If I had watched this video as a teen, I can't imagine how it would have blown my mind! I used to spend days in our backyard, chalk in hand, sketching out ideas in front of our yard shed, trying to figure out how to make a simple calculator with gates. I never quite succeeded-and I didn't even have the internet back then! Thanks, Cody!
Sounds like you have the mind to build cool things! Having the internet today defiantly allows us to have access to more information. It is never to late to start a project!
@@GlobalScienceNetwork Could I have the circuit diagram please and a pdf transcript of the explanation please? I'd like to build it myself. I'm a student in electronics engineering.
@@pascalmalle2240 Sure, if you email me I can send you the circuit diagram. The email information can be found on the channel information page. The video also shows the circuit diagram toward the beginning of the video in 4K would should be clear enough to read all the details.
@@The_Real_Grand_Nagus It's not a matter of appreciation, but rather of comprehension. It's simply too complicated to understand and enjoy it, if you don't have electronic engineer background, or at least a massive interest on low level logic/electronic. Can't blame them. Try to understand how the AI type of LLM work. You will, but will take a lot of effort and focus.
Being from a civil engineering background, I'm genuinely impressed by your in-depth knowledge, Your video was not only informative but also incredibly well-expressed. Keep up the fantastic work, you've definitely gained a new admirer!"
Of all the homebrew cpu projects I've seen on youtube, this has to have the lowest transistor count by a mile. Working with transistors is a vastly different beast than ICs, and I'm quite pleased to find novel solutions like those ring counters being used to keep things as simple as possible while remaining functional. When I saw the thumbnail in the SoME3 playlist, I thought this was going to be a Ben Eater kit build or similar, so I'm really impressed you got a pure transistor build in the same form factor! Well done all around!
Thank you for understanding this build! :) I really wanted to build a simple computer using only transistors! It was lots of work to figure out a good way to do this. Using the ring counters helped and using edge triggered flips flops for the ring counters helped reduce the size significantly. I learned tons in the process and still need to make more videos that I think people will find helpful! Right now I am trying to apply what I have learned to build some artificial neurons. Which should be pretty sweet! Thanks for watching!
Yeah, that would be great! When I took my first programming course this is what I thought we would be learning. Instead I found it to be more of a typing class where we use someone else's program. It would be good for students to understand how a computer actually works before learning a programing language!
@@yankozlatanov Adding one bit would be one more set of flip-flops. Going from 4-bit to 8-bit would just about double the size of the computer. I know the point you are getting at though. I looked into it a found that a modern CPU has around 3 billion transistors, 35 billion transistors for 32GB of RAM, 7 billion transistors for a GPU, and around 3 trillion transistors for a 1tb SSD.
@@multiarray2320 that is a good question. Most CPUs today are built with EUV (Extreme Ultra Violet) lithography which allows the transistors to be really small, around 13.5 nanometers. A CPU design is going to be more complex than memory cells. For an SSD the architecture is single-cell, multi-level cell, or tri-level cells that are repeated to increase memory size. This makes the designs less complex and the transistors can be a bit larger. Due to the large number of transistors required, it took a long time for SSDs to be an affordable price for consumers. SSDs are still expensive but as you pointed out, cheaper per transistor than a transistor on a CPU.
Thanks! Not everyone realizes that understanding this is what created our modern digital world! I am glad you found this channel. With your background, I bet you will be able to help build hardware-based neural networks as well. Which will very likey change the world in a big way as well.
I really don't know why youtube algorithm doesn't boost your videos. Just look at the amount of comments/ visualizations... keep it up, great work as always...
Oh, he’s a White male that isn’t a jew. So that is maybe why youtube hasn’t promoted that video so much. For example, lex fridman is a jew, so sadly jew-corrupted youtube boosted lex’s videos quickly .
I remember designing 8 bit computers in my Fundamentals of Computers course. Now I want to build this 4 bit transistor computer (or even bump it up to a full 8 bit system) as I see it as invaluable at helping you understand how computers work.
Yeah, it is a fun project and you do learn a lot building a transistor computer. I would recommend building it and then help me build artificial neural networks. That project is going to be great as well!
You should feel proud of the accomplishment of building a transistor computer, few people have actually done that especially these days, and its given you a deep understanding of how computers work at a very low level. Beyond that, you've done an excellent job of communicating that knowledge through your youtube channel, which is one of my favorite channels. So thank you and hats off to you! I hope you still have the completed project. If so, I have a suggestion. You can buy permanent breadboards that have the same pinout as solderless breadboards. If it were me, I think I would buy some of those and transfer your circuits to them. I would then mount them on a backing, add a frame, and plexiglass cover, and mount it on a wall to display it (perhaps running some continuous program). So not only would it be a personal achievement, but also a work of art on display.😊
Thank you! I do still have the completed project. I might still make some more detailed videos of how each section works. That is a good idea. I was actually planning to frame it eventually! I agree that it is a form of art! It took me a few months to build and I was happy with the results so it is worth the value in parts to keep as a completed project. What do you mean by permanent breadboards?
Sweet! Yeah, building circuits with individual transistors can be a good way to see/know exactly what is going on. If you built the 8-bit computer I bet you will be able to contribute when we start building artificial neural networks. I started with a simple computer before jumping into trying to build different types of computational devices. I have plans for some cool future projects. I am glad you found the channel!
Thanks! Yeah, it took me about three months to build the computer. So there is a lot of information in a short video. I do have other videos showing the basics starting with logic gates.
WOW! I love hardware and some 30 years ago build really complicated circuits also on a quite low level (Well it was 74XX TTL ICs, so one level higher). It is really very impressive what you do and very well explained. Keep on going!! Thanks for a great vid!!
It is really awesome to watch computer at transistor level. Eager to see more of your videos. Thank you for making this video. It is really helpful to understand computer at the lower level.
I am glad you found the video helpful! I am working on the next video right now! There should be some cool projects coming up soon. Thanks for following along!
Got a new sub here. Idk how everyone else is so confusing, you were explaining it and it made wayyy more sense. Great video and an even better teacher. Keep it up fr 👏
Bro you're the real men among others , this needs actual balls to make something like this , talking shit about this is easy but actually implementing it is an extraordinary skill 😊, keep it up brother ❤
당신의 작품은 디지털 예술의 순수한 속살을 보여주고 있습니다. 내가 고등학교 시절, 진공관에서 트랜지스터로 넘어갈 시절에 트랜지스터 만으로 전자 악기와 신디사이저를 꾸미기 위해 수 개월 동안 연구하며 노력했던 추억이 떠오릅니다. 학생으로서 너무 긴 시간을 몰입할 수 없어 절반의 성공에 그쳤지만 내게는 전자공학을 전공할 수 있게 해 준 충분한 동기가 되었습니다. 66세로 전자분야에서 은퇴한 지금은 주로 회로 시뮬레이션을 즐기면서 지냅니다. 디지털 세상으로 들어온 것이지요. 당신의 집중과 노력으로 탄생한 작품에 찬사를 보냅니다.
Hopefully you found that it was worth the wait! I was trying to get the whole computer built and make the circuit diagram. Now I should be posting more regularly. If there is anything in particular you want me to make a video about, let me know.
❤ this project! 👍 I'm an EE. I've been doing this since i was 16; 1982. Back then I took correspondence courses in electronics, then digital microprocessor: Cleveland Institute of Electronics. In one project we build a 4-bit computer using very simple ICs. We used a 4-bit ALU that greatly reduced the complexity. We used a 1kbit RAM memory chip to hold the data. We could either single step each clock by hand switch, or use a 1Hz clock. All that it did was add, subtract, xor and not. It used only a few breadboards. I would ❤ to build this huge design though! I like going down to the transistor level like this video shows. One suggestion though: surface mount parts on a cheap PCB fab. PCBs from China have become so cheap that it's better to do board layout. I would still keep each block separate though. This is perfect project for a young person wanting to learn more about how computers work. I think this channel should write a book on this. I already want a copy! 😂👍
Thanks! That sounds like a good course you took. Yeah, it would be cool to build this on a PCB! Making this into a course with a textbook is an interesting idea as well! Once we get a decent design for hardware based neural networks I will turn that into a PCB project when the design becomes to big for breadboards.
@@MustaphaRashiduddin-zx7rn I just went straight to building the computer with individual transistors. It makes more sense to me to be able to see all of the components. I would start with basic logic gates, then build the 4-bit calculator which will turn into the ALU. Once you get that done build the clock and it should start to make sense. I have another video where the computer is half done which is a good midpoint of the project. If you have any questions during the build, let me know.
I looked into it briefly after you asked the question. I think you could use a diode matrix which would be even simpler read-only memory. One diode could be used rather than two transistors. The enable inputs/buffers would need to be changed as the bytes not being accessed would all need to be off. For non-read-only memory, you would need the simplified tri-state buffers to work with flip-flops as adding and removing diodes to set the bits would not be an option. It is always good to know a simpler way to build things, thanks for the comment! If I make a video about the memory I will have to build a little diode matrix to show.
Sir As an embedded systems Beginner (literal beginner) This Is really helping me ALOT I really wish If you would continue to Upload a detailed videos explaining the blocks of your computer and also provide some reference material for us noobs :)
Great! Understanding how a computer works is important for beginners! In my opinion, this should be taught before people learn to program. I actually already have posted videos about digital logic gates, latches, flip-flops, binary counters, and a 4-bit calculator. If you watch these then watch this video again I bet you will understand a lot more about what is going on. I will keep posting videos and if there's something in particular that is not clear, let me know!
As a kid, I wondered what it would be like to build one of these using wire-wrapped nails as relays/switches (instead of transistors) lol Either way, this is so cool! ...especially since you used raw transistors, which makes the whole thing just magical. Using raw transistors (no ICs) is like the assembly language of digital circuits.
Thanks! I am glad you appreciate the project. Yeah, it would be cool of you could build a simple computer out of relays/switches as well! Depending on when you were a kid that is how it all got started.
My jaw dropped. Amazing job. I have seen the processor built with TTLs, but transistors? Never. From what I see, the space used by transistors is even smaller than that used by TTLs and that's odd since TTLs are more integrated than transistors. I already see it as an educational tool or project for bigger groups. Each group builds one component and then they join it into one system. Beautiful.
I am glad you see how it all comes together! Yeah, I think this is what should be taught in school before students learn to program. So they have a fundamental knowledge of how the computer works. If you have the vision follow along as we build new and more advanced computational projects!
Seriously impressive . . . not sure I would ever devote such effort to this sort of project, but it is amazing to behold, all with generic 2n2222 NPNs. So, imagine, just for a nanosecond, building a 32 bit version, and running Windows on it (OK, how about Windows 7) . . . with ancient germanium transistors. OK, it's a concept . . .
Thank you! Yeah, that would have been a good idea. I do say that the NAND gate is off when all the inputs are on but maybe some people might not know that the NAND gate is on in all other cases.
Thanks, yeah depending on the interest level most people should be able to build this project. Just start with basic logic gates on a breadboard and then start building each section of the computer. It is a hybrid of a puzzle, art, and technical science.
This is a really cool build, I have wanted to do something similar for some time. Thank you for some ideas on how to build one of the greatest inventions.
Glad I could help! There are also tons of ways to make improvements. I might make a whole video talking about that. Let me know if you have any questions as you build yours!
Thanks, that would be cool! I show some of the simple circuits simulated in the how to use EasyEDA and how to use LTspice video. A simulation for the whole computer would be awesome!
Absolutely astonishing. I’ve messed around with some basic microprocessor projects shown on my channel and I’d love to go this deep. How long has this taken you all to learn. Great job
Thanks! It is fun to build circuits at the transistor level! I stated with basic logic gates using transistors, then went on to flip-flops and building a 4-bit calculator. After I have the fundamentals down it took me three months to build the 4-bit computer.
Thank you! I am glad you liked the project. You could try and build it or or follow along with the channel as we will be building hardware based neural networks next.
Very cool example. Was expecting just a 4-bit CPU. Not a 4-bit computer. Can't wait for the next version with 7400 and 4000 IC, 8-bit register, and data bus. Maybe even binary and decimal LED outputs. This reminds me of the TTL Clock project.
Thanks! The goal was to build a computer at the transistor level to ensure we know the fundamentals of how a computer works. Now I am working on building hardware-based neural networks. The binary to seven-segment display would have been a good addition. The binary numbers are pretty low though so reading the binary is pretty straightforward.
I am glad you liked it! I will be adding some more videos about how this computer works. Then we will moving on to artificial neurons which will be more circuit projects, which I am really excited about!
gracias por compartir tu genialidad, es justo lo que da sentido a mis estudios de electronica digital, soy auto didacta y estoy aprendiendo de pocos meses pero esta computadora es el puente entre el algebra de boole, verilog y una computadora fisica, gracias le das sentido a mis esfuerzos un abrazo desde Italia
Thanks, I will be building neural networks that use mostly analog inputs and outputs soon. We will likely build and interface to work with digital machines as well.
Thank you! I plan to be posting lots of new helpful content soon! Thanks for following along! These will be some interesting projects to be involved in!
Great work, I love it! One question I do have is why don't all the MS flip flops (e.g. registers) use the "capacitor trick" that the ring counter uses?
That is a great question! You should be able to for the opcode register and might be able to with the accumulator register. MS flips flops are used very often in real life so I thought they were good to use as an example. Also, MS flip flops are a bit more stable so I did not want to get too risky and find erratic behavior that might be hard to troubleshoot. I do not think many people even knew you could use a resistor and capacitor as a trigger in a breadboard setting. You would have to be careful doing this for the accumulator register though as the ALU updates almost instantaneously. I have it so the clock input is floating on so it latches at the end of the clock cycle for the MS flip flops. For the edge-triggered flip flops, it might work or it might change twice, I would have to think about it more. If it triggers twice you might be able to set the input to the clock gate from the inverse of the clock input. Let me know if that makes sense or if you have any other questions. Hopefully, you liked the 7 stage counters! I finally got around to showing them!
@@GlobalScienceNetwork I understand the "capacitor trick" is actually a capacitor and resistor in a high pass filter configuration (differentiator) and that this is a way to create an edge triggered pulse (since the derivative of the square wave and dv/dt at edge transition is large and so a spike results). I have used that technique before to convert a long pulse from a oneshot to a clock pulse required for the next stage, so I am familiar with the concept. But having said all that, I do think the MS FF is a more solid design, and I was simply just curious why you did both (which you answered above). And yes, I love the 7 stage counters, I plan on building a similar circuit at the transistor level to do frequency division for an "old school" project I have in mind, so I will adopt your design for that. Great content and thank you for your patient and detailed reply. I love your dedication to this project and look forward to future videos on your channel, it's a real gem!
@@Enigma758 That makes sense. And thanks for following along! I am excited about all the cool things we can build with some basic electronic components. It should continue to be a fun process. Let me know if you make a video about your "old school" project!
@@GlobalScienceNetwork If you google search for "Hackaday Transistor SCR Ring Counter Circuits", you should be able to find the beginnings of my project.
Great computer! I am working on similar projects and would appreciate knowing of the type (brand, model, where-to-find, etc.) of the 5-volt, 2-amp battery supply used here and on every other project that you have built. Another question I have, if you are able to answer, regards a problem that I have been facing with my most recent, and largest, project on breadboards. It is an adder and subtractor with a nine-bit output display. Instead of using full adders and XOR "subtraction mode" gates, it uses an eight-bit adder system, and an eight-bit subtractor system, with the outputs being gated by some tri-state buffers, essentially controlling which action (addition or subtraction) gets displayed. Anyways, the inherent issue is that although all of the arithmetic operations are working with perfection, after being turned on for about one to two minutes, the power quickly fades. The LEDs get, about five seconds before all power goes out, diminished brightness before quickly shutting off completely. This process, however, takes place in stages, effecting the input display about a-half-of-a-second before effecting the output display. I also believe that over time, this process is becoming worse and happening more often. My discovery is that it is a power issue, dealing with the source. Currently, I am using the battery packs from a Snap-Circuit set as they are the easiest, most inexpensive, and reliable source of electricity at hand. The only issue that I happened to discover was that upon the inspection of the battery packs, I discovered an extra round component connected to the positive terminals inside the packs. Google says that it's a resettable fuse (type jk30 050); basically, a switch that is thermally controlled so that if it senses heat, it will shut off power automatically (now you see the significance of the first question, regarding your power unit, as I would like to stop using the battery packs from Snap-Circuits). Do you think that my computer is causing this heat (via excessive current flow), or are the packs simply getting too old and are malfunctioning? Or could all of this be incorrect and the problem has nothing to do with the resettable fuses? I would love a reply and answer, helping me complete my project!
I got mine from Amazon. Xiaomi 10000mAh Redmi Power Bank Portable Charger. If you just type in, 5-volt, 2-amp battery pack, in Amazon there should be many options. You can also power the circuit by splicing a USB cable which will be a 5V power source. The wall chargers are usually 1-amp or 2-amps. You could have a short in the circuit. Adding decoupling capacitors on the power rails could help if it is a power distribution issue. Also, try to apply the power source at different spots on the circuit. To find out if there is a short, measure the current with a multimeter like I did at the beginning of the 4-bit computer video to show that it uses about 1 amp of current.
@@adog3129 I'm much more on the software side now. About mid career I went back and got a masters in CS. But I still have my breadboards, tons of components, oscilloscope and other test equipment. I've never let go of my love of electronics.
Very cool. I am glad an experienced EE found the channel. Follow along and I bet you will be able to contribute valuable information to future projects! Was the 74LS181 also built with discrete components or did you build the computer around the IC?
Very interesting. Truly a great piece of art! I was going to build the exact setup for a punch card computer but found it to be very cumbersome. So I just skipped building the computing part from scratch with transistors (or logic gates), instead I used an Arduino. My focus was more on building the punch-card reading functionality. Made a few videos of it. You can find them on my channel. I was wondering it will be very awesome if we can combine this 4-bit computer with a punch card reader.
Yeah, that would be cool if you could combine the punch card readers with the 4-bit computer. I also see building these types of projects as a work of art. Your punch card reader is sweet. Programing with punch cards was before my time! I like your soccer robots! Can you purchase those somewhere? I am looking for a good vehicle platform to control with artificial neurons for an upcoming video.
@@GlobalScienceNetwork Cody! Thanks for the attention! I'm trying hard to make a video on how to build one of these punch-card machines... Anyways, Regarding the soccer robots those are the robots we built for a competition called RoboCup. We participate in the Small Size League. The robot doesn't navigate alone. It blindly receives navigation signals from a central computer. The central computer is connected to a camera mounted above the soccer field and with that the computer knows where each robot is located. Pretty cool stuff! If you think that works for you I'd love to help!
Using a finite state machine (FSM) that runs over multiple time steps could simplify the design of your 4-bit computer, the GSN477. Here's how it might work: Reduced Hardware Complexity: By introducing an FSM, you can sequentially manage operations that would otherwise require separate hardware components. For instance, instead of having dedicated hardware for each operation (like addition, subtraction, etc.), the FSM could handle these using a smaller set of shared components, reducing the total number of gates and flip-flops. Time-Multiplexed Operations: The FSM allows the computer to reuse the same hardware across multiple clock cycles for different tasks. For example, the same ALU could be used for both addition and subtraction, depending on the state of the FSM, reducing the need for separate units. Simplified Control Logic: The control matrix and opcode decoder could be streamlined by incorporating an FSM, which could manage instruction sequencing and execution steps more efficiently. This would minimize the complexity of combinational logic required for control. Trade-off: The trade-off with this approach is that the system would need more clock cycles to complete an instruction, as each step of the instruction might be handled in a separate state. However, for a simple 4-bit computer, this trade-off might be acceptable given the savings in hardware components. Overall, using an FSM in this way can make your design more efficient in terms of the number of components, even if it requires a bit more time to execute instructions. Minimal FSM Example: States: Fetch: Read the instruction from memory. Decode: Determine the type of instruction. Execute: Perform the operation (e.g., ALU computation, memory access). Write Back: Store the result. Increment PC: Move to the next instruction. Transitions: The FSM transitions from one state to the next on each clock cycle, progressing through the instruction cycle. Limitations: Instruction Complexity: The simpler the FSM and instruction set, the more limited the system's capabilities. However, even a very basic FSM can be Turing complete if it supports loops and conditional branching.
Recursive FSM for Multi-bit Processing Instead of building a full 4-bit (or more) wide data path in hardware, you can design a smaller, simpler FSM that processes one bit at a time, recursively or iteratively handling the entire multi-bit operation over several clock cycles. Concept: FSM Design: The FSM processes each bit sequentially, from the least significant bit (LSB) to the most significant bit (MSB). State Representation: The FSM would include states for each bit position, and the states would recursively process the current bit and then move to the next bit. Data Handling: The data registers store the current result, and the FSM updates these registers bit by bit as it processes each bit position. ALU Interaction: The ALU can remain simple, only handling single-bit operations at a time. The FSM will control the ALU to combine the results of these single-bit operations to produce the final multi-bit result. Operation Flow: Initialize: The FSM starts with the LSB (bit 0). The initial states prepare the system for the bitwise operation. Process Bit-by-Bit: Bit Fetch: The FSM reads the current bit from the operand(s). Bit Operation: The FSM performs the operation on the current bit using the ALU (e.g., adding two bits, logical operations). Accumulate Result: The result is accumulated in a register, potentially with a carry or overflow flag if needed. Advance: The FSM moves to the next bit position and repeats the process. Completion: After processing all bits, the FSM transitions to a final state where the complete result is available in the register. Result Handling: The result is either stored back in memory or used for further computation. Advantages: Component Reduction: The design reduces the number of required components, as the FSM and ALU only need to handle single-bit operations. Scalability: The same FSM design can handle any bit-width (4-bit, 8-bit, etc.) by simply extending the number of cycles it takes to process the data. Simplicity: Simplifies the control logic, as the FSM only needs to manage single-bit operations and move between states based on the bit position. Example Implementation: For example, in a 4-bit addition, the FSM would: State 0: Add bit 0 (LSB) of two numbers, store the result in a carry register. State 1: Add bit 1 with the carry from the previous step. State 2: Repeat for bit 2. State 3: Add the final bit (bit 3), considering the carry. Each state handles a single bit, and after all states are processed, the final 4-bit result is stored. Limitations: Speed: The main trade-off is speed. Processing one bit at a time increases the number of clock cycles required for each operation, which can slow down the system significantly compared to a parallel 4-bit or wider data path. Complexity in State Management: Although the hardware is simplified, the FSM needs careful design to manage state transitions and bit-level operations correctly, especially for operations like addition with carry. Conclusion: Using a recursive FSM to process one bit at a time is a viable approach to reduce hardware complexity in a 4-bit computer (or any n-bit system). This method leverages the FSM to handle multi-bit operations sequentially, which can be especially useful in environments where minimizing hardware resources is critical. The trade-off is slower operation, but for many applications, this can be acceptable given the simplicity and scalability of the design.
Isn’t he already using an FSM? There are 8 states for each instruction. There is one ALU, it does addition and subtraction, it isn’t separate. It is a requirement to add the xor gates for subtraction since there are no instructions for bitwise operations - that sort of hardware doesn’t exist anywhere else in this processor. Wouldn’t a FSM will end up looking like this when constructed out of transistors? Reusing hardware for multiple tasks results in the controller becoming more complex - the trace off is only worth it when the controller’s complexity increase causes less transistors to be added than the number of transistors that were removed due to removing hardware. In this case, what specifically do you propose should be removed?
Interesting, I had to think about this for bit. I think you could build a more simple FSM out of transistors. However, I think there is a reason that the Von Neumann architecture is what was adopted for most digital computing applications. As you stated a simpler FSM would take more clock cycles meaning slower computation times. Many advancements to computing where to find ways to make things more parallel even if that meant more components. There could be a case where high computational power is not needed and a system with less components meaning less point of failure would be advantageous. Also, if you built an even simpler computer or a demonstration it would be sweet project and I think you should give it a try. If you need any help, let me know.
Hi again, at 4:29 I count 11 transistors per J-K FF. The FF consists of two 3 input NAND gates (3 transistors per gate) and two 2 input NAND gates (2 transistors per gate) for a total of 10 transistors. Yet I count 11 transistors per FF in the image. Why the extra transistor per FF?
Hi! You have the right idea but if you look at the logic gate-level circuit diagram there are three 3-input NAND gates (3 transistors per gate) which is 9 and just one 2-input NAND gate (2 transistors per gate) which is 2. So 9+2=11. The third three-input NAND gate is for the clear. This makes it so it is easy to reset the counters after startup where they would likely be at a random value. The clear feature option is also added to all the registers. In my videos about flip-flops, I might not have had a clear option cause it is not really needed for a stand-alone circuit. Great question!
Yeah, a modern computer will have resistors and transistors. Logic gates are used but MOSFET transistors are used rather than BJT transistors so the connections are made differently to achieve the logic gate types.
Hello sir, could you please explain how you handle floating inputs from the buttons and bounce on the input? I was trying to build a counter from 2 half adders and 2 d flopflops and im getting unpredictable behavior. (sometimes it skips numbers and sometimes it works perfectly) Thank you
Well I did not use half adders in my counters. Are you trying to built the ALU, binary counter, or ring counter? I am guessing that if you hook your circuit up to an oscilloscope you will see that it is switching much faster than you realize. Also I do not think I even had a floating input, it was always high or ground. The latches start at random values but you and in a reset to force them to be off for there initial state. I can try and help more if you provide more information.
@@GlobalScienceNetwork I've already built the 4 bit ALU. No problems there. But I am having trouble with anything that has to do with sequential logic( memory circuits). Is there a way I could contact you directly and show you pictures of what I mean when I say your inputs are floating. I am a complete amateur at the electronics part and I would like to show u a picture of what I thought were the floating inputs on your build. I really appreciate you responding to these comments. Do you have an instagram or some other messaging app? I want to build counters for the Program counter and logic sequencer( ring counter)
Very very cool! I do think it could be worth it to make this one a pcb for education. Perhaps then one can even add LEDs on at least one transistor set per block so that one can see how the switching progress through the gates. Very impressive work! With this machine of yours one can make a manual click as well so you can step every instruction manually and observe what happened. The data bus must have LEDs as well. Don't see that on the circuit diagram?
Thanks, yeah it would be cool to make a PCB version. As I was building it I thought of a few ways to make it better as well. The beauty of digital electronics is that is it easy to make improvements. I like the idea of adding more LEDs so you can see when each register changes states within each register. I do not really want to solder that much so it would be cool if the company that makes the PCB would place all of the parts and it could then be placed within a clear plexiglass case. I might try it with the 4-bit calculator first and see how it goes.
![First Run - Building and programming a 16-bit Intel x86 breadboard computer [part 1]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/VvyUAaRTsww/mqdefault.jpg)
If I had watched this video as a teen, I can't imagine how it would have blown my mind! I used to spend days in our backyard, chalk in hand, sketching out ideas in front of our yard shed, trying to figure out how to make a simple calculator with gates. I never quite succeeded-and I didn't even have the internet back then! Thanks, Cody!
Sounds like you have the mind to build cool things! Having the internet today defiantly allows us to have access to more information. It is never to late to start a project!
@@GlobalScienceNetwork Could I have the circuit diagram please and a pdf transcript of the explanation please? I'd like to build it myself. I'm a student in electronics engineering.
@@pascalmalle2240 Sure, if you email me I can send you the circuit diagram. The email information can be found on the channel information page. The video also shows the circuit diagram toward the beginning of the video in 4K would should be clear enough to read all the details.
@@GlobalScienceNetwork Yeah. Thank you for motivation
@@GlobalScienceNetwork I've mailed you sir. And I'm waiting for your answer.
Absolutely insane, this should have millions of views!
Thank you! Maybe someday it will! I am posting some more good content soon!
Definitively! But unfortunately only IT geeks like us look for this🙂
Yeah I don't think the average person really appreciates stuff like this.
@@The_Real_Grand_Nagus It's not a matter of appreciation, but rather of comprehension. It's simply too complicated to understand and enjoy it, if you don't have electronic engineer background, or at least a massive interest on low level logic/electronic. Can't blame them. Try to understand how the AI type of LLM work. You will, but will take a lot of effort and focus.
Being from a civil engineering background, I'm genuinely impressed by your in-depth knowledge, Your video was not only informative but also incredibly well-expressed. Keep up the fantastic work, you've definitely gained a new admirer!"
❤
Thanks Kiran! Getting other engineers interested and helping with these projects in the future is the goal. Thanks for watching!
Of all the homebrew cpu projects I've seen on youtube, this has to have the lowest transistor count by a mile. Working with transistors is a vastly different beast than ICs, and I'm quite pleased to find novel solutions like those ring counters being used to keep things as simple as possible while remaining functional. When I saw the thumbnail in the SoME3 playlist, I thought this was going to be a Ben Eater kit build or similar, so I'm really impressed you got a pure transistor build in the same form factor! Well done all around!
Thank you for understanding this build! :) I really wanted to build a simple computer using only transistors! It was lots of work to figure out a good way to do this. Using the ring counters helped and using edge triggered flips flops for the ring counters helped reduce the size significantly. I learned tons in the process and still need to make more videos that I think people will find helpful! Right now I am trying to apply what I have learned to build some artificial neurons. Which should be pretty sweet! Thanks for watching!
This should be teached every evening on TV for under graduate !! GREAT JOB !!
Yeah, that would be great! When I took my first programming course this is what I thought we would be learning. Instead I found it to be more of a typing class where we use someone else's program. It would be good for students to understand how a computer actually works before learning a programing language!
Transistor to Computer. This is the best explanation on UA-cam. Thank you!
Thank you, I am glad you found it helpful!
So cool, less than 1000 transistors. Hard for me to wrap my head around modern chips with 8.5 billion transistors. THANK YOU!!!
Thank you, yeah that is interesting to think about! You would need over 100 million breadboards if you were building this way. ha ha
Just adding 1more bit of power to this computer will increase the number of transistors maybe by factor of 2 so imagine 32 or 64 bit computer.
@@yankozlatanov Adding one bit would be one more set of flip-flops. Going from 4-bit to 8-bit would just about double the size of the computer. I know the point you are getting at though. I looked into it a found that a modern CPU has around 3 billion transistors, 35 billion transistors for 32GB of RAM, 7 billion transistors for a GPU, and around 3 trillion transistors for a 1tb SSD.
@@GlobalScienceNetworkwhy are ssd's so much cheaper even though they have more transistors?
@@multiarray2320 that is a good question. Most CPUs today are built with EUV (Extreme Ultra Violet) lithography which allows the transistors to be really small, around 13.5 nanometers. A CPU design is going to be more complex than memory cells. For an SSD the architecture is single-cell, multi-level cell, or tri-level cells that are repeated to increase memory size. This makes the designs less complex and the transistors can be a bit larger. Due to the large number of transistors required, it took a long time for SSDs to be an affordable price for consumers. SSDs are still expensive but as you pointed out, cheaper per transistor than a transistor on a CPU.
Really cool stuff, understanding a basic computer from scratch is where its at.
Thanks! It is a fun project and makes you realize how many other cool things you can build with basic electronic components.
This is one of the best videos I ever watched on UA-cam. Wish I had seen this back when i was studying computer architecture on college.
Thanks! Not everyone realizes that understanding this is what created our modern digital world! I am glad you found this channel. With your background, I bet you will be able to help build hardware-based neural networks as well. Which will very likey change the world in a big way as well.
I thought that breadboard computers with microcontrollers were impressive BUT THIS? AWESOME WORK!
Thank you! Building circuits at the transistor level is fun!
Being an young electronics engineer myself, Just so beautiful to see, love it.
Thanks, glad you enjoyed the project. It was really fun to build!
I really don't know why youtube algorithm doesn't boost your videos. Just look at the amount of comments/ visualizations... keep it up, great work as always...
Thank you! The channel is still pretty new so hopefully, it gets a boost at some point!
Oh, he’s a White male that isn’t a jew. So that is maybe why youtube hasn’t promoted that video so much. For example, lex fridman is a jew, so sadly jew-corrupted youtube boosted lex’s videos quickly .
I remember designing 8 bit computers in my Fundamentals of Computers course. Now I want to build this 4 bit transistor computer (or even bump it up to a full 8 bit system) as I see it as invaluable at helping you understand how computers work.
Yeah, it is a fun project and you do learn a lot building a transistor computer. I would recommend building it and then help me build artificial neural networks. That project is going to be great as well!
You should feel proud of the accomplishment of building a transistor computer, few people have actually done that especially these days, and its given you a deep understanding of how computers work at a very low level. Beyond that, you've done an excellent job of communicating that knowledge through your youtube channel, which is one of my favorite channels. So thank you and hats off to you! I hope you still have the completed project. If so, I have a suggestion. You can buy permanent breadboards that have the same pinout as solderless breadboards. If it were me, I think I would buy some of those and transfer your circuits to them. I would then mount them on a backing, add a frame, and plexiglass cover, and mount it on a wall to display it (perhaps running some continuous program). So not only would it be a personal achievement, but also a work of art on display.😊
Thank you! I do still have the completed project. I might still make some more detailed videos of how each section works. That is a good idea. I was actually planning to frame it eventually! I agree that it is a form of art! It took me a few months to build and I was happy with the results so it is worth the value in parts to keep as a completed project. What do you mean by permanent breadboards?
@@GlobalScienceNetwork 1PCS 5.2x8.9cm Standard Permanent Breadboard Solder Pcb Board Prototype Board
Much respect for this build, this would rack my brain for sure.
Thanks, Jason! I was happy that it actually worked when it was finally all put together!
I built Ben's 8-bit breadboard computer, but I wanna go deeper. This looks like a really interesting project, I will check it out.
Sweet! Yeah, building circuits with individual transistors can be a good way to see/know exactly what is going on. If you built the 8-bit computer I bet you will be able to contribute when we start building artificial neural networks. I started with a simple computer before jumping into trying to build different types of computational devices. I have plans for some cool future projects. I am glad you found the channel!
Unbelievable quality and clarity. Bravo!
Thanks! I am glad you liked it!
Bonkers! Some kinda smart and patient you got to be to follow all these steps 👍
Thanks! Yeah, it took me about three months to build the computer. So there is a lot of information in a short video. I do have other videos showing the basics starting with logic gates.
Bro literally did what I can't even do in my dreams 😅.. Hats off man 👏👏
You can do it as well. Thank you!
WOW! I love hardware and some 30 years ago build really complicated circuits also on a quite low level (Well it was 74XX TTL ICs, so one level higher). It is really very impressive what you do and very well explained. Keep on going!! Thanks for a great vid!!
That sounds like a fun project as well. Thanks for the positive feedback! I am excited about upcoming projects!
This is the level of electronics understanding that I thrive to achieve one day. Thank you!
Thanks! You can get there! Start with logic gates and work your way to larger projects! Circuit projects can be super fun!
It is really awesome to watch computer at transistor level. Eager to see more of your videos. Thank you for making this video. It is really helpful to understand computer at the lower level.
I am glad you found the video helpful! I am working on the next video right now! There should be some cool projects coming up soon. Thanks for following along!
Got a new sub here. Idk how everyone else is so confusing, you were explaining it and it made wayyy more sense. Great video and an even better teacher. Keep it up fr 👏
Glad you found the information helpful!
Bro you're the real men among others , this needs actual balls to make something like this , talking shit about this is easy but actually implementing it is an extraordinary skill 😊, keep it up brother ❤
Ha ha thank you!
당신의 작품은 디지털 예술의 순수한 속살을 보여주고 있습니다. 내가 고등학교 시절, 진공관에서 트랜지스터로 넘어갈 시절에 트랜지스터 만으로 전자 악기와 신디사이저를 꾸미기 위해 수 개월 동안 연구하며 노력했던 추억이 떠오릅니다. 학생으로서 너무 긴 시간을 몰입할 수 없어 절반의 성공에 그쳤지만 내게는 전자공학을 전공할 수 있게 해 준 충분한 동기가 되었습니다. 66세로 전자분야에서 은퇴한 지금은 주로 회로 시뮬레이션을 즐기면서 지냅니다. 디지털 세상으로 들어온 것이지요. 당신의 집중과 노력으로 탄생한 작품에 찬사를 보냅니다.
감사합니다! 나는 당신이 가지고 있었다고 장담합니다. 전자 제품의 모든 발전에 참여하는 재미있는 직업! 예, 트랜지스터 수준에서 프로젝트를 구축하는 것은 재미있습니다. 그것은 실용적인 예술을 만드는 것과 같습니다!
Amazing your work. Congratulations for the competence, patience and goodwill to share.
Thank you!
Sure thing, I am glad you like the project!
I've been stuck\halted on the Bus part of the Ben Eater style 8 bit computer. This is beautiful Immediately subbed
Thank you! That is great you are building these types of projects!
Yo bro, I have been waiting for you a lot
Hopefully you found that it was worth the wait! I was trying to get the whole computer built and make the circuit diagram. Now I should be posting more regularly. If there is anything in particular you want me to make a video about, let me know.
Absolutely BRILLIANT! Thank you! Somehow I feel smarter just from watching this super basic system! Amazing. Thank you! :)
Thank you. I am glad you found it helpful! Yeah sometimes starting with the simplest design of a complex system is the best way to learn.
❤ this project! 👍
I'm an EE. I've been doing this since i was 16; 1982.
Back then I took correspondence courses in electronics, then digital microprocessor: Cleveland Institute of Electronics.
In one project we build a 4-bit computer using very simple ICs. We used a 4-bit ALU that greatly reduced the complexity. We used a 1kbit RAM memory chip to hold the data.
We could either single step each clock by hand switch, or use a 1Hz clock.
All that it did was add, subtract, xor and not.
It used only a few breadboards.
I would ❤ to build this huge design though! I like going down to the transistor level like this video shows.
One suggestion though: surface mount parts on a cheap PCB fab.
PCBs from China have become so cheap that it's better to do board layout.
I would still keep each block separate though.
This is perfect project for a young person wanting to learn more about how computers work.
I think this channel should write a book on this. I already want a copy! 😂👍
Thanks! That sounds like a good course you took. Yeah, it would be cool to build this on a PCB! Making this into a course with a textbook is an interesting idea as well! Once we get a decent design for hardware based neural networks I will turn that into a PCB project when the design becomes to big for breadboards.
I'm in the process of building Ben Eater's IC breadboard computer, but this is so cool. I might have to try it out in the future
Sweet, yeah once you get it done the next challenge is to built it at the transistor level!
@@GlobalScienceNetwork do you recommend i do ben's ic breadboard computer first or do this first?
@@MustaphaRashiduddin-zx7rn I just went straight to building the computer with individual transistors. It makes more sense to me to be able to see all of the components. I would start with basic logic gates, then build the 4-bit calculator which will turn into the ALU. Once you get that done build the clock and it should start to make sense. I have another video where the computer is half done which is a good midpoint of the project. If you have any questions during the build, let me know.
This is awesome work Cody. Thanks for sharing. You are a real one.
I appreciate that! Thank you!
this is the video i’ve been looking for. thank you
You're welcome, thanks for watching!
Congratulations!!! I love it without integrated circuits. Good Job !!!
Thank you! I am glad you like the project!
What a great channel 😁 I hope you continue to post electronic and computer science videos!
Thank you! That is the plan!
Another question... 5:40 Why not use a diode matrix for your ROM, wouldn't that be even simpler than transistors?
I looked into it briefly after you asked the question. I think you could use a diode matrix which would be even simpler read-only memory. One diode could be used rather than two transistors. The enable inputs/buffers would need to be changed as the bytes not being accessed would all need to be off. For non-read-only memory, you would need the simplified tri-state buffers to work with flip-flops as adding and removing diodes to set the bits would not be an option. It is always good to know a simpler way to build things, thanks for the comment! If I make a video about the memory I will have to build a little diode matrix to show.
This is the most amazing thing I've seen in a long time 🔥
Thank you! There will be more interesting projects coming soon!
I had this exact same dream of making one when I was 13! It looks absolutely gorgeous, well done 😮
Thank you! You can still build it now! These types of circuit projects are fun and you learn a lot in the process.
Sir As an embedded systems Beginner (literal beginner) This Is really helping me ALOT
I really wish If you would continue to Upload a detailed videos explaining the blocks of your computer and also provide some reference material for us noobs :)
Great! Understanding how a computer works is important for beginners! In my opinion, this should be taught before people learn to program. I actually already have posted videos about digital logic gates, latches, flip-flops, binary counters, and a 4-bit calculator. If you watch these then watch this video again I bet you will understand a lot more about what is going on. I will keep posting videos and if there's something in particular that is not clear, let me know!
@@GlobalScienceNetwork Ok sensei
I Admire this beautiful work. I just know i could never have pulled such a neat and clean job
Thank you very much! I bet you could do it. Just be patient and build it one section at a time!
As a kid, I wondered what it would be like to build one of these using wire-wrapped nails as relays/switches (instead of transistors) lol
Either way, this is so cool!
...especially since you used raw transistors, which makes the whole thing just magical.
Using raw transistors (no ICs) is like the assembly language of digital circuits.
Thanks! I am glad you appreciate the project. Yeah, it would be cool of you could build a simple computer out of relays/switches as well! Depending on when you were a kid that is how it all got started.
My jaw dropped. Amazing job. I have seen the processor built with TTLs, but transistors? Never. From what I see, the space used by transistors is even smaller than that used by TTLs and that's odd since TTLs are more integrated than transistors.
I already see it as an educational tool or project for bigger groups. Each group builds one component and then they join it
into one system. Beautiful.
I am glad you see how it all comes together! Yeah, I think this is what should be taught in school before students learn to program. So they have a fundamental knowledge of how the computer works. If you have the vision follow along as we build new and more advanced computational projects!
Seriously impressive . . . not sure I would ever devote such effort to this sort of project, but it is amazing to behold, all with generic 2n2222 NPNs. So, imagine, just for a nanosecond, building a 32 bit version, and running Windows on it (OK, how about Windows 7) . . . with ancient germanium transistors. OK, it's a concept . . .
Yeah, that is cool to think about. It would millions of breadboards to build a modern processor with 2n2222 transistors.
Awesome video! The opcode decoder part might be easier to understand if there was a truth table shown alongside? Great work though!
Thank you! Yeah, that would have been a good idea. I do say that the NAND gate is off when all the inputs are on but maybe some people might not know that the NAND gate is on in all other cases.
this is really the basic of basic in computing !! accessible to 14 year old children
Thanks, yeah depending on the interest level most people should be able to build this project. Just start with basic logic gates on a breadboard and then start building each section of the computer. It is a hybrid of a puzzle, art, and technical science.
This is a really cool build, I have wanted to do something similar for some time. Thank you for some ideas on how to build one of the greatest inventions.
Glad I could help! There are also tons of ways to make improvements. I might make a whole video talking about that. Let me know if you have any questions as you build yours!
😮 انه عمل جبار عمل لايصدق انه سحر . انت رجل عظيم . الله يبارك بك
شكرا!
Amazing! Thankyou for sharing - now to simulate it.
Thanks, that would be cool! I show some of the simple circuits simulated in the how to use EasyEDA and how to use LTspice video. A simulation for the whole computer would be awesome!
E pensar que isso é incrivelmente pequeno comparado aos antigos computadores... parabéns cara, você é top.
Obrigado!
Damn, that Computer Architecture!!
Thanks! It is based on the von Neumann computer architecture!
I'm simply amazed: congratulations!
Thank you!
Absolutely astonishing. I’ve messed around with some basic microprocessor projects shown on my channel and I’d love to go this deep. How long has this taken you all to learn. Great job
Thanks! It is fun to build circuits at the transistor level! I stated with basic logic gates using transistors, then went on to flip-flops and building a 4-bit calculator. After I have the fundamentals down it took me three months to build the 4-bit computer.
the most amazing video on youtube ever!
Thank you! I am glad you liked the project. You could try and build it or or follow along with the channel as we will be building hardware based neural networks next.
Very cool example. Was expecting just a 4-bit CPU. Not a 4-bit computer. Can't wait for the next version with 7400 and 4000 IC, 8-bit register, and data bus. Maybe even binary and decimal LED outputs.
This reminds me of the TTL Clock project.
Thanks! The goal was to build a computer at the transistor level to ensure we know the fundamentals of how a computer works. Now I am working on building hardware-based neural networks. The binary to seven-segment display would have been a good addition. The binary numbers are pretty low though so reading the binary is pretty straightforward.
CooL 👍 its reminds me when i used to do similar projects using simple electronic components but i think you should have made 8 bit computer .
Yeah, an 8-bit computer would allow you to do some more useful programming. The goal was the simplest computer possible.
Please do more videos like this.
I am glad you liked it! I will be adding some more videos about how this computer works. Then we will moving on to artificial neurons which will be more circuit projects, which I am really excited about!
gracias por compartir tu genialidad, es justo lo que da sentido a mis estudios de electronica digital, soy auto didacta y estoy aprendiendo de pocos meses pero esta computadora es el puente entre el algebra de boole, verilog y una computadora fisica, gracias le das sentido a mis esfuerzos un abrazo desde Italia
Glad it was helpful, good luck with your studies and future electronics projects!
Nice job, im the 1k's subscriber cool
That is awesome, thanks for subscribing!
Very perfect video I found . Be go far . Design DAC and ADC. With this.
Thanks, I will be building neural networks that use mostly analog inputs and outputs soon. We will likely build and interface to work with digital machines as well.
Great job, thanks for sharing.
Sure thing, thanks for watching!
I love your videos, I wish I could follow you twice.
Thank you! I plan to be posting lots of new helpful content soon! Thanks for following along! These will be some interesting projects to be involved in!
Congratulations, Interesting Work I Thought Of Doing Myself At Some Point! Obliged For Showing iT As A DIY!
Thanks, yeah it is a fun DIY project! You still should build it!
this is absolutely incredible...
I am glad you like the project!
"Everyone should know how to build a computer at the transistor level" 😂😂. Great vid
Ha ha Thank you! I do think it should be taught before learning to code.
you are amazing dude , i hope that it could run super mario after a lot of coding and congratulations , you earned a new subscriber
Thanks for the sub! If it was 8-bit it could be interfaced with software to run simple programs.
Really, really impressive!!! Don't know what else to say...
Thank you!
Salute for your efforts ✅🫡
Sure thing, thanks for watching!
Great work, I love it!
One question I do have is why don't all the MS flip flops (e.g. registers) use the "capacitor trick" that the ring counter uses?
That is a great question! You should be able to for the opcode register and might be able to with the accumulator register. MS flips flops are used very often in real life so I thought they were good to use as an example. Also, MS flip flops are a bit more stable so I did not want to get too risky and find erratic behavior that might be hard to troubleshoot. I do not think many people even knew you could use a resistor and capacitor as a trigger in a breadboard setting. You would have to be careful doing this for the accumulator register though as the ALU updates almost instantaneously. I have it so the clock input is floating on so it latches at the end of the clock cycle for the MS flip flops. For the edge-triggered flip flops, it might work or it might change twice, I would have to think about it more. If it triggers twice you might be able to set the input to the clock gate from the inverse of the clock input. Let me know if that makes sense or if you have any other questions. Hopefully, you liked the 7 stage counters! I finally got around to showing them!
@@GlobalScienceNetwork I understand the "capacitor trick" is actually a capacitor and resistor in a high pass filter configuration (differentiator) and that this is a way to create an edge triggered pulse (since the derivative of the square wave and dv/dt at edge transition is large and so a spike results). I have used that technique before to convert a long pulse from a oneshot to a clock pulse required for the next stage, so I am familiar with the concept. But having said all that, I do think the MS FF is a more solid design, and I was simply just curious why you did both (which you answered above).
And yes, I love the 7 stage counters, I plan on building a similar circuit at the transistor level to do frequency division for an "old school" project I have in mind, so I will adopt your design for that. Great content and thank you for your patient and detailed reply. I love your dedication to this project and look forward to future videos on your channel, it's a real gem!
@@Enigma758 That makes sense. And thanks for following along! I am excited about all the cool things we can build with some basic electronic components. It should continue to be a fun process. Let me know if you make a video about your "old school" project!
@@GlobalScienceNetwork If you google search for "Hackaday Transistor SCR Ring Counter Circuits", you should be able to find the beginnings of my project.
Great computer! I am working on similar projects and would appreciate knowing of the type (brand, model, where-to-find, etc.) of the 5-volt, 2-amp battery supply used here and on every other project that you have built.
Another question I have, if you are able to answer, regards a problem that I have been facing with my most recent, and largest, project on breadboards. It is an adder and subtractor with a nine-bit output display. Instead of using full adders and XOR "subtraction mode" gates, it uses an eight-bit adder system, and an eight-bit subtractor system, with the outputs being gated by some tri-state buffers, essentially controlling which action (addition or subtraction) gets displayed. Anyways, the inherent issue is that although all of the arithmetic operations are working with perfection, after being turned on for about one to two minutes, the power quickly fades. The LEDs get, about five seconds before all power goes out, diminished brightness before quickly shutting off completely. This process, however, takes place in stages, effecting the input display about a-half-of-a-second before effecting the output display. I also believe that over time, this process is becoming worse and happening more often.
My discovery is that it is a power issue, dealing with the source. Currently, I am using the battery packs from a Snap-Circuit set as they are the easiest, most inexpensive, and reliable source of electricity at hand. The only issue that I happened to discover was that upon the inspection of the battery packs, I discovered an extra round component connected to the positive terminals inside the packs. Google says that it's a resettable fuse (type jk30 050); basically, a switch that is thermally controlled so that if it senses heat, it will shut off power automatically (now you see the significance of the first question, regarding your power unit, as I would like to stop using the battery packs from Snap-Circuits). Do you think that my computer is causing this heat (via excessive current flow), or are the packs simply getting too old and are malfunctioning? Or could all of this be incorrect and the problem has nothing to do with the resettable fuses?
I would love a reply and answer, helping me complete my project!
I got mine from Amazon. Xiaomi 10000mAh Redmi Power Bank Portable Charger. If you just type in, 5-volt, 2-amp battery pack, in Amazon there should be many options. You can also power the circuit by splicing a USB cable which will be a 5V power source. The wall chargers are usually 1-amp or 2-amps. You could have a short in the circuit. Adding decoupling capacitors on the power rails could help if it is a power distribution issue. Also, try to apply the power source at different spots on the circuit. To find out if there is a short, measure the current with a multimeter like I did at the beginning of the 4-bit computer video to show that it uses about 1 amp of current.
Career EE here. I did something similar to this with SSI / MSI (college forty years ago). The center of it was the 74LS181 a very capable ALU.
what kind of stuff do u make now
@@adog3129 I'm much more on the software side now. About mid career I went back and got a masters in CS.
But I still have my breadboards, tons of components, oscilloscope and other test equipment. I've never let go of my love of electronics.
Very cool. I am glad an experienced EE found the channel. Follow along and I bet you will be able to contribute valuable information to future projects! Was the 74LS181 also built with discrete components or did you build the computer around the IC?
@@GlobalScienceNetwork used it directly
Make a transistor computer is a dream for me.
Yeah, it is fun and you learn lots of good information in the process! Let me know if you have any questions when you build yours!
From Russia with Love ❤️
Thanks!
Lovely! 👍
Thank you!
What a wonderful! You are crazy and genius. I'd like to mimic your video.
Than you! It is a fun project! You should try and built it.
Я удивлен, что просмотров так много на этом видео! Рассказ о эмуляции работы процессора поражает.
Спасибо!
Very interesting. Truly a great piece of art!
I was going to build the exact setup for a punch card computer but found it to be very cumbersome. So I just skipped building the computing part from scratch with transistors (or logic gates), instead I used an Arduino. My focus was more on building the punch-card reading functionality.
Made a few videos of it. You can find them on my channel.
I was wondering it will be very awesome if we can combine this 4-bit computer with a punch card reader.
Yeah, that would be cool if you could combine the punch card readers with the 4-bit computer. I also see building these types of projects as a work of art. Your punch card reader is sweet. Programing with punch cards was before my time! I like your soccer robots! Can you purchase those somewhere? I am looking for a good vehicle platform to control with artificial neurons for an upcoming video.
@@GlobalScienceNetwork Cody! Thanks for the attention! I'm trying hard to make a video on how to build one of these punch-card machines...
Anyways, Regarding the soccer robots those are the robots we built for a competition called RoboCup. We participate in the Small Size League. The robot doesn't navigate alone. It blindly receives navigation signals from a central computer. The central computer is connected to a camera mounted above the soccer field and with that the computer knows where each robot is located. Pretty cool stuff! If you think that works for you I'd love to help!
Wow 😳 Sir Mind Blowing.
Thank you!
Pure epicness!
Thank you!
you have the patient of a saint!!!!
Ha ha thanks!
Using a finite state machine (FSM) that runs over multiple time steps could simplify the design of your 4-bit computer, the GSN477. Here's how it might work:
Reduced Hardware Complexity: By introducing an FSM, you can sequentially manage operations that would otherwise require separate hardware components. For instance, instead of having dedicated hardware for each operation (like addition, subtraction, etc.), the FSM could handle these using a smaller set of shared components, reducing the total number of gates and flip-flops.
Time-Multiplexed Operations: The FSM allows the computer to reuse the same hardware across multiple clock cycles for different tasks. For example, the same ALU could be used for both addition and subtraction, depending on the state of the FSM, reducing the need for separate units.
Simplified Control Logic: The control matrix and opcode decoder could be streamlined by incorporating an FSM, which could manage instruction sequencing and execution steps more efficiently. This would minimize the complexity of combinational logic required for control.
Trade-off: The trade-off with this approach is that the system would need more clock cycles to complete an instruction, as each step of the instruction might be handled in a separate state. However, for a simple 4-bit computer, this trade-off might be acceptable given the savings in hardware components.
Overall, using an FSM in this way can make your design more efficient in terms of the number of components, even if it requires a bit more time to execute instructions.
Minimal FSM Example:
States:
Fetch: Read the instruction from memory.
Decode: Determine the type of instruction.
Execute: Perform the operation (e.g., ALU computation, memory access).
Write Back: Store the result.
Increment PC: Move to the next instruction.
Transitions: The FSM transitions from one state to the next on each clock cycle, progressing through the instruction cycle.
Limitations:
Instruction Complexity: The simpler the FSM and instruction set, the more limited the system's capabilities. However, even a very basic FSM can be Turing complete if it supports loops and conditional branching.
Recursive FSM for Multi-bit Processing
Instead of building a full 4-bit (or more) wide data path in hardware, you can design a smaller, simpler FSM that processes one bit at a time, recursively or iteratively handling the entire multi-bit operation over several clock cycles.
Concept:
FSM Design: The FSM processes each bit sequentially, from the least significant bit (LSB) to the most significant bit (MSB).
State Representation: The FSM would include states for each bit position, and the states would recursively process the current bit and then move to the next bit.
Data Handling: The data registers store the current result, and the FSM updates these registers bit by bit as it processes each bit position.
ALU Interaction: The ALU can remain simple, only handling single-bit operations at a time. The FSM will control the ALU to combine the results of these single-bit operations to produce the final multi-bit result.
Operation Flow:
Initialize: The FSM starts with the LSB (bit 0). The initial states prepare the system for the bitwise operation.
Process Bit-by-Bit:
Bit Fetch: The FSM reads the current bit from the operand(s).
Bit Operation: The FSM performs the operation on the current bit using the ALU (e.g., adding two bits, logical operations).
Accumulate Result: The result is accumulated in a register, potentially with a carry or overflow flag if needed.
Advance: The FSM moves to the next bit position and repeats the process.
Completion: After processing all bits, the FSM transitions to a final state where the complete result is available in the register.
Result Handling: The result is either stored back in memory or used for further computation.
Advantages:
Component Reduction: The design reduces the number of required components, as the FSM and ALU only need to handle single-bit operations.
Scalability: The same FSM design can handle any bit-width (4-bit, 8-bit, etc.) by simply extending the number of cycles it takes to process the data.
Simplicity: Simplifies the control logic, as the FSM only needs to manage single-bit operations and move between states based on the bit position.
Example Implementation:
For example, in a 4-bit addition, the FSM would:
State 0: Add bit 0 (LSB) of two numbers, store the result in a carry register.
State 1: Add bit 1 with the carry from the previous step.
State 2: Repeat for bit 2.
State 3: Add the final bit (bit 3), considering the carry.
Each state handles a single bit, and after all states are processed, the final 4-bit result is stored.
Limitations:
Speed: The main trade-off is speed. Processing one bit at a time increases the number of clock cycles required for each operation, which can slow down the system significantly compared to a parallel 4-bit or wider data path.
Complexity in State Management: Although the hardware is simplified, the FSM needs careful design to manage state transitions and bit-level operations correctly, especially for operations like addition with carry.
Conclusion:
Using a recursive FSM to process one bit at a time is a viable approach to reduce hardware complexity in a 4-bit computer (or any n-bit system). This method leverages the FSM to handle multi-bit operations sequentially, which can be especially useful in environments where minimizing hardware resources is critical. The trade-off is slower operation, but for many applications, this can be acceptable given the simplicity and scalability of the design.
Isn’t he already using an FSM? There are 8 states for each instruction.
There is one ALU, it does addition and subtraction, it isn’t separate. It is a requirement to add the xor gates for subtraction since there are no instructions for bitwise operations - that sort of hardware doesn’t exist anywhere else in this processor.
Wouldn’t a FSM will end up looking like this when constructed out of transistors?
Reusing hardware for multiple tasks results in the controller becoming more complex - the trace off is only worth it when the controller’s complexity increase causes less transistors to be added than the number of transistors that were removed due to removing hardware. In this case, what specifically do you propose should be removed?
Interesting, I had to think about this for bit. I think you could build a more simple FSM out of transistors. However, I think there is a reason that the Von Neumann architecture is what was adopted for most digital computing applications. As you stated a simpler FSM would take more clock cycles meaning slower computation times. Many advancements to computing where to find ways to make things more parallel even if that meant more components. There could be a case where high computational power is not needed and a system with less components meaning less point of failure would be advantageous. Also, if you built an even simpler computer or a demonstration it would be sweet project and I think you should give it a try. If you need any help, let me know.
Very nice video, it was really beautiful.
Thank you very much!
Hi again, at 4:29 I count 11 transistors per J-K FF. The FF consists of two 3 input NAND gates (3 transistors per gate) and two 2 input NAND gates (2 transistors per gate) for a total of 10 transistors. Yet I count 11 transistors per FF in the image. Why the extra transistor per FF?
Hi! You have the right idea but if you look at the logic gate-level circuit diagram there are three 3-input NAND gates (3 transistors per gate) which is 9 and just one 2-input NAND gate (2 transistors per gate) which is 2. So 9+2=11. The third three-input NAND gate is for the clear. This makes it so it is easy to reset the counters after startup where they would likely be at a random value. The clear feature option is also added to all the registers. In my videos about flip-flops, I might not have had a clear option cause it is not really needed for a stand-alone circuit. Great question!
@@GlobalScienceNetwork Yes, of course, I see it now, Thanks!
Is modern CPU use resistor and capasitor inside it? Or just fully transistor?
and, is second generation of computers use logic gate like this too?
Yeah, a modern computer will have resistors and transistors. Logic gates are used but MOSFET transistors are used rather than BJT transistors so the connections are made differently to achieve the logic gate types.
two feelings in my heart: envy and respect.
Ha ha Thank you! If you want to build one and have any questions, let me know.
thankyou very much it is very useful for education
Sure thing, thanks for watching!
I bet this guy is goat at factorio
Thanks! Factorio does look pretty sweet!
Well done!
Thank you!
This is so amazing this video made my life better exactly what I have been looking for thankyou me'lorde ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
Great, I am glad you liked the project!
Your neck must hurt all day, carrying a brain around that size. I'm impressed!
Haha thank you!
This is a masterpiece...😍
Thank you!
Im building a transistor bcd decoder right now, and i checked out this video. My jaw is stuck to the floor
Ha haThanks! A transistor bcd decoder is a cool build as well!
you are amazing mannn!!!
Ha ha thank you!
Hello man, welcome to you.
Thanks!
So Awesome!
Thank you!
Awesome!!
Thanks!
Hello sir, could you please explain how you handle floating inputs from the buttons and bounce on the input? I was trying to build a counter from 2 half adders and 2 d flopflops and im getting unpredictable behavior. (sometimes it skips numbers and sometimes it works perfectly)
Thank you
I am asking about floating inputs because I read that they may affect the outputs of D flipflops
Well I did not use half adders in my counters. Are you trying to built the ALU, binary counter, or ring counter? I am guessing that if you hook your circuit up to an oscilloscope you will see that it is switching much faster than you realize. Also I do not think I even had a floating input, it was always high or ground. The latches start at random values but you and in a reset to force them to be off for there initial state. I can try and help more if you provide more information.
@@GlobalScienceNetwork I've already built the 4 bit ALU. No problems there. But I am having trouble with anything that has to do with sequential logic( memory circuits).
Is there a way I could contact you directly and show you pictures of what I mean when I say your inputs are floating. I am a complete amateur at the electronics part and I would like to show u a picture of what I thought were the floating inputs on your build.
I really appreciate you responding to these comments. Do you have an instagram or some other messaging app?
I want to build counters for the Program counter and logic sequencer( ring counter)
@@ChaksFM If you look at my UA-cam profile you can find my email address and send the questions there.
@@GlobalScienceNetwork thank you so much
Cleveland Institute of Electronics used to do something similar for one of their classes.
Cool was that recently or back in the early days of computers?
underrated
Thank you!
Very very cool! I do think it could be worth it to make this one a pcb for education. Perhaps then one can even add LEDs on at least one transistor set per block so that one can see how the switching progress through the gates. Very impressive work!
With this machine of yours one can make a manual click as well so you can step every instruction manually and observe what happened.
The data bus must have LEDs as well. Don't see that on the circuit diagram?
Thanks, yeah it would be cool to make a PCB version. As I was building it I thought of a few ways to make it better as well. The beauty of digital electronics is that is it easy to make improvements. I like the idea of adding more LEDs so you can see when each register changes states within each register. I do not really want to solder that much so it would be cool if the company that makes the PCB would place all of the parts and it could then be placed within a clear plexiglass case. I might try it with the 4-bit calculator first and see how it goes.
awesome video, and my clear dot
Thank you!