Minecraft
Genre: Open-World-Survival
Studio: Mojang
Publisher: Mojang
Rent a server
Rent a server
Genre: Open-World-Survival
Studio: Mojang
Publisher: Mojang

Minecraft Observers

Minecraft Observers emit a short redstone signal when the block directly in front of them changes state. This is great for building secret doors, traps or automations. Learn how to craft and use observers here.

Crafting, Functionality and Benefits

The observer is a redstone signal block that can be used to build traps, secret doors, or even automations or flying machines. It has a front side with a face and a back side that emits a short redstone signal when a status change of the block right in front of the face is detected. The Java edition and the Bedrock edition differ in what is detected as a status change by the observer.

How to make an observer in Minecraft

To craft an observer, you need six Cobblestone, two Redstone and one Nether quartz. Place the quarry stone in the top and bottom rows of the crafting window, the redstone left and center in the middle row, and the Nether Quartz in the middle right.

Observer Crafting Recipe:

1 observer = 6 cobblestone + 2 redstone + 1 nether quartz

What does an observer do in Minecraft?

Observers check the block that is directly in front of their face. If this block changes state, the observer emits a short redstone signal with a length of one tick. If you connect the back to a redstone wire, this allows you to trigger various mechanisms. For example, you can set up traps, open secret passages, or even create complex automations. A redstone wire can transmit the signal 15 blocks far. If you want to extend the duration of the signal, you can do so with a redstone repeater.

Which changes does the observer detect?

The observer detects most of the operations that take place on the block directly in front of it. This includes block placement and removal, players crossing the field, seedlings maturing, doors opening, and more. Basically, the observer works like a very short-range motion sensor.

Differences in Java and Bedrock Edition 

As usual with many Redstone parts, there are some differences between the Java edition and the Bedrock edition of Minecraft. For example, opening a shulker box, sounding notes from a note block, or locking and unlocking hoppers is only recognized as a status change in the Java edition and triggers a corresponding signal. On the other hand, placing and removing an item frame, activating a dragon head, and teleporting objects through the end gateway are only recognized by observers in the Bedrock edition. There are other cases where the observer is only triggered in one of the two versions. However, most of the changes that probably come to your mind are detected in both editions.Thus, the observer is an easy-to-understand redstone component and is well suited for first experiments and simple machines.

We hope we could help you further and wish you good luck with your future redstone builds, e.g. on our Minecraft servers.

similar articles