How to Make an Observer in Minecraft (and Use It)

In this tutorial, you’ll learn how to make an observer in Minecraft using the crafting recipe or command!

A Minecraft observer emits a redstone signal whenever the block or fluid it’s facing changes.

Available Platforms

Edition Platform Available
Java Edition Windows, Mac & Linux PC’s Yes
Bedrock Edition Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, iOS, Android, Fire OS, Windows 10 PC’s Yes
Education Edition Mac, iOs 12, Windows 10 PC’s Yes
PlayStation Edition PlayStation 3 & 4 Yes

Required To Craft An Observer

  • 6 Cobblestones
  • 2 Redstone dust
  • 1 Nether quartz

Steps To Make An Observer

1. Open Your Crafting Menu

Open your artboard so you can see the 3×3 grid as shown in the image below.

How to Make an Observer in Minecraft

2. Add Items to Crafting Table

With your artboard open, we now need to place the 6 pavers, 2 redstone powder and 1 bottom quartz on the squares on the grid as shown in the image below.

How to Make an Observer in Minecraft

It is important that the items are placed in the squares exactly as shown in the picture.

Place 3 paving stones in the 1st row. In the second row, place 1 red stone in the first box, 1 red stone in the second box, and 1 lower quartz in the third box. Place 3 pavers in the third row. That’s Minecraft Observer’s recipe.

Once you have placed the items in the correct boxes, you will notice that an observer will appear in the box on the right.

3. Move The Observer To Your Inventory

Finally, click on your new observer and move it to your inventory.

How to Make an Observer in Minecraft

Now you have a Minecraft watcher! A Minecraft observer emits a redstone signal whenever the block or liquid it faces changes. Watch our video above to learn how to use it in-game!

Minecraft Observer Command

You can also command viewers in Minecraft. The Observer command is available in the following editions:

  • Java edition
  • Pocket edition
  • Xbox One
  • Nintendo Switch
  • Windows 10 Edition
  • Educational Edition

To run the observer command, open your chat window and enter the appropriate command below:

Minecraft Java Edition 1.13 and Up Observer Command

/give @p observer 1

Minecraft PE, Xbox One, Switch, Win 10, Education Edition

/give @p observer 1 0

FAQ’s

1. What triggers an observer?

An observer is activated when the block or liquid it faces changes state. For example, it can detect growing crops or lawns. And the different stages of flowing water.

2. Can an observer detect a player?

An observer does not detect a player in Minecraft. It is a feature that has been requested many times but has not been added to the observer block.

3. Do observers cause lag??

Observers do not cause delays in Minecraft. If you notice a delay when using an observer, it is likely because the event that triggers the observer is the cause.

4. How do observers work in Minecraft?

An observer is placed similarly to a piston. It observes the block that it is placed against. The texture of the detecting side is that of an observing face. As observers can detect the state of other observers, placing two adjacent observers, each watching the other, can make a fast and compact redstone clock.

5. How do you use the observers in Minecraft bedrock?

The Observer block is a Block Update Detector (BUD) block that will send a short Redstone pulse if the block it is facing gets updated (mined, placed, opened, closed, etc.). They are placed like Pistons. The Observer will detect block updates on the face of the larger red square.

6. Why is my observer not working Minecraft?

You have the block back-to-front. The redstone signal then travels in the direction of the arrow on top, to the back of the block with the red dot. Think of it this way: the Observer needs to “see” with its “face”, in order to “observe” an update.

7. How far does an observer see Minecraft?

8 blocks
Observers should have a mode, where they detect block updates up to 8 blocks in distance, if there is a clear line of sight. “Clear line of sight” means, air or transparent blocks (glass, leaves, water, etc).


How to Make an Observer in Minecraft Tutorial

Watch in this video how we show you How to Make an Observer in Minecraft, how to use it, and we even show you 3 simple examples of farms that use observers to function. And be sure to subscribe to our channel!

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