M4 Board – The end, maybe…

After nearly 10 years and close to 1500 pcs, I have decided to stop producing the M4 board.
Finding time and motivation for builds has become increasingly challenging, and more EU bureaucracy starting October 1st was the final nail in the coffin.

Demand for the M4 board remains high, and I’m sorry to all those requests I haven’t replied to recently — I was waiting to make this announcement.

My apologies also to those on the waiting list, I won’t be able to build.

I have released the Gerber files, schematic, BOM and bootloader on my GitHub here:
https://github.com/M4Duke/m4hardware

If anyone wants to build them or make their own, you are welcome to do so.

The heartfelt feedback from so many positive people has made the countless hours spent placing 0603 caps and resistors and removing solder bridges, less painful. 🙂

Thanks all.

Stay strong!

/Duke

26 thoughts on “M4 Board – The end, maybe…”

  1. Hey Duke, I am the lucky owner of one of your last M4 boards. I just wanted to thank you for the great piece of hardware it is and also for releasing its code and design into the community. In truth anything that is released to the community will keep on living and being developed so I know in my heart you did the right thing!

    Reply

      1. Duke, for quite some time I was looking for a solution to get my code written in the 80ies onto a PC, and now that I found you: WHAT – I am a month too late!!?? No stock left? Nobody sells me a M4 board for my CPC6128? My time-travel canceled? Almost crying…

        Reply

        1. I think there is several people that may do some batches of the M4 board now, so it will still be possible to get it.

          Reply

    2. Hi Simon,

      If you do, please share a link to this shop so that those who were unable to get them in the last decade can still do so. Oh and I might look at getting another one myself to support you in this effort.

      Reply

  3. Duke. Of course I like so many am extremely sad to hear this announcement. But at the end of the day you have to do what is right for you. Thank you for creating an amazing device. Thank you for making so many and thank you for releasing the files so that we can potentially find another way to make them going forward. I appreciate everything you have done.

    Reply

  4. I’m very sorry that you have to make this decision. I am one of the lucky ones for whom you made this incredible board. A device that revives a CPC and brings it into the 21st century. I have to thank you for carrying out this project and for dedicating so many hours of your life to it. I also want to thank you for sharing the project with the community so that it doesn’t disappear and can continue to be useful to the Amstrad friends community, which keeps growing more and more. Thank you very much, really!!

    Reply

  6. Very sorry to hear – I got my card maybe 3 years ago and it still works great. I wish you the best of luck in the future and many thanks for your work for the Amstrad community 🙂

    Reply

  8. It’s a shame, a superb map which is always very useful to me, thank you for your work

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    1. Thanks for all your time.
      Thanks for all your work.
      Thanks for your kindness and be a very nice guy.
      Thanks for allowing me create an app for your M4 board.
      Thanks for sharing your files.
      Thanks you for all.

      Reply

  9. Hey Duke.
    Thanks for your time, effort, improvements and community service in making this board! I bought one last year and it is a phenominal bit of kit. Cheers!

    Sam / Bifford

    Reply

  10. Hey Duke,

    Thank you so very much for all the work over the last decade, You brought such an amazing device to the Amstrad CPC, and for that we will all be forever grateful.

    Enjoy your added free time, You very much deserve it.

    Reply

  11. First of all, thank you for the wonderful project and for making it public. I have a question regarding the voltage regulator used in this project. In the BOM list, you suggest a regulator with a 3.6-volt output — specifically the RT9166A-36. However, it’s almost impossible to find. I found another one called HT7136-1 (I hope it will be compatible). However, while reviewing the schematic, I noticed that the output is marked as 3.3 volts, and the RT9166A-33 regulator is quite common. Could you please help me understand which regulator will definitely work here?

    Best regards,
    Martin

    Reply

    1. I used the RT9166A 3.6V, if there is a 3.3V label in the schematic, it’s something I overlooked and it should have been corrected to 3.6V.
      You should be able to find compatible alternatives, if you can’t find the original.

      Reply

      2. Hi,
        I want to build some for my self but finding the RT9166A-36 is very hard to impossible. Can you recommend alternatives? Or is the 3.3V enough?
        Thanks for help

        Reply

        1. Mostly 3.3V will be OK I think, but 3.6V gives a little better VIH. I was lucky to have no problems sourcing the RT9166A-36, but when I checked recently, it seems indeed stock is gone.
          Someone used HT7536-1 SOT-89-3 as a 3.6V alternative, so try to look it up.

          Reply

  13. Hi Duke,
    thank you very much for all your hard work and your kindness.
    I wish you the best.

    Reply

  14. Sorry to hear this Duke, especially as I’m one of those on the waiting list for the last year! 😓 Appreciate you’re probably sick of building them though. I’d really love one still though and I’d happily pay much more for one so if anyone picks up the mantel or has one they want to sell please reach out (jameshart1977@hotmail.com).
    Good luck in the future!

    Reply

  15. Hi !

    It’s possible to have real reference of component ?
    Ex : MicroSd Pull Type : Exist in annnnnnny reference.
    same for button : SW1 and co

    Thks a lot.

    Reply

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