Surface mount device (SMD) placement to control a signal path in a printed circuit board (PCB), including: adding, to a PCB, a plurality of signal path segments, each signal path segment of the plurality of signal path segments ending at corresponding pad of a plurality of pads, wherein a first pad of the plurality of pads is couplable to a second pad of the plurality of pads to create a first signal path and is couplable to a third pad of the plurality of pads to create a second signal path; and coupling, via a discrete SMD, the first pad and the second pad to create the first signal path comprising a first signal path segment of the plurality of signal path segments and a second signal path segment of the plurality of signal path segments.