In reply to:

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Question. Why not design the PCB so that the VFD solders directly to it? Sort of like the current empeg display board, with the VFD sandwiched to the board. If someone wants/needs to do a ribbon cable in place of direct soldering, they can do that themselves without much trouble even if the PCB is designed for direct soldering.

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Good suggestion. I will look at that when I get home, see if there is enough clearance. I'm not too sure how to pull it off, tho..
Leave the mask alone, where the person can either connect up a 10-pin header, or a 10-pin socket? If that's the case, if someone solders in a 10-pin socket, will the pin # order still be the same? (i.e. I don't want to give the user the chance to shove +5V down the ground line, and fry a $120 display.) I may have to re-situate the mask for the 10-pins so if the board is mounted directly, the converter will hang BEHIND the display, and not to the right of it. (When it comes to pinouts, I suck at the placement. On a 10-pin header, looking down at the component side, where's #1, usually?)
I'll have to make sure nothing sticks out of the back of the display where it would interfere with this. It'd also require some kind of insulation, so the two boards don't touch and short out, or worse.

Me.