You have a dead Amstrad PPC and you heart is too heave to throw it inside the bin ? Then why dont you use a magic wand to transform it into a retro console or better to use PCEM to emulate an Amstrad PPC ? It's what Bill Kar did with its PPC 640.

Noel Llopis has written an Amstrad CPC diagnostic ROM which is already at version 1.10 and whose sources are available on Github.

Changes since v0.91 :

• New main menu and summary screen
• Checking for 464 vs 664 models
• Fixed crash on DSK build
• Fix: Upper RAM test on Plus and GX4000 working again
• Improved keyboard layout in keyboard test
• Support for 464/664, 6128, and matrix keyboard layout (use TAB to cycle through them)
• Tries to autodetects Amstrad model and pick correct keyboard layout automatically
• Tries to autodetect ROM language and picks Spanish or French keyboard layout if necessary
• Fix: Upper RAM test doesn't trigger FDC

Rodrik Studio which you can read on the System-CFG forum (french) (a good forum on older computers), has done four videos about 3 differents Amstrad CPC models (videos by the oldest to the more recent) :

• restoration of an Amstrad CPC 664 1/2
• restoration of an Amstrad CPC 664 2/2
• Amstrad CPC 6128 Plus restoration and discovery
• Amstrad : the CPC models (1984/1985)

He opens and cleans all machines, and also refresh the exterior of the computer with the retrobright method.

After his video Amstrad PPC512 ISA Expansion Board XTIDE Network Sound PPC640, Retro Theory is showing how to replace the actual RTC chip with another compatible component with its own battery (good for 10 years). You will have some unsoldering work to solder the new Dallas DS12887 RTC inside the Amstrad PPC.

Noel Llopis has written an Amstrad CPC diagnostic ROM which is already at version 0.91 and whose sources are available on Github.

The WIP version 1.0l will permit to test the keyboard, whatever the language (qwerty/azerty).

Changes since v0.8 :

• Fixed ROM test hanging from upper ROM builds
• Detecting and testing all upper RAM up to 4MB (it can take a LONG time to test the full 4MB!)
• Esc aborts upper RAM test
• C3 configuration test uses a pixel not visible on screen
• Paging out M4 lower ROM to access system ROM
• No need to press a key after low RAM tests
• Holding ESC or Fire for 2 seconds exits keyboard test

Universal Serial Interface for Amstrad CPC II (a.k.a. USIfAC II or... THE GOTEK KILLER FOR AMSTRAD CPC! :D) by Ikonsgr is an evolution of his previous Design USIfAC (with which is fully compatible), based on a modern and much more powerful 40pin 18F47Q10@64Mhz 8bit PIC microcontroller, which offers many new amazing features :

• Completely "from the scratch" project,based on a modern 8bit PIC 16F1579@32Mhz MicroController! (all other serial interface projects, use the rather old, expensive and bulky 40pin 16C550 UART chip)
• Very easy to use by only two BASIC commands, INP() and OUT!
• Completely free DIY project, rather easy and cheap to make (total cost for the DIY kit +all extra parts, would be less than 6euros!)
• SUPER FAST loading of many games/programs, DIRECTLY from the PC!(see "Direct Load" function in User's Guide, and here is a list of games already tested and working)
• Easy and fast transfer of dsk images directly to Amstrad CPC disks!
• Easy and fast individual file transfer (check link for 1000's of games extracted from dsk images)directly from/to Amstrad's Disks!
• Equipped with a reset button and a pause switch for Amstrad CPC!

For more informations check the CPCWiki link and the video made by Crazy Piri (french inside).

Thanks to Youtube who proposed me a video by Retro Theory called Amstrad PPC512 ISA Expansion Board XTIDE Network Sound PPC640 where is he testing his ISA expansion board using the 2 connectors at the back of the Amstrad PPC 512 or 640.

Check the description of the video for the github page with the pcb files and the components list.

So in this video he is testing an XTIDE, memory card (to 640 Kb and some UMB), sound card using the unisound (universal sound driver) and a CGA/EGA card. So he launchs Prince of Persia with OPL2 (sound blaster) and EGA.

More Amstrad content should appear on his youtube channel later as states in the commentaries, so stay tuned and subscribe to his channel like I did.

Noel Llopis has written an Amstrad CPC diagnostic ROM which is already at version 0.8 and whose sources are available on Github.

You can see the ROM being used in a video on Youtube about repairing a floppy disk controller. I invite you to see his other interesting videos.

The M4 Board which let you add wifi on your Amstrad CPC just got another firmware v2.0.7.

Changes since v2.0.6 :

• Changed behaviour of RMR "ghost" register to support FutureOS and IMPdraw running from ROM on Amstrad PLUS
• Added C_ROMLOW command to map in and out lowerrom(s) on the fly
• NMIROM.BIN is now loaded from microSD card root by default, if present, otherwise internal HACK MENU is used

New HACK Menu improvements by Cebe74 (Thanks!) :

• Reorganized displayed layout
• Menu keyboard shortcuts
• Improve memory dump feature

The M4 Board which let you add wifi on your Amstrad CPC just got another firmware v2.0.6.

AlbiDOS v0.65 par Philippe Rimauro is available for the expansion card Albireo for Amstrad CPC to use USB mass storage.

Steddyman did develop an Amstrad PCW core for the Mister FGPA project.

Version two of this core is out since today, it features :

• Turbo support to 32Mhz
• Expanded memory support to a maximum of 2MB
• 3" and 3.5" disk support
• Dual disk drives
• PCW 8xxx and PCW9xxx model support
• All hardware Joysticks and Mice supported
• 4 colour mode support

You can see a youtube video of this core running an adventure game in 4 colours.

FlashGordon by PulkoMandy is a Flash/ROM board and mostly a clone of Bryce's MegaFlash design, with a different flash chip and integrated mods for a reset button and "disable all ROMs" switch. It can be slotted on a Mother-X4, or plugged to the CPC with the appropriate cable (centronics or HE902 to HE10 female, 50 pins). It can store up to 32 ROMs, including optional replacement for ROM7 (need hardware mod on CPC6128/664 to disable the internal one, no changes needed on Plus and 464) and ROM0 (for use of the Hacker or straight-to-CPM boot or other foreground ROMs). Software is available to manage it (either ROMAN from PNG or TFM's RomManager) and will come pre-installed on the boards.

So there is a new batch of FlashGordon available if you are interested.

A new version of Mod Master XT beta 22 by FreddyV is available on Vogons. It lets you hear a lot of music modules formats on any PC under msdos even a PC XT (CGA), for example an Amstrad PC 1512/1640 or a PPC 512/640...

New features are :

• Fixed one bug for the Tandy Port config
• Added OPL3LPT Support
• Changed in the way the mixing buffers are managed
• Added the support for the Tandy DAC output (DMA)

WARNING: Don't use Pause, it does not work.

Two interesting videos on the Youtube channel of Mr Lurch's Things, the first one about the Amstrad PC 1640. This video did let me know that the PC-CD (Standard Color Display) monitor can of course display CGA but also low-res EGA (320x200 and 640x200 in 16 colors). The PC-ECD (Extended Color Display) monitor of course can display high-res EGA (additionnal 16 or 64 colors in 640x350). There also is a PC-MD monitor (monochrome).

The second video is about the réparation of an Amstrad CPC 464 tape drive (but honestly I didnt see this one).