Amstrad PC 1640 ECD

[MacDeath]

1MHz and no proper video game chip is no good sign. But I would not call   the 6809 a clone of the 65xx line. Thomson's chip really had a very   nice instruction set, much better than the 6502's. It can couple two 8   bit to one 16 bit register just like the Z80, nice index registers, and   8x8 bit multiplication (!). I checked on those processors a couple of   years ago. It's too bad they haven't been used more often (and with   higher clock frequencies).
The TO8 specs sound alright - ok, sound is maybe not the right word in "lieu" with a TO8

Well, take a TO8D (the one with built in 3"1/2 disk drive... )...

Get this CPu running at 2mhz...

Add a simple AY... tada...
one of the best 8 bit computer actually...
Despite being fully "software" (Sprites and scrolls...)

The 256Ko RAM, the CPC PLUS modes (+ attributed 16 colour 8x1 attributed mode, like MSX I think...)
A Mouse...

Having an overclocked 68xx CPU is quite as decent as a good 6mhz Z80 IMO...
And the large RAM... more than enough to actually do better than an Atari ST (just half the resolution though...)

But I think some models even had a soundchip actually...
perhaps the models for german exportation...

Yeah, in some site they say the TO8D have the "Music and game" peripheral inside...
+3sound channels and 2 Joystick ports... But this is not really explicit so I guess no.

According to MO5.com (lol)

the TO8 cost 3990Francs in 1985...
For this you have no disk Drive and no monitor...
Disk Drive is perhaps 2990Francs... ouch...

In 1986... the TO8D is priced at 4990Francs... certainly without monitor too but built in Disk Drive...

TAccording to an advertisment...
in july 1986...
In France..

Amstrads :

PCW9256 : 5990 F (6000 F) (with printer of course...)
CPC464 : 2690F (mono) 3990 (colour)
CPC6128 : 3990 (mono) 5290F (colours)

External disk drive :
DDI-1 : 1990 F
FD-1 : 1590 F
Mouse : 690 F
peritels/power sup :
MP1 : 390 F
MP2 : 490 F

Digi-voice /speech synthe : 390 F...
Lightpen : 290F.


same time : (minimal configs)

Macintosh 512K = 26000 francs.
Atari 1040ST =10699 Francs.
Amiga 500  = 17200...
PC1512 : from 6290 to 10690 Francs...

Thomson :

MO6 : 2690F
TO8 : 2990
TO8 + monitor+Disk : 5990 (special offer ?)

Disk drive : 1990F
Monitor (mono) 1290F
Monitor (Colour) 2490F

So actually the fully equipped TO8 wasn't that much expensive than a Colour CPC6128...
Provided you had a Mouse and Extra RAM... but no sounds...

But hey... it was a thomson, reputation of shitty machines because of past range (MO5 and TO7...)

And Amstrads were about to reduce their prices too...


I found those prices in a magazine : SVM from july 1986... (funny...)

Remember the thing I said about being french in the 80's ?

Look at this config... what an awesome setting and sweet specs...


Note : it is a pun...
"Découvrez moi" : discover me... but also uncover me...
This was France in the 80's... you could see naked women in any advertisement to sell you computers, perfum, Dairy products... and soap...

[Bryce]

That's a terrible setup! The most important port is blocked by the monitor Obviously wasn't tested by real users

Bryce.

[Gryzor]

This was for real??? WTF... France only! Now, give us the full-res scan!

[MacDeath]

Gryzor delivered...

http://www.abandonware-magazines.org/affiche_mag.php?mag=48&num=2230&album=oui

http://download.abandonware.org/magazines/Science%20et%20Vie%20Micro/svm_numero031/SVM31_p0155.JPG
http://download.abandonware.org/magazines/Science%20et%20Vie%20Micro/svm_numero031/SVM31_p0121.JPG

That's a terrible setup! The most important port is blocked by the monitor
Obviously wasn't tested by real users

Well well, Bryce... you made me Laugh a lot...


For sure this is a Wineleaf I would stuff very well.


Anyway, all this to say that in 1986-1987... (more like 1987...) the PC1640 was clearly a IBM compatible PC you could offer to a kid.

extra RAM, colour real EGA...
Was still quite expensive but clearly not that a bad choice even compaired to an Amiga or Atari ST...

By1990... many great games existed on EGA PCs...
One of my first "waow" impression on my PC was LowBlow.

http://pics.mobygames.com/images/covers/large/985532610-00.jpg


Electronic Art was perhaps one of the best providers on EGA PC...
Also LucasArt...

Loom :


Populous :


Yeah those were better on ST/Amiga, but you choosed the Format of the future with a PC...

And Dad could also do his work on the computer...

[MaV]

This was France in the 80's... you could see naked women in any   advertisement to sell you computers, perfum, Dairy products... and   soap...

An IBM PC sure isn't the right setup for this babe. Now, if she wore a wet bikini instead. That would deliver! I'd really buy that PC if she were the add-on.

On the other hand, I can picture another scene alright:

Me: I'd like to have the PC in the ad, please.
Seller: Would you like the girl as well?
Me: Ah! Oh, I see. She's not a teaser. Well, in that case ... stuff the PC, I'll take the girl only.

Anyway, all this to say that in 1986-1987... (more like 1987...) the PC1640 was clearly a IBM compatible PC you could offer to a kid.

Yeah, right. Either you've forgotten the ad, or the french start with "it" a lot earlier than other peoples.

French Father: It's time for you to receive the right tools for some proper education.
French Boy: Great! Can I have the girl in the PC ad?
French Father: ...



(I hope there's no women reading our forum.  )

Also LucasArt...

Loom :

Populous :

Those were great games.

Yeah those were better on ST/Amiga, but you choosed the Format of the future with a PC...

And Dad could also do his work on the computer...

While the kid enjoys the pleasures of life. Did I mention the ad yet? 

MaV

[MacDeath]

I hope there's no women reading our forum.

Of course there are none... What would you expect from a Site dedicated to retro-junk nerdz...

[Kurt-Arne Johnsen]

The problem with CGA... you cannot really set your 4 inks (colours) as you wish from the palette.

The 16 colours palette is not bad for a 16 colour palette, even compaired to a C64 or a speccy...
But so many colours couldn't really be used actually... in games (weren't...)

Compaired to a CPC... CGA only have one advantage... 2 greys...


EGA on the other hand cannot really be compaiured to a CPC.

CGA = "8bit" (8086...)XT
EGA = 16bit : 286AT

EGA was "shitfull" because of its heritage from the CGA.
And because IBM was notorious for being overcomplicated on trivial matters...

So yeah, in 320x200x16/16 mode, EGA was decent, but the fixed palette was rather ...fixed.

You had only 2 shades of each colours...
No possibilities to get awesome gradiants, while the 64palette would actually enables a lot of good stuff...

in 640x350x16/64 mode on the other hand, the Highresolution mixed with a decent and complete palette ...
compairable to the step above CPC's RGB cube... 4x4x4 instead of 3x3x3...

Could really allow stuff far better than what an Atari ST could.


I remember Fighter Bomber.

I had it on my PC (the Amstrad Port looks quite decent for an 8 bit...).

Honestly, I don't think Amiga or ST could do better than my 12mhz AT....

Also... this game featured one of the only HiRes EGA graphic as intro page.


This is not the EGA version, but it was displayed on my computer in 640x350x16... awesome.

Also those PC were actually 16bit concerning games.

You could get Populous or Might and Magic3 on those...
Even Monkey Island, be it CGA, EGA or VGA...

Might and Magic 3 also support a 640x200x16/64 EGA mode... awesome.

All those games didn't exist on CPC...


So yeah, EGA is a great standard to get it Retro-style.

http://members.chello.at/theodor.lauppert/computer/cga.htm
http://members.chello.at/theodor.lauppert/games/ega.htm
those 2 pages (and this site) is great concerning the various 80's computers.

CGA palette : same philosophy as speccy's palette, yet better...

They cheated with the dark Yellow in order to get a true Brown, but some clones or series were having a DarkYellow (comparable to CPC's "Yellow") instead of this brown...
Oh yeah... no orange.

EGA true palette :


Notice that while CPC's grey is strictly in the middle, those 2 greys are 33% and 66%...sort of...
The same is true with perhaps all colours appart the angles of the 4x4x4 cube which are something like the angles of the 3x3x3 cube (CPC).
As a result, CPC's palette is always in the middle of those gradiants.

EGA has even more "almost same colours" colours as CPC's, and definitely the same colourfull feeling.


Anyway last summer we did a lot of MonkeyIsland's mockups...
And to be fair the CPC can really do as well as EGA in super CGA mode...concerning colours choices... with only exception of greys...

As CPC has the good old 6 basic colours in 3 gradiants... + extra unique colours... so you can choose betterly according to the theme of the graphics..

But EGA could compensate with good dithering thanks to being a 320x200x16...
So just imagine with free inks choices...


on another topic, The CPC palette can be "stretched" into an EGA palette... but also into a 5x5x5 palette...
Considering regular 50% dithering give an acceptable result.

Ehhm 8086 is/was a 16 bit processor. The 8088 was too. The main difference between those two was the external bus. Inside they both operated with an 16 bit bus, the 8086 had an external bus of 16 bit. The 8088 processor had only 8 bit out, so it had to use 2 clock frequencies to export its 16 bit. That is why the 8086 was faster than the 8088. So the 8086 had No problem running ega graphics with 16 bit. Two clone processors from Nec was awailable. The NecV30=8086 and the NecV20=8088. I replaced my 8086 with a Nec V30. Fit right on and gained about 20% increase of speed :-) on my Amstrad PC 1640 HD20 with an ECD screen

[Gryzor]

I think that's why he put it in quotes; it was a reference to specs and quality, not the technical side of it.

[ZbyniuR]

I think more interesting could be CPC and Sega Master System in one case.