A Beginner's Guide to Microcontrollers

[@raol635]

Thank u. Back in 2000 when i was studying Automatism..I remember I bought one pic programmer.. the price was like 300 canadian $.. and I checked the price now... changed drastically.. I am watching your channel to recap what I have forgot in all this years. Thank u for this channel.

[@elewizard]

Thanks for sharing

[@pheymee88]

Another application which is personally my favorite would be oscillators! :) Basically capacitive delays reacting to each other, which is btw the purpose of the capacitor in NE555 circuit you mention at the end of the video - the more capacitance you put in there, the more delay and the longer oscillations would occur (alongside with the resistance, following the RC formula). Multivibrators are pretty easy to understand, you just have to charge one capacitor on the trigger level of the transistor gate which would charge the second capacitor on its collector which would trigger and decharge the first capacitor and so on and on, which would give us continuous switching... But the phase-shifting oscillators are even on the next level! The point is to use 3 capacitors to make 180° phase-shift and put it to the negative feedback of an amplifier which would give us continuous resonant frequency as sinusoidal wave on the output. Love that phenomenon! Not even talking about the RLC oscillators! :D

[@elewizard]

Thanks for sharing

[@Rick_Cavallaro]

Very nicely done. The only thing I might suggest is that Arduinos might be the easiest introduction to microcontrollers.

[@elewizard]

Thank you for watching. Arduino is not a microcontroller, it is a platform. I thank arduino is worst choice to start with 👍

[@Rick_Cavallaro]

@@elewizard I'm aware that an Arduino itself is not a microcontroller. But I'm very surprised you think it's the worst choice to start with. It is just *barely* a platform based on (typically) the AVR microcontrollers, uses the same dev environment, language, etc. But I suppose that's why they make menus. I've taught classes with Arduinos, and I can't really imagine doing the same introductory classes with the bare microcontroller.

[@nalinux]

@@elewizard I don't see what's wrong with Arduino. Since there's a lot of documentation, it's easy to use for beginner, so for me it can be a good choice.

[@elewizard]

I will give you more details in one of my upcoming videos 👌

[@sylye00]

Thanks for this intro into microcontroller! i just want to start learning this and your video is byfar the best for a beginner like me !

[@elewizard]

Awesome 👌, glad my video was helpful 😀

[@JohnUsp]

Wow, this is, by far, the best video about Microcontrollers. If you do an extensive and complete playlist about microcontrollers you will become a reference on KZbin. So, I think you'll cover STM, ATMEL, ESP, right? Congratulations.

[@elewizard]

Glad it was helpful! Yes I will cover STM32, Atmel AVR and some others 🥂

[@mikejones-vd3fg]

Cool stuff, just got into microcontrollers the last few months buying all types from different makers and i think my main issue was all the hardware layer abstraction, hiding away the workings of the cpu which i think is a mistake we should learn how they actually manipulates things with their registers and not hide it away. Beginner tutorials should have you blinking an LED with registers and even implementing your own delay function using the built in timer modules or interreupts to emphasize the workings of the cpu. For the first time as programmers we're given the keys to the cpu instead of taking a backseat, i think we should know how to drive it. I think where electornics skills come in handy at that point, being able to understand the hardware of it. Computers arent 1's and 0's they're changing voltages. See another unhelpful hardware layer abstraction 1's and 0's lol As i dig deeper i find the little circuites that make up the inviditual modules of the cpu to be quite fascinating, like how 1 gpio pin can have 3 states, which a real hardware circuit figures out by configuring itself based on a bit set in memory. Amazing.

[@elewizard]

Thank you for sharing

[@Eduardo_Espinoza]

This could not have came in a better time, or have you cracked the algorithm? :) loljk Since after many years, I am now getting more serious about electronics, specifically microchips. :) Thank you for this intro Masterclass! :) And I will see you next timeeee, for this series! :)

[@elewizard]

No I have nothing to do with the algorithm 😉 Glad you like the video 🍻

[@jboy6944]

Excited for this wave of videos! Keep 'em coming, Wizard!

[@elewizard]

More to come!

[@eddydogleg]

Back in the day a byte meant 8 bits. Now that we have 16, 32, and 64 bit MCU's, 6:07, am I saving MCU cycles and/or memory by declaring a variable as a byte as apposed declaring it as an integer?

[@elewizard]

It depends on the compiler you are using, in most cases yes you are saving memory

[@msg1956]

Excellent..! I daily look for your web series..! You are simply great..!

[@elewizard]

Thank you so much 😀

[@stevetodd7383]

I’d have said your definition of a Microcontroller was wrong. Many SoC devices contain all you list for a Microcontroller. The major difference is that the CPU in a Microcontroller is designed to behave in a precisely predictable way. Modern application processors are far from predictable as they execute code out of order, talk to cache memory that may miss, and beyond that to SDRAM that isn’t predictable as to what state it is in (the data requested may be on the current open page, or anywhere through to being mid refresh). Microcontrollers can be relied on to complete a given piece of code in a predictable time, thus allowing you to do things like bit banging. An ESP32 for example can generate a perfectly good VGA video image in code, an ATMEGA can bit bang WS2812 LED protocols etc.

[@elewizard]

Thank you for your feedback ❤️

[@noamnagauoker5250]

😢

[@stephenwhite506]

They are both just state machines and thus predictable.

[@stevetodd7383]

@@stephenwhite506 erm, you obviously haven’t seen how a modern application processor behaves if you believe that. You can predict their eventual results, but you can’t predict the amount of time that they will take. They are far from simple state machines and are a serious problem to verify that they will give the correct results in all circumstances.

[@stephenwhite506]

@@stevetodd7383 I believe that this is just a falsehood possibly spread by ignorance, outdated knowledge, or marketing departments. On the contrary, I have deep understanding of how modern application processor behaves. I am paid handsomely to do so. For the past five years I have worked on the COD game franchise and have done nothing but determine/predict how much time code is going to take. There are some fantastic tools that the console manufactures provide that indicate all kinds of aspects such as cache statistics, TLB statistics, coherency statistics, branch prediction misses, retired instruction statistics the list goes on. Also, application processors can have large caches that can be preloaded, locked and even disabled which can aid in predictability. Yes, they are more complex but still measurable and predictable. Microcontrollers are also getting more complex and there are also timing aspects that maybe needed to be taken into consideration. Some processors inside microcontrollers have 3 to 9 stage pipelines impacting branch misses. Memory access cross bar setups for DMA can stall a processor memory access. Some have FPUs and/or DSPs that can execute some instructions is parallel that can stall the external bus. Some microcontrollers have external SDRAM interfaces and hence subject to the states that this entails. Even inexpensive microcontrollers such as the RP2040 posses a simple code cache for reducing the need for slower serial driven bus accesses to external flash. Whatever the name, microcontroller, microprocessor, integrated processor or application processor, they all built on a state machine and can run software. The differences between them is no longer clear cut and complexities can cross over. You are entitled to your opinion, but it is just that. You can be afraid of the extra complexity or learn and fully understand it. Either way, I earn a living from optimising code written by the former. When you think of hardware and software as a state machine where complex, some times conflicting, inputs can be easily analysed and processed. Complexity can be tamed and predicted.

[@DannyTheMaster]

Thank you, you light my way. I'm not a complete newbie, but I'm basic user, you was very very clear and complete, you helped me to have a good basic of how mcu work. thx

[@elewizard]

Wow, thank you for the compliment ❤️ You melted my heart

[@user-mr3mf8lo7y]

I have been using ESP family MCUs especially, ESP8266 and ESP32 quite happily. 4Mb default flash size of those MCU's made them favorable.

[@elewizard]

Thanks for sharing

[@suchethagara2004]

best video on microcontrollers for beginners , very informative thank you for making such awesome videos

[@elewizard]

Glad you liked it

[@MiguelRamirez-ld7sy]

Playing with some scrap electronics. Is there an pc interface for the zilog Z86C9012PSC. Appears to be an 8 bit 40 pin microcontroller. Usb preferably.

[@Vintoriez]

Yeah… I’ve been trough learning gamedev and web apps and each didn’t satisfied my „Geeks G point”. Hope this will do and you will help me cross. You’ve earned a sub and all the bells! Thanks 👍

[@elewizard]

Wow, thank you for subscribing my channel ❤️ I will do my best for you, cheers 🥂

[@ElectroMech-vj6lp]

Another microcontroller which I'm surprised nobody talks about is the good old 8051. You can get AT89S52 chips or AT89C51 which are based on the same 8051 architecture. Pretty good for simple stuff.

[@maxheadroom8677]

ESP32 are excellent choice for IOT (internet of things) projects. Extremely easy to program using Arduino (& supported library). It includes wireless. I have used it for many home automation projects & it is supported by Home Assistant, a home automation control center. You can also wirelessly update ESP 32.

[@elewizard]

Thanks for sharing!

[@eldontyrellcorp]

I'm also using it. And if I want an ultra cheap solution with wifi, to control a relay, sense temperature, or control a led strip, the esp01s is the perfect solution (with Tasmota & Node-Red).

[@zed-zar]

can you do it with micro pro one

[@maxheadroom8677]

@@zed-zar sorry, do what?

[@pluto9000]

How did you know all my questions? Thanks for asking and answering them.

[@elewizard]

Awesome 👌

[@najidmouhammad9708]

thank u so much , witch is better, to learn MCUs or to learn Arduino instead?

[@elewizard]

I think it is better to start with AVR

[@esra_erimez]

How does RISC-V fit into the microcontroller ecosystem, if at all?

[@elewizard]

Why not!

[@bettymckinley8063]

My biggest question at this point is, how do I choose which microcontroller to use with an LCD. And example of one that I've looked at is a 128x64 White on Blue Graphic LCD from Crystalfontz (CFAG12864B-TMI-V). Which microcontroller would work best with this?

[@elewizard]

Selecting right microcontroller for driving your LCD I'd not a big deal, because, almost every microcontroller can drive a 64x128 GLCD. you have to consider other parameters like, cost, size and parameters like these 👍

[@bettymckinley8063]

@@elewizard Thanks for the quick reply and information! I'm fascinated with LCD's and the microcontrollers that control them. I've got an extra STC15W408S that I do want to experiment with and would like to attach it to some kind of multi-row LCD. I'm planning a small audio amplifier and would like to add inputs for a CD, DVD, Phono, Aux, and an FM/AM radio. I'd like to use a 6 position switch that will ultimately control what is displayed on the LCD. If the switch is set to CD, I'd like for the LCD to display "CD". If switched to FM, I'd like have the display to show the MHz and if AM, KHz. Can you suggest more in-depth videos that would help direct me on how to accomplish this?

[@dimitrioskalfakis]

nice appetizing start.

[@amobiikegwu8241]

Great video! Is the mcu detachable after it has been programmed using the universal flasher?

[@AugustineAriola]

Hi friend Where do you stay in Nigeria?

[@amobiikegwu8241]

@@AugustineAriola Ebonyi state

[@elewizard]

It depends on some factors. In most cases, yes it is

[@kristoferbk7486]

The sensitivity to noise is true? DIP is better then SMTs? If so, thank you for the info. But then again, using a breadboard will increase such sensitivity alot. (Just to inform those who are not aware)

[@elewizard]

Yes that is true. But you can compare them on PCB 👍 Then the DIP will win the game 😁

[@tomm856]

I used Microchip pic for years using assembly language but now I use Arduinno and C. With originally the pic having just 44 instructions (16F84), it was easy to program in assembly but you had to know all the rgisters inside the pic.

[@elewizard]

Yes, that was difficult to remember registers and instructions. Nowadays it is much easier

[@b1zarre23]

Glad I am not the only one that thought so! PIC are wonderful, but somewhat complex. I worked with the 12F family for a project and the learning curve was steep. @@elewizard

[@mortenlund1418]

Great video. Thanks for sharing.

[@elewizard]

Thanks for watching!

[@jamesgilmore2389]

Excellent video. Thank you.

[@elewizard]

You are welcome! I'm so happy you liked the video

[@elwire]

Great video!! Are you going to talk about Raspberry Pi Pico also?

[@elewizard]

Possibly! But not soon

[@RixtronixLAB]

Cool info, well done, thanks for sharing :)

[@elewizard]

Thanks for watching!

[@Po87-555]

You are an amazing person Thank you for your effort

[@elewizard]

It's my pleasure

[@qbitsday3438]

Beautifully Explained ! Thank you !

[@elewizard]

Glad it was helpful!

[@industrial_sewing]

Very nice explanation ❤

[@elewizard]

Thanks a lot 😊

[@davib8963]

What a great idea 🙂

[@elewizard]

Thank you! 😊

[@ИванИванов-м6ч1о]

The best beginners mcu is not an mcu, but an arduino. Plug and play. Tons of available sketches, so one can get familiar with concepts of doing stuff with an mcu. After that you can drift to avr, since arduino is based on an avr mcu and after that go to any platform you like, or all of them

[@elewizard]

I don't think so, immigration from arduino to a real microcontroller is difficult and many beginners are trapped in the arduino platform

[@ИванИванов-м6ч1о]

@@elewizard learning to swim having yor hands and legs tied and an anchor chained to your neck is not the best idea for the majority of people. Some might make it, but 99.99% wont. And that's exactly how "real" MCU learning is compared to arduino. All the infrastructure for MCUs is made by retards, that don't know how humans think, what are ergonomics, and how to teach people. I'm no pro in electronics, but using an arduino I can make things done. I many times tried to start with avr, stm, pic and other shit. And despite me already understanding what I need (without arduino I wouldn't even know what I needed) I cant even start doing stuff, since this doesn't work, or that dumbfuckerry is incompatible, or the cat crossed the street in the wrong place. Sure I can larn that eventually by going to a university and wasting 5 years of my life and few hundred $k, but I aint got time nor money to waste for such stupidity just to get a damn led blinking. Dont get me wrong, arduino is als shit, but at least, its very user friendly, especially thanks to the community. You want to learn how to blink a led - watch a vid and look at the code. How to use a keypad - watch a vid and code. Mux? Adc? Rfid? The same. Didn't understand frome the first one - watch another one from millions out there. And there you go, you already understand what you need to do and what the mcu needs to do, and you can grow on that, instead of figuring out how the fuck you configure that shitmcu you have there connected to your pc, not to mention how to flash it, or how to switch a pin high or low. Arduino is THE BEST learning platform period. Nothing will come close due to the enormous arduino community. And in the end it's better to get stuck with arduino, then not get started at all with mcus all together.

[@elewizard]

Arduino is good for prototyping 👍

[@alimalgami1125]

Thanks a lot. You are a great man

[@elewizard]

You are most welcome ❤️ Keep watching

[@abdulsami7042]

You are wonderful teacher

[@elewizard]

Glad you think so!

[@ThomasJagielo-ek8nq]

Can the computer operating system use Windows, Mac, and/or Linux, to run the software?

[@elewizard]

Yes, usually software is executed on windows

[@dmisi1]

great, i wait for continue

[@elewizard]

Next video is comming in few days

[@johnnybegood2002]

I have an HT48R32-B-0 microcontroller in my hi fi audio amp and need a programmer, do you know what am i looking for and can you help with a device that will program that. i have the original chip so i just need to copy the info onto a blank one. Thanks

[@umesh.kumar.naik278]

❤ nice video sir... Please detailed video on Attiny85 (specially RGB led colours control in single potentiometer... If possible)... Thank you... and❤From odisha, India

[@elewizard]

Will try, thanks for watching ❤️❤️❤️

[@vetriligamvetrilingamnadar7171]

Thank you 🎉🎉🎉🎉

[@elewizard]

You’re welcome 😊

[@sudheerkumar5966]

Very good

[@elewizard]

Thanks❤️

[@ZaryanUrRehman]

Great video

[@elewizard]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Can anyone help me what I would need to reprogram a N76E003AT20 microcontroller? I have the new code but not the tools to upload it.

[@elewizard]

Sorry, I have no idea about that 🙃

[@Bassguitarist1985]

@@elewizard it's an 8051 series processor if that helps

[@DefaultFlame]

I bought two bags of random ICs, I got two Texas Instruments TMS1200NC 4-bit microcontrollers (Called microcomputers in the TMS1000 series datasheet. The datasheet is copyrighted 1975, lol.) and I have no idea what they have been used for or what the internal ROMs have been programmed with. Anyone got any idea how I could get a ROM dump out of them or how/if I could bypass the internal ROM and use an external EEPROM for program storage?

[@thanatosor]

I like to think about MCU as "All In One" Computer : Flash Memory, SRAM, CPU, I/O, Clock, Power management... All inside just a single chip. which CPU/MPU never will become or be able to compete with.

[@elewizard]

Yes, exactly. Actually it is an all in one computer

[@imanrasti7619]

thanks

[@elewizard]

You're welcome my friend

[@abuzzakasm9767]

mobile cpu is much powerful than esp32 why dost we use mobile cup for calculating and add ai in our microcontroller project ?

[@theludicrousstuart6858]

Interesting

[@elewizard]

Great

[@khomo12]

👍👍👍

[@elewizard]

🍻🍻🍻

[@goranvuletic8873]

Great video. However, it may come to you as a surprise that "component" is pronounced (accentuated) differently. On the second syllable, not the first. I used to pronounce it like you, until I learned better.

[@elewizard]

Thank you so much for correcting me 😊 I am trying to improve my English

[@ChandrashekarCN]

💖💖💖💖

[@elewizard]

❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

[@mathewtomy3823]

Bl808 from buffalo labs is 64 bit.

[@elewizard]

Thanks for sharing

[@qwertykeyboard5901]

The best ones are the reprogrammable ones you find in junk electronics.

[@elewizard]

Maybe 👍

[@sleyeborgrobot6843]

​@elewizard do any come to mind?

[@qwertykeyboard5901]

@@sleyeborgrobot6843 You just have to take things apart and get lucky.

[@KarldorisLambley]

micro-controllers, i often consider them 'cheating', i like to make stuff myself using analogue electronics. but, i make model rockets and like to put avionics in them, then i use micro-controllers, i couldn't, in a million years make an analogue IMU, then record the signal or send it using radio waves. what was i saying? oh yes, sometimes i think the world is too ready to reduce tech to black boxes. when i was a kid i could see, with a scope, and easily understand analogue tv, and how it worked. now when i take a tv to bits it is just ICs. no wonder young people aren't so ready to grab a probe and soldering iron and burrow their way into a modern device, as it so incomprehensible. sorry, ive had a drink, im waffling........ ah yes! i remember what i was saying. take, for instance making a synth- pretty easy to buy a cem3340 and make a VCO. but then how to drive it? most people would buy an arduino and use PCM to drive it in sub-par manner. i say spend 20 quid on bits and make a baby 8. again, i have forgotten what point i was making. Tuesday is beer day. sorry. Fundamentals! using micro-controllers is all well and god, but i think sometimes people fail to learn the fundamentals before they play with a MC. the numbers of posts ive seen online of people trying to do something with an arduino, yet the concept of pull up resistors is unknown to them.

[@elewizard]

I agree with you about arduino, it make people feel professional while they don't know basic concepts like ohm's law Cheers 🥂

[@SanelKeys]

Far from truth. Everyone who is using mcu in any application (for example motor control) needs to know everything about system that needs to be controled. In case of motor control one needs to know all mathematical relationships between all variables, voltage to speed, rpm and torque, etc. All mentioned variables are analogue in it's nature, and are observed mostly via oscilloscope.

[@blo959]

abi türk müsün

[@elewizard]

Evet, Ana dilim Azerbaijan turkçesi

[@nmjerry]

Real coneheads use the linux terminal as their microcontroller IDE.

[@elewizard]

👍😂

[@Taha-m2w]

شما ایرانی هستی؟ چون آب واتا رو میزه پرسیدم😅😂

[@elewizard]

😁Yes

[@Noseilon]

subscribed

[@elewizard]

Welcome to our community ❤️😊

[@Liam-ok7mu]

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