Inking The Hero PCB: Just How Difficult Is It?
Predominately ROG engineers research performance orientated designs: Extreme Engine, OC Tools, LN2 modes, extensive BIOS tweaks etc, but aesthetics still factor highly in our fan's purchasing decisions. The black and red livery is synonymous to the brand, and ROG has always championed an aspiring design to reflect its performance leadership. This is where the idea to 'ink' the PCB came from, but getting there wasn't easy.
Perfecting the look
The 'inking' of the new Maximus VII Hero and Gene PCBs is part of a board-wide concept that reflects centers of ROG innovation, power and energy. Starting at the pin ATX power connector, the blood-red ink shoots down directly towards the Z97 PCH, where lots of ROG innovations connect: KeyBot, UEFI firmware, Intel GigE/GameFirst III, USB BIOS Flashback, ROG Connect, etc. Across the board, SupremeFX 2014's redline innovation is connected to the ink around SupremeFX audio, meanwhile, under and around the Extreme Engine III heatsink is also highlighted as a power and energy control focal point.
Different color trials around the DIGI+ Extreme Engine III hardware.
Through the design process, there was considerable thought into how much color to add; after all, these aren't the only unique or significant parts. Ultimately too much color across the board made it look visually messy so it was abandoned in favor of a neater, sharper look.
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The R&D process
You'd be forgiven for thinking that just throwing on a bit of paint is quite easy, right? I mean, there's already words, letters and lines painted across the board - just change that to red and put it on a bigger area! Well, actually, it became a significant challenge. Here's a snippet of the things considered:
- The current lettering/lines on motherboards are tiny applications, but when spread over large areas the ink must be applied extremely accurately so it does not overlap any solder points or visual que the SMT machine will need to see. This means it needs to be a thicker consistency, but not so thick that it doesn't apply perfectly evenly.
This multi-layer trial failed on two accounts: While the application is very accurate, there are thickness inconsistencies you can see to the right, and the final red is too bright.
- How does the ink react to the heat of wave soldering during the manufacturing process: is it compatible with the heating/cooling rate used or does it crack or discolor?
- PCB material matters: how well does the ink bond with the PCB? How does it expand compared to the PCB during the wave soldering? If the PCB expands or contracts at different rate to the ink - even by a tiny amount - the bond will break or there will be cracks.
- How does a matt or glossy PCB affect the final color of applied ink?
Glossy versus Matt black PCBs were evaluated.
- Does it affect the ability of the SMT machine to see the correct right place to put components, or does it get confused?
- How well does it age? Results were put it through an accelerated aging process to discover if it peels, cracks or discolors over the anticipated life of the board.
And finally:
- Getting that ROG color spot on! There are hundreds of shades of red to consider, as well as the ability to apply multiple layers to affect color intensive. Each color uses a slightly different compound that affects all the variables listed above. So multiply your testing time! The ROG team tried up to triple-layer painting techniques to get the correct color and intensity.
Ultimately it's a huge undertaking to do properly, and ROG boards are yet again pushing the barriers of exclusive features and designs thanks to investment in R&D. They will be the only ones inked for some time to come!
