/

 

very neat design and excellent quality. 6 pieces of laser-cut material in total. design is very similar to the ambika.

 

you can find a good service for a fair price here:

 

http://www.seeedstudio.com/service/index.php?r=st/lasercutting

 

mOnO

[jojjelito]

The Sonic Potions plastic case (acryl/Plexiglas) is cut by the same nice gentleman in Germany who does the plastic Mutable Instruments cases for Shruthi, Anushri and the Ambika. You could always try to contact him for other one-offs, but his business revolves around non-synth stuff most days. Ponoko/Formulor or something like Seedstudio might be more suited for prototypes or for cutting down on shipping depending on your continent.

Some other DIY synths like the PreenFM 2 and the Audiothingies P6 also use similar cases. Plus the Peter Kvitek devices like the MidiALF and such. Somehow the Sammich SID begat the Sammich FM that inspired Mutable who then propagated across :D

If you feel like spending more, those projects mentioned are also available with screen-printed sheet metal boxes with wooden sides. That would probably cost a lot or end in tears for a one-off proto, but it can be done.

/J

Edited May 25, 2014 by jojjelito

[Shuriken]

_{Slightly Off Topic:}

_{@jojolito, do you know who makes the official metal shruthi cases?}

[jojjelito]

@Shuriken: Hope that's OK with the powers that be. They're made in Estonia by a mr Adrian Hallik. I'm unsure of the exact relationship, but I think he's employed at a metal shop with a screen printer. I suggest you register over at Mutable and give a shout out to Adrian.

[novski]

Hi again! There are some good sugestions here already! The one that i had in my bookmarks is https://www.1zu1prototypen.com

Its a company located in Austria and they seam to make good stuff!

Last evening i had a course in 3d printing. As i sayed its not for big cases bit altrough i think with those honeycomb chambers the material gets more stable then full filled material is. I don't have a propf for that but it felt quite so...

Wher i made my course they charge 10€ per printing hour... Including the material ABS. Making a 2x2cm cube takes exactly one hour. The Printing Time rises with the complexity of your model.

Its a smal company in my hometown.

easy3d.ch

best regards

Novski

[Altitude]

I'm with ilmenator on this one.  You cant beat laser cut acrylic for the cost/result ratio.  There are several ways of doing it so it would be time well spent looking around on how people make them.  With the laser, it's always time that you pay for, the actual material is very cheap so how you lay it out makes a HUGE difference in price.  3D printing sounds cool but I've seen what the results look like from the Makerbot type lower end machines and it's crude at best.  I've also seen the results out of a Stratasys machine and that's a different story but that's not 10 euro an hour

Edited May 28, 2014 by Altitude