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Simon Game - Through-Hole Soldering Kit
Replacement:KIT-10547. The new version of this kit is easier than ever for the beginning solderer! This page is for reference only.
This is a through-hole version of our popular surface mount Simon kit. This newer version comes with an ATmega328 instead of the ATmega168. All components are through-hole, making this kit great for beginners. When building this kit, you'll have a chance to solder a 28-pin microprocessor, LEDs, battery clips and more.
Note: This ATmega328 comes pre-programmed with the Simon code as well as the STK500 serial bootloader. This serial bootloader will allow you to re-program the Simon game using the Arduino development environment. There is not direct support under the Arduino IDE but the 'Lilypad Arduino w/ ATmega168' should allow you to reprogram the board using Arduino. You can also use a standard text editor and WinAVR. The serial port on this board requires a male header and FTDI Basic board, not included, but related below.
After you have successfully assembled the kit, you will have a greater knowledge of through-hole soldering and the tools, techniques, and terminology required to populate your own PCB prototype. You will have a development platform with 5 outputs (LEDs and buzzer), 5 inputs (buttons), and serial for debugging. And, of course, you'll have your very own Simon game!
Checkout the assembly instructions - we're pretty proud of them. The kit even includes batteries! Assembly time varies, but for a true beginner with no soldering experience, the kit can take 20-40 minutes to assemble.
This product makes for a great gift too! For more gift ideas check out the SparkFun Gift Guide!
Replaces:KIT-09343
- 1x ATmega328 - pre-programmed with Simon firmware
- 1x Buzzer
- 2x 0.1μF Cap
- 1x 10K Resistor
- 4x LEDs (blue, yellow, red, green)
- 2x Slide Switch
- 4x Battery Clips
- 2x AA Batteries
- 1x Button pad
- 1x Bezel
- 4x Standoffs and screws
1x Assembly instructions
A soldering iron and wire cutters are the bare minimum tools required. We scoured the earth and found a really fantastic beginner's soldering iron for $10, solder for $2, and wire cutters for $2.
- Assembly Instructions
- Schematic
- Eagle Files
- Github Page (Example Code)
- Code
Simon Game - Through-Hole Soldering Kit Product Help and Resources
Simon Says Assembly Guide
January 20, 2011
No matter what flavor of the Simon Says Through-hole Soldering Kit you've purchased, this tutorial is here to guide you through the entire build process.
Comments
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Customer Reviews
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This was a really easy and fun kit to assemble and use. Great for beginners or young ones alike. I have documented this at http://wp.me/pQmjR-14A
Wow, that's a big stack of Simon ki--hold on a second--Pelican, Amon Amarth, Mastodon, and...is that Gojira? It appears that somebody over there has fantastic taste in music! \m/
Either that, or I need to switch to lead-free solder... =P
FTDI Basic board not related below...
I added them now. Thanks for finding that.
The Schematic of this shows ATMega8. It MUST be old... I am almost done writing my own pro Simon game but needs ports 5, 6, 9, or 10 for PWM (PWM ports 3 & 11 get meshed up when using the tone() command). Please anyone having this or sparkfan : tell me the ports the LED use
Ben and I built the kit in an hour, taking it slowly. He liked putting the parts in their holes, and installing the batteries. He watched through the magnifier as I soldered the parts in place (try doing that sometime without somebody getting burned). Snipping the excess leads after soldering was a treat for him. The "Papa & Ben" after-project rating: excellent! The only issue I had was not with the kit, but with Ben. He came out of the computer room later with a little sculpture made of solder and showed it to me. Thanks, Ben, now go wash your hands and come talk to me. New rule: You can play computer games, but don't touch things on the workbench. You could get hurt or burned. Come get me and we will do something together. That seems to be working well. Live and learn.
Next week we keep our grandson Ben. He and I will build the thru-hole Simon kit. Ben is 5 1/2 years old and very bright. He won't get to solder, though. I will report back to this forum.
This is one of my Staff Picks. The Simon kit is a great way to learn how to solder. It's the kit we teach at Maker Faire and it's the kit I use to teach friends and family. You still might want to have someone show you how to solder the first couple solder joints of this kit, but the instructions should help you from that point on.
Thank you for making this a through-hole kit!