Hardware Podcasts

Beware of the Overachievers

The Amp Hour · 7 Aug 2025 · 1h 15m · Episode 700

What this episode covers

Dave Jones and Chris Gammell discuss new hardware projects, including Jones's low-power lab timer using a transflective LCD and font chip, and Gammell's experience with JLC PCB's automated assembly workflow. They analyze the economic impact of tariffs on sourcing components from China versus domestic distributors, highlighting the cost advantages of JLC despite the 54% tax. The conversation also covers Gammell's stalled solar installation due to local building codes and Jones's recurring EV charging solenoid failure.

Most relevant to

founders before launch and early-stage companies

Topics

Mentioned

Companies
JLC, LCSC, East Rising, Sanwa, B-Link, Opulo
Products
Lumen
Chips
Nordic nRF52840
Tools
Key CAD, EasyEDA

Related episodes from other shows

Other shows on the same ground, closest first.

  • OnTrack · 51m

    The Future of PCB Manufacturing: Tariffs, Supply Chains & More

    Greg Papandrew, Managing Director of DirectPCB, discusses the impact of tariffs and supply chain shifts on PCB manufacturing, explaining why China remains the preferred source despite geopolitical tensions due to capacity and lead times. He highlights the critical importance of Design for Manufacturing (DFM), noting that designers often over-engineer boards with unnecessary sequential laminations and gold plating, which drives up costs and limits vendor options. Papandrew also addresses the challenges of export controls, proprietary data protection, and the lack of domestic US capacity to absorb offshore production, suggesting that private sector joint ventures might be necessary to scale advanced PCB production in the US.

    Manufacturing partners & offshoringPolicy, trade & tariffs
    8 chapters

  • Thoroughly Considered · 1h 11m

    124: Tariff Talk

    Myke Hurley joins hosts Tom Gerhardt and Dan Provost of Studio Neat to discuss the impact of tariffs on their business, explaining how they mitigate costs by performing final assembly and value-added machining in the US while sourcing raw metal parts from Asia. The group also covers the discontinuation of the Material Dock due to its complex, multi-supplier supply chain and low sales volume, and reviews past predictions, including a debate on whether DSLR camera sales are recovering. Finally, they discuss Studio Neat's new Pocket Notebook, highlighting its use of Colorplan paper and GeoSmyth's Abstract recycled paper, and touch on the strategic shift toward automated, AI-driven marketing.

    Policy, trade & tariffsManufacturing partners & offshoring
    6 chapters

  • OnTrack · 9m

    Overcoming Global Supply Chain Obstacles in Electronics

    Tristan Ren, Director of Operations at TapRen Solutions, explains how his company helps clients navigate the complexities of overseas PCB manufacturing in China, Malaysia, and India. He details strategies for mitigating tariff uncertainties by negotiating price protections with manufacturers and providing visual inspection footage to build trust with remote clients. The discussion covers the operational challenges of cross-border supply chains, including communication barriers and logistics, which TapRen manages to deliver zero-defect products.

    Sourcing & supply chainManufacturing partners & offshoring
    5 chapters

  • OnTrack · 22m

    OnTrack PCB Design Podcast 2025 Year in Review

    Host Zach Peterson reviews 2025 industry trends, highlighting how tariffs reshaped global supply chains and spurred UHDI manufacturing expansion in the US. Guests including David Schild, Tyler Richards, and Greg Papandrew discuss the economic realities of reshoring, the technical challenges of high-layer count and rigid-flex PCBs, and the specific innovations in solder paste and substrate materials. The episode also examines the practical application of AI in embedded development and supply chain management, noting both its utility in automating coding tasks and its current limitations in deterministic engineering optimization.

    Sourcing & supply chainAI & machine learning
    12 chapters

  • Embedded.fm · 1h 20m

    123: Banished from Running Linux

    Bob Coggeshall, co-author of sudo and founder of Small Batch Assembly, explains how he transitioned from a career in software to running a boutique electronics assembly service for makers. He details the technical challenges of automating low-volume PCB assembly, including building a custom pricing engine in Python and integrating with the Octopart Common Parts Library to streamline customer workflows. Coggeshall also discusses his personal projects, such as driving Nixie tubes with high-voltage circuits and using microcontrollers like the ATmega328 and Atmel SAM D20.

    Starting a product companyEmbedded firmware
    6 chapters

The summary, chapters and topics are generated from the episode’s audio by this directory, not written by The Amp Hour. The episode itself belongs to its publisher.