Show HN: BBRouter – Ben Eater's 8-bit computer, simulated on 3D breadboards

A developer launched BBRouter, a virtual breadboard editor that simulates Ben Eater's 8-bit SAP-1 computer on 3D breadboards, with features including side-by-side diff, a scope, auto-syncing schematics, an auto-router, uploads from the real Arduino IDE, and an MCP connection that lets AI assistants such as Claude help build or troubleshoot the circuit. The tool is offered on a Maker plan at $7/month, with the code HACKERNEWS making the first month free and then $5/month for as long as the plan is kept. The developer said a side goal is building a community around a simulator that works realistically for an actual build and has a usable UI on mobile and trackpads.

Hi HN, I kept wiring Ben Eater's 8-bit computer wrong, so I built a realistic virtual breadboard editor. Some of the nice features are side-by-side diff, scope, schematics auto-sync, auto-router BBRouter stands for breadboard router , and my favorites: upload from the real Arduino IDE and connect to your AI with MCP, let Claude & co build it or help you troubleshoot. The link is the SAP-1 running. You can orbit it, probe a hole with the scope, slow the clock down, play with the virtual displays for debugging, then you can actually build it following the step-by-step instructions. A side-goal is to create a community, there are quite a lot of simulators out there but mostly offline / too abstract to realistically use it for a real build. I also never found one that had a decent UI/UX and worked well on mobile or with a trackpad. Happy to answer anything, and tell me what breaks. p.s. Maker plan is $7/month; code HACKERNEWS makes the first month free and then $5/month for as long as you keep it. Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50321522 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50321522 Points: 2 Comments: 0