# Building/buying rack faceplates for punch outs



## IAmLumenator (Jan 30, 2014)

Where do you guys find those nice rack face plates that you can punch or drill out to install various connectors?

Do you buy blank panels and make them yourself?


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## FACTplayers (Jan 30, 2014)

They are very inexpensive on eBay, Sweetwater, and Amazon. Just search "blank rack panels".


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## MNicolai (Jan 30, 2014)

For that matter, getting custom plates and panels through an AV dealer isn't all that expensive depending on what you want. Company I work for sources all our custom plates and panels through Whirlwind, though there are others out there. They also take care of any labeling or color coding we may need on our panels.


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## IAmLumenator (Jan 30, 2014)

Well that's neat. Do you provide them with cad-type drawings or do they know your rig intricately enough to help you put connectors in appropriate places?


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## Footer (Jan 30, 2014)

IAmLumenator said:


> Well that's neat. Do you provide them with cad-type drawings or do they know your rig intricately enough to help you put connectors in appropriate places?


Go to their website. They have software that runs you through the process. 

Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk


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## MNicolai (Jan 30, 2014)

IAmLumenator said:


> Well that's neat. Do you provide them with cad-type drawings or do they know your rig intricately enough to help you put connectors in appropriate places?



_We _send them CAD drawings, thought there are other ways. Some manufacturers have proprietary software programs you can use. I'm not aware of Whirlwind having a program for this, but generally a diagram is all they need. Could be drawn up on a napkin for all they care, so long as the pertinent information is available for them to complete the fabrication.

Here's what Whirlwind advises for custom gear, though this is skewed more towards full systems than just an individual panel:


> Multichannel distribution systems are generally constructed of but not necessarily limited to the following basic building blocks:
> 
> Input and/or output boxes, panels and wallplates
> Multipin - multipin interconnect cables (C Series)
> ...



Here's a good overview of some of the things they can do, though their capabilities are certainly not limited to these styles and options:


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## cbarrett92 (Jan 31, 2014)

I hope this doesn't violate the TOS (If it does, I sincerely apologize!), but here is company I have had good dealings with. Redco Audio has an easy to use panel designer and they really do good work.

http://www.redco.com/Redco-Custom-Panel-Designer.html

If you have any questions contact Chris Stubbs and he can answer any question you have.

--

This may sound spammy, but I have had many orders with them, and have always been happy. They are also a small company, and I enjoy supporting those types of businesses when I can.


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## dvsDave (Feb 4, 2014)

cbarrett92 said:


> I hope this doesn't violate the TOS (If it does, I sincerely apologize!



As long as you aren't a representative of Redco, you're fine. 



Sent from my Moto X


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## BillESC (Feb 6, 2014)

I build my own.


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## microstar (Feb 6, 2014)

Bill, what method do you use to make labels for the panel?


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## themuzicman (Feb 6, 2014)

A lot of the NYC audio shops use things like this: http://www.middleatlantic.com/rackac/ucp/custom.htm, some use the 2U variation on this for NL8 and large connectors, and everyone else uses a slightly different variation that is 1U and can house 3 rectangle plates you mound various adapters in. If you've worked a touring musical changes are you'll see this type of rack faceplate because it allows racks with any configuration of inputs to be quickly built for tours and shows.


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## BillESC (Feb 6, 2014)

microstar said:


> Bill, what method do you use to make labels for the panel?



We can etch which is the best or use vinyl which costs less.


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## zmb (Feb 7, 2014)

FYI if you ever need a DWG editor to produce face panels or anything else that's 2D: http://www.3ds.com/products-service...tools]-[middle]-[intext]-[www.solidworks.com]


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## museav (Feb 9, 2014)

You can purchase blank panels from a number of sources and build your own or have someone do it for you based on drawings you send them.

When you have the work done by a third party there are often several options such as whether you want the panel just punched for you to fill with connectors or if you want them to install the connectors for you. You can also often order panels with engraved labeling if they offer that option (with or without ther connectors installed).

One comment is that for punched plates I prefer to use flanged blank panels rather than flat panels, it provides a little more support once they're punched. I also watch how large the poanels get, if you have a large panel with a large number of holes in it you may want to consider adding supplemental stiffening to the back of the panel.

Common provideers of custom panels are Whirlwind, RCI Custom Products, Middle Atlantic, TecNec Distributing, Panel Authority and many others.

One alternative to custom rack panels is the modular panels offered by Ace Backstage, Switchcraft and AVP that have standardized cutouts and a variety of available modular inserts (see http://www.switchcraft.com/productsummary.aspx?Parent=740 for an example). I have started using more of these as they can be readily modified or expanded if anything changes in the future.


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## MikeJ (Feb 9, 2014)

BillESC said:


> I build my own.


Bill what do you use to punch you holes? I prefer rear mounting connectors, but the punches I have used don't leave as nice of a hole as I would like, so I end up front mounting like your pictures. Do, you fine the same results, or is it just your preference to front mount?


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## BillESC (Feb 9, 2014)

Our panels are all done on a CNC router.


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## IAmLumenator (Feb 14, 2014)

What are the benefits of mounting the body on the front of the panel, versus mounting the connector body on the 'inside'/back?


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## IAmLumenator (Feb 14, 2014)

(I mean the difference between picture A and picture B).

Picture A


Picture B


It seems like the latch might not always work properly if the body is inside.


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## MikeJ (Feb 14, 2014)

Its purely aesthetics. There are no problems with the locks on connectors(at least with neutrik).


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## Chris15 (Feb 14, 2014)

Generally, front mounting a connector has one significant advantage, it will hide a slightly inaccurately machined hole, whereas a back mount will show that up.
front mounting is also more tolerant of different depths of panel, rear mounting has a fairly limited scope making it most useful on steel, aluminium and some plastics only.
Other that that, mount from the back always...


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## museav (Feb 15, 2014)

Another potential factor, in a rear mount all the pressure during connector insertion is on the two small screws rather than spread out across at least the perimeter of the faceplate of the conector. Rear mount also requires geater depth and can lead to tighter bend radii off the rear of the connectors. I have always gone with front mount, but it really is personal preference.


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## teqniqal (Feb 15, 2014)

MikeJ said:


> Bill what do you use to punch you holes? I prefer rear mounting connectors, but the punches I have used don't leave as nice of a hole as I would like, so I end up front mounting like your pictures. Do, you fine the same results, or is it just your preference to front mount?


Greenlee tools offers hand operated punches that require a pilot hole to get the draw bolt through, then you tighten-them up with a wrench (and you need a small pilot hole to get the large pilot hole to center-up correctly). If you are really fancy, they have electric and hydraulic tools that draws the punch through the metal. The punches have tick marks at every 90 degrees around the body, so if you score the metal on the back side for guidelines, you can center them up pretty accurately.

CNC is really the best way. Clean and precise. Most plate fabricators will send you a sample of their work so you can see their finish quality. Not all fabricators provide the same thing - particularly in the engraving (surface laser etched, bare metal milled / engraved, or paint-filled milled / engraved, or back engraved or printed if on a clear substrate - they all look different in the low light conditions we work in backstage). If you send them a sketch or other drawing, be sure to get a shop drawing back from them for approval *before you release it for manufacturing* - typos in letters, misjustified text, incorrect fonts, incorrect font sizes, incorrect connectors, and misaligned connectors are all common issues. A note on font size: Make the lettering large enough you can read it in the dark. Yes, you can engrave 1/16" tall letters - but a 1/4" tall letter is much easier to read with a flashlight. Personal preference: _Label all connectors ABOVE the connector_ - this way when there is a plug in the jack, or your hand is on the connector, you can still see what channel it is.

The panel face finish can vary to: satin, textured, and gloss powder coating; anodized aluminum, brushed aluminum, brass, bronze, buffed metal, clear laminated - they all look different. Some panel manufacturers will do custom colors - this is handy if you are placing a connector panel on a wall where it will be visible to the audience - _a white plate on a black wall won't do! _Personal preference_: Use white plates with black lettering inside floor pockets - much easier to read. _ Pet peeve:_ Black panels backstage on walls where the audience will never see them (yes, plates on the upstage wall should typically be black, but on the downstage wall - no one will see this and a white panels is much easier to find and read)._

There are 'gotchas' in laying-out the screw-holes for many connectors, too. You usually can't trust the catalog data for the connector drawings - for some reason they always round-off the decimals and fractions because they want the drawings easy to read - so the true dimensions are different than the published dimensions (_personally, I think the marketing guys don't think the customers are smart enough to read and understand the detailed correct dimensions, so they think they are doing us a favor by 'simplifying' the information - a few thousandths of an inch may not seem like much, but it can really affect how easily parts go together._). Neutrik has numerous hole patterns that are not the same, _yet look alike at first glance_. Use the wrong one and the connector will mount with a slight rotation and look funny.

I recommend that you secure the connectors with screws and nuts, rather than pop-rivets or threading them into the plate. The pop-rivets are unreliable and a real pain to drill-out if you need to replace a connector, and the metal in the panels is rarely hard enough or thick enough to allow a machine screw to get a good bite. If you are concerned about the screws / nuts coming loose due to vibration in transport (everything shakes apart in a truck!), then place a dab of thread locking agent on them as you assemble the plate.

Ultimate Audio Control Panel:


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## MNicolai (Feb 15, 2014)

teqniqal said:


> If you are concerned about the screws / nuts coming loose due to vibration in transport (everything shakes apart in a truck!), then place a dab of thread locking agent on them as you assemble the plate.



I'm a pretty big fan of nylock nuts for these instead of thread-locking agent. After the holes are drilled/punched, if you have a container of nylock nuts, the machine screws, a hex head screwdriver for the nylocks, and a small screwgun (with sufficiently low torque setting so as to not strip out the nylock nuts), you can really go to town on a panel and throw the connectors onto it in no time.


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## IAmLumenator (Feb 15, 2014)

I think I'd prefer the front-mounted connector, only because with a rear mounted connector it is possible to push the connector inside of the rack, which may not be accessible or easy to repair, whereas the front mounted one can only pull out. This in addition to the strain on the screws as @museav said.


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## Chris15 (Feb 15, 2014)

Neutrik make a version of most of their XLRs that has an M3 thread tapped in instead of a clearance hole. There's also a plate that fits into standard D shells to give them the M3 thread...
Add a bit of medium strength thread lcoker and you're golden, with no small parts to loose when you take the connector off the plate for whatever reason.
Which is another reason I like back mount, I can take the connector off without having to desolder it. Makes it much easier if you need to replace a failed connector in a tight panel without delloming everything to get the slack to pull it through the front of the panel...


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## IAmLumenator (Feb 15, 2014)

Depending on the connection, sometimes it might be more appropriate to use a through male-female connector, which would make it much easier to swap out the connector from the front, and probably much easier to patch inside too since the cable wont be soldered to the connector and can be swapped out for one with a different termination or length.


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## AlexDonkle (Feb 20, 2014)

We're fans of standardizing plates and panels Neutrik's D-con connectors (you can find almost every connector out there that fits this hole pattern, but either Neutrik, Canare, or Switchcraft). They have a pre-machined, 12-hole rack panel that I've used myself. 
http://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/Neutrik/NZP1RU-12/?qs=Z8F0rdG164BowyApekYwVw==

Nice thing is that if you buy or custom-fab a plate with the same hole pattern for everything, you can swap out connectors on the plate as needed, without re-machining the plate.


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## museav (Feb 23, 2014)

IAmLumenator said:


> Depending on the connection, sometimes it might be more appropriate to use a through male-female connector, which would make it much easier to swap out the connector from the front, and probably much easier to patch inside too since the cable wont be soldered to the connector and can be swapped out for one with a different termination or length.


Feedthrough connectors are very common in some cases, for example BNC and HDMI connectors, however in situations such as XLR connectors a feedthough connector plus the asssociated cable end connector and any associated cable bend radius would require an enclosure depth that would be impractical to install in typical wall depths.

teqniqal's post reminded me of some past experiences with one Consultant who would draw up plates and panels based only on the front panel dimensions of the connectors without considering the dimensions of the connectors on the other side of the panel or providing any spacing for structural purposes. After several experiences with this, whenever we bid on their projects we would automatically assume that we'd have to increase the size of every panel, plate and related junction box.


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## AlexDonkle (Mar 1, 2014)

museav said:


> teqniqal's post reminded me of some past experiences with one Consultant who would draw up plates and panels based only on the front panel dimensions of the connectors without considering the dimensions of the connectors on the other side of the panel or providing any spacing for structural purposes. After several experiences with this, whenever we bid on their projects we would automatically assume that we'd have to increase the size of every panel, plate and related junction box.



Just curious, why'd you increase the panel/jbox size instead of just increasing the plate thickness for high-connector density panels? (doesn't help with depth obviously, but we've used 3/16" thick panels without issue several times)


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## MNicolai (Mar 2, 2014)

adonkle said:


> Just curious, why'd you increase the panel/jbox size instead of just increasing the plate thickness for high-connector density panels? (doesn't help with depth obviously, but we've used 3/16" thick panels without issue several times)



When we look at connector densities on panels, the factors tend to include:

structural integrity of panel
visibility of connector labels when cables are plugged in
user-interaction (does the user have to squeeze a thumb between two connectors to release an NL4 connector and untwist it to pull it out?)
ease of termination for wiring the panels from the backside (some connectors are more difficult to terminate in high density configurations than others)


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## kevlar557 (Apr 10, 2014)

We use PanelCrafters here, and have had 0 issues, except for when we ask for the wrong thing.


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## museav (Apr 10, 2014)

Chris15 said:


> Other that that, mount from the back always...


Where as I go with front mount only as I believe it provides a stronger and more durable installation due to insertion pressure being born over a larger area while you can use washers on the back side to also allow extertion forces to bear over a larger area.


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## Chris15 (Apr 10, 2014)

I don't question that front mount may be more ruabel, but it's just not to my aesthetic preference, and maybe that's partly because no one seems to bother getting them properly parallel and perpendicular when mounting them to plates. Back mounting takes away the obviousness of minor errors.

It would not however be the first time that insertion force was the lesser concern to "extraction" force, either through other than gentle removal of the connector, or merely someone tripping on the cable and yanking it that way...


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