I grew up using an Amstrad PC1640, and it’s a machine I’d always wanted to own again. Decades after my original was lost, I was lucky enough to track one down and start restoring it — this page is the reference notes for that ongoing project.
What it is
Launched in 1987, the PC1640 was Amstrad’s follow-up to the PC1512 — a faster, more expandable IBM-compatible aimed at the same UK home and small-business market. Like the 1512, it followed Amstrad’s all-in-one approach: a complete bundle of system unit, monitor, keyboard, and mouse, sold as a package rather than assembled piecemeal. That combination of price and completeness helped Amstrad take a real share of the late-80s UK PC market from more established American brands.
Its integrated graphics — a genuine EGA-compatible Paradise PEGA1A chipset — could do CGA, Hercules/MDA, and EGA-compatible modes without an add-in card, which was a real cost advantage at the time. Mine is the monochrome (PC-MD) version.
Specifications
| Component | Details |
|---|---|
| CPU | Intel 8086 @ 8MHz |
| RAM | Up to 640KB |
| Graphics | Onboard Paradise PEGA1A chipset — CGA, Hercules/MDA, and EGA-compatible modes |
| Storage | One or two 5.25” 360KB floppy drives; optional 20MB hard disk |
| Display | Monochrome (PC-MD), colour CGA (PC-CD), or enhanced colour EGA (PC-ECD) |
| OS | MS-DOS 3.2, often bundled with GEM Desktop 3 |
| Expansion | 4× 8-bit ISA slots |
Restoring mine
Getting a 1987 PC back into daily-usable shape means solving the storage problem first — a dying original hard disk isn’t repairable, and the machine won’t take a modern drive on its own terms. I fitted a Lo-tech XT-CF adapter running XTIDE Universal BIOS, which lets a CompactFlash card stand in for the hard drive — getting it to actually boot took several failed attempts before finding the right combination. See Getting XTIDE Working on the Amstrad PC1640 for the full troubleshooting story.
The other addition is an ATI Graphics Solution SR card, which does something genuinely unusual: it emulates CGA output on the PC1640’s monochrome MDA-style monitor, rather than needing a colour display to play CGA games. See CGA Gaming on an MDA Monochrome Monitor for how that works.
Why I like it
- it’s the machine I actually learned DOS on — editing
AUTOEXEC.BATandCONFIG.SYSfor the first time - the onboard Paradise chipset is genuinely flexible for its era — CGA, MDA, and EGA-compatible modes from one card
- four 8-bit ISA slots leave real room for storage and graphics upgrades, even if 8-bit-only limits what fits
- it’s old enough that almost every part of keeping it running is its own small project
Pros
- a real EGA-compatible chipset built in, not just CGA
- simple, well-documented ISA expansion
- genuinely reliable 8086-era hardware once storage is sorted
Cons
- 8-bit-only ISA slots rule out most later expansion cards
- original storage (5.25” floppies, MFM hard disk) is a real bottleneck without an adapter like the XT-CF
