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From Motorola 68000 Homebrew Computer Project
The Motorola 68000 Homebrew Computer Project
Contents
History of the Project
I've always wanted to build my own computer system from "scratch", at least to the level of using ICs & the circuit design. I'm not looking to wire wrap individual transistors here lol. I've previously built a Z80-based system, but since I'm mainly a C/C++ programmer I quickly reached the limitations of a 64k address space.
So, this time around I'm designing a 32-bit system with a 24-bit (16MB) address bus. I'll be publishing schematics and PCB information as the design progresses and documenting as much as possible here on this wiki. I will be using "human-friendly" chips and sockets as much as possible with 0.100" (2.54mm) pin spacing, I want this design to be able to be reproduced and built by real people and not just soldering experts and machines.
Hardware
* Note: throughout this site if I use MB/KB/etc. I mean Megabyte/Kilobyte/etc. I will use Mbit/Kbit for Megabits/Kilobits.
Memory Map & Busses
Schematics
CPU, Memory, and Main Memory Decoder
Memory Mapped IO Decoder
Multi Function Peripheral (MFP)
Reset Circuit
Individual Components
CPU - Motorola 68000
ROM - 1MB
RAM - 12MB
Other potential ICs
Expansion Bus
Software
Most likely toolchain for development: GCC 4.4.5 [1] + Binutils 2.21 [2]
Bootloader
Operating System/Kernel
Standard C Library
Updater
Licensing
Everything (information, schematics, designs, etc.) on this site is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike License version 3.0 unless otherwise noted. More information on this license can be found here: [3].
Other Sources
Documentation & Tutorials
Microprocessor College Lectures: These are good starting point for those new to 68000 hardware design, busses, etc. The good stuff starts around lesson 7 or 8.
Similar Projects
N8VEM: Homebrew Computer Project: Open source design using a Z80 CPU and Eurocard backplane for expansion. Also includes M68K CPU boards and S-100 bus versions.
