[qwertyuiop924]

I agree. You have to learn from both directions: go read SICP, PLAI, TAPL, PAIP, Dragon, Algorithms, and whatever else so you have an understanding of the concepts.

Now build a Z80 or 6502-based computer (at the very least) and implement stuff on the bare metal so that you understand how the machine works, at least on a basic level.

But if you can't be bothered to actually build a computer yourself (which is completely understandable), and still want to get a feel for hardware, write some games for an old game console. I recommend the Gameboy: it's dirt cheap (~$20 for a GBA), you can buy a flashcart + reader/writer and/or SD cart from BennVenn for ~$80-$100 (although you may have to wait a bit until he restocks), it's well documented (the PanDoc and numerous tutorials can help you out), and the toolchain is widely available (actually, several toolchains are widely available: various forks of the now-dead RGBDS, and WLA-DX, which seems to be more lively, so it's what I'd reccomend).

[gravypod]

I want to build a CPU from scratch actually but I can't find any 7400 series logic simulators that are worth their salt.