2. A Basic ME System
In this section, we will cover the basic components of aME system, ME storagesand show you a couple ofexamples of simple MEsystems you can use to get started.
2.1 Basic Blocks
ME Controller
This is the "brains" of your ME system. Each system must have one, and only one, ME Controller block. Other blocks connect to it, either directly or via the use of an ME Cable. This is also where you connect your power to. Below is the crafting recipe for the ME Controller, in order to craft it you will need: 4x Iron Ingot, 4x Fluix Crystal, and 1x Advanced Processor.
ME Drive
This is the storage part of the ME system. Each ME Drive has 10 slots for ME Storages (3 slots if using the blast-resistant version of the ME Drive).
ME Storages come in a number of different flavours, for the purposes of this guide, we are going to stick with: 1k, 4k, 16k, 64k. You can use as many Drives as you would like in your system. Below is the crafting recipe for the ME Drive, in order to craft it you will need: 4x Iron Ingot, 2x Basic Processor, 2x Glass, and 1x Chest.
ME Access Terminal
The Access Terminal is what you use to access the content of your ME system, you can use it to put items in, and take items out of the system. You can use as many Access Terminals as you would like in your system. Below is the crafting recipe for the ME Access Terminal, in order to craft it you will need: 4x Iron Ingot, 3x Glass, 1x ME Cable, and 1x Conversion Matrix.
ME Cable
The ME Cable is the most useful non-essentialpart of an ME system. A basic system can be created by just placing blocks next to each other without the need forany cables, however, in most cases, you will want to put the Access Terminal in a different place, or even have manyin different parts of your base. This is where the ME Cable comes into play, it allows you to connect the ME blocks to each other. Below is the crafting recipe for the ME Cable, in order to craft it you will need: 6x Glass, and 3x Fluix Dust.
2.2 ME Storages
The ME Storages are where your items are actually stored. They go in to the ME Drive. They can be moved between different ME systems in order to move the items. In this section we will only cover the crafting of 1k storages but other storages such as the 64k storage, are recommended instead. All ME storages can only store 63 different item types, therefore it is highly recommended to not put in things such as worn tools, or, armour in to the system as that can quickly fill up the storages.
To craft a 1k storage, we will first need a Storage Cell. To craft a storage cell you will need: 4x Certus Quartz, 4x Redstone, and 1x Basic Processor, arranged in the following way:
We can then craft the 1k storage using 3x Iron Ingot, 3x Redstone, 2x Glass, and 1x Storage Cell, arranged in the following way:
Below is a list of links to the different, previously mentioned,storages which also contain crafting instructions.
2.3 Simple Example
Here is a simple example of a ME system. It uses: 1x ME Controller, 1x ME Drive, and 1x ME Access Terminal. For this you will need the following resources:
- 16x Iron
- 11x Glass
- 4x Fluix crystal
- 3x Basic processor
- 5x Fluix dust
- 1x Advanced processor
- 1x Nether quartz
- 1x Certus quartz
- 1x Chest
You will also need 1 or more ME Storages to store the items in, as well as a power source connected to the ME Controller.
Spoiler
2.4 Advanced Example
Here is a more advanced example of a ME System showing off how ME Cables can be utilisedto connect multiple blocks together (in a normal scenario the cables would of course be longer). Please note, that for this to work, the entire cable connecting2 blocks must be chunkloaded.The setup uses: 1x ME Controller, 2x ME Drive, and 2x ME Access Terminal. For this setup, you will need the following extra resources in addition to the ones specified in the previous example:
- 12x Iron Ingot
- 5x Fluix Dust
- 5x Glass
- 3x Basic Processor
- 1x Chest
- 1x Nether Quartz
- 1x Certus Quartz
Plus, for every 3x ME Cable:
- 6x Glass
- 3x Fluix Dust
You will also need 1 or more ME Storages to store the items in, as well as a power source connected to the ME Controller.
Spoiler
Bonus
Check outthis pagefor information about the ME Crafting Terminal, it is similiar to the Access Terminal, however it includes a crafting area to allow you to craft straight from the ME system. It requires a bit more resources but is usually favoured over the standard Access Terminal.
Protip
You can upgrade existing, smaller, storages by separating the storage element from the housing. Please note that this will remove all items stored inthat cell, so export them using an IO Port first (see Applied Energistics: Advanced Concepts). For more information seethis FTBWiki page.
