My experience building Mattzocontrollers

[Ulrich Schneider]

Hi everyone,

I have now built MLCmini, MLCmega, and MTC4PFmini. I want to share my experiences.

First, thank you for providing the ideas, files, and instructions. I am incredibly grateful that I could build all of these without significant issues!

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| Ordering cases: |
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I ordered all cases online because I do not own a 3D printer. I used the website https://craftcloud3d.com/

For the MLCmini and MLCmega, I used the options:
– Material ABS
– Finish: Standard (100% infill
– Color: Gray

A company in Germany had the lowest prices for the two orders, and everything worked as expected. I am happy with these cases.

A resin printer was recommended for the MTC4PFmini. I ordered with the following options:
– Material: High-Detail Resin
– Finish: Standard Smooth
– Color: Natural Gray

A Chinese company was by far the cheapest, including shipping costs. However, the order went through customs and became 1.5 times as expensive. I recommend ordering from within the EU. Before printing, the company complained that some details in the print were too thin. They asked me if I wanted to proceed at my own risk, which I confirmed. In the end, everything came out as expected. I enjoy these cases. They do not attach/detach exactly as LEGO. They are sometimes a bit tricky. I wonder if selecting an extra smooth finish would improve this.

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| Ordering PCBs |
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I ordered all my PCBs via https://jlcpcb.com/

All of them came as expected. There are no special options here.

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| Build Process |
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General Remarks
– Use very thin solder: I used 1.5mm
– you need to use a third hand/helping hand/soldering hand

MLCmini:
– easiest by far
– nothing too complicated
MLCmega:
– I used the option with a 5V DC (called Variante 3 in the instructions)
– more strenuous
– components easy to solder
– cable management:
– I did not install a fan
– I used the side of the fan for the cables connecting PCA9685 to the upper board
– I soldered the cables first to the PCA9685, then to the top board
– I soldered the long male connectors to the top board to connect it with the female connectors on the bottom board
– I tried different cable solutions but found the described one the easiest

MTC4PFmini: by far the most complicated
– the SMD size in the instructions is the wrong size!!!
– they should be 0805
– the 0805s are also easier to order (Germany: reichelt.de)
– only two of the five I built fitted easily in the case
– I used some spacer to get the correct distance
– I needed to sand a bit of the inner side of the bottom of the case
– keep an eye on the resistors for the two LEDs
– If you want multiple LEDs in a row or series, you might want another option
– The chip is soldered on top of the resistors, so you need to desolder up to 16 pins if you want to change the resistor after building it

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