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Amstrad NC100 Surgical Guide: Difference between revisions

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Corrected the document's provenance: it is a community wiki page capture based on Hans-Juergen Boehling's guide, not an Amstrad document, and the page now says so and says Amstrad published no NC100 service manual. Added the specification it does settle, incl. the 4xAA plus CR2032 backup arrangement and what losing the backup cell costs, and stated plainly that it carries no parts list, values or schematics
List the NC100 and NC150 pages that cite this guide
 
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'''"A Surgical Guide To The Amstrad Notepad Computer"''' is a '''community teardown and repair write-up''', not an Amstrad publication. 14 pages, with a text layer and searchable.
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'''A Surgical Guide To The Amstrad Notepad Computer''' is a community teardown and hardware reference for the Amstrad NC100 Notepad, written by Hans-Jürgen Böhling of Düsseldorf. It is not an Amstrad publication. The hosted PDF has 14 pages and a text layer; it was made in 2023 from a wiki page that reproduced Böhling's guide, and its first line credits his original document.


Its own opening line states its provenance: the document "is based on Hans-Jürgen Böhling's 'surgical guide to the Amstrad NC'", captured from a community wiki page — the text still carries the wiki's own link markers and a reference to a local copy of ''sg-nc100.zip''. '''Amstrad published no service manual for the NC100''', and this is the closest substitute available; it should be cited as a community document.
== Contents ==
 
The guide's sections, in order:
 
* What the Notepad is, and how the NC150 and NC200 differ
* Specifications of the NC100
* How to read the firmware version number
* PCMCIA memory cards
* How to open the NC100
* What is inside: the main board and a table of every IC
* Simplified block diagram and power supply block diagram
* Pinouts and descriptions of the main ICs: CPU, custom chip, firmware EPROM, SRAM, memory card slot, real-time clock, UART and RS-232 driver
* RS-232 connector pinout


== What it covers ==
== What it covers ==


* '''What the machine is''' — the NC100 and how it differs from the NC150 and NC200
The specification gives a Z80-compatible CMOS processor at 4.606&nbsp;MHz, 64K of RAM, 256K of firmware (word processor, address book, diary, calculator, terminal program and BBC BASIC), a 480 × 64 pixel display showing 80 × 8 characters, and a PCMCIA/JEIDA Type I slot for SRAM cards of up to 1&nbsp;MB at 5&nbsp;V. The NC100 runs on four AA cells or an AC adapter, with a CR2032 3&nbsp;V lithium cell as memory backup, and draws 40–60&nbsp;mA. It measures 295 × 210 × 22&nbsp;mm and weighs 930&nbsp;g. Flash memory cards are not suitable.
* '''Specifications''' — as compiled by the author
* '''How to read the firmware number'''
* Disassembly and internal layout, with repair notes


== What it settles ==
Böhling's board is marked Amstrad plc 4500-001P-1. His IC table:


The specification section gives figures useful before opening one:
{| class="wikitable styled-table" style="width:80%; text-align:left;"
|+'''NC100 ICs (from the guide)'''
! IC !! Part !! Function
|-
| IC301 || Zilog Z84C0006FEC || Z80-compatible CPU, 6&nbsp;MHz rated
|-
| IC302 || NEC µPD65034 || Custom ASIC: clocks, keyboard, printer and LCD interface, memory management, PCMCIA interface, sound
|-
| IC303 || NEC µPD27C2001 || 256K × 8 firmware EPROM (the only through-hole IC, under a cover on the underside)
|-
| IC304, IC305 || NEC µPD43257A || 32K × 8 SRAM
|-
| IC306 || – || PCMCIA/JEIDA memory card slot
|-
| IC307 || Toshiba TC8521 || Real-time clock
|-
| IC308 || NEC µPD71051 || UART
|-
| IC309 || NEC µPD4711 || RS-232 driver
|-
| IC310 || 74HC00 || Not fitted; used only with 43256 RAMs
|-
| IC311, IC314 || 4584 || Hex Schmitt trigger
|-
| IC312 || LM339 || Comparator for battery level detection
|-
| IC313 || 4013 || Dual D flip-flop
|}


* '''Processor''': Z80-compatible CMOS running at '''4.606&nbsp;MHz'''
The guide also explains the zero-ohm links beside IC303 that select larger EPROM types (27C4001, 23C2001, 23C4001, 23C8001), and notes that the RTC and SRAM run from the lithium-backed 5&nbsp;V rail.
* '''Memory''': 64K internal, divided as 15K system, 11K upper and 38K lower
* '''Firmware''': 256K ROM, containing the text editor with mail-merge and spell-checker, address book, time manager, calculator, terminal program (ASCII or XMODEM) and BBC BASIC with assembler support
* '''Display''': 480 × 64 pixels, normally 80 × 8 characters
* '''Storage''': PCMCIA/JEIDA Type&nbsp;I cards, '''maximum 1&nbsp;MB SRAM, 5&nbsp;V'''
* '''Power''': '''4 × AA cells''' or an AC adapter, with a '''CR2032 3&nbsp;V lithium backup cell'''
* '''Consumption''': 40&ndash;60&nbsp;mA in use
* Size and weight: 295 × 210 × 22&nbsp;mm, 930&nbsp;g


The '''two-battery arrangement is the point to take away''': the AA cells run the machine and the CR2032 holds the memory. Removing the AA cells with a flat or missing CR2032 loses the contents of RAM, which on an NC100 is where all the user's documents live.
== What this document does not contain ==


The other models are distinguished: the '''NC150''' (sold mainly in Italy and France) has 512K of firmware ROM and 128K of RAM, with a spreadsheet and the game ''Blockade'' in the extra 256K; the '''NC200''' adds those features plus a 720K MS-DOS-compatible 3.5-inch floppy drive and a 16-line by 80-character fold-up screen.
* A parts list or values for the resistors and capacitors.
* A circuit diagram; the block diagrams show function only.
* Fault-finding procedures.
* The ''sg-nc100.zip'' archive its first line refers to.


== What this document does not contain ==
== Pages that cite this document ==


* '''No parts list, no component values, no designators, no schematics.''' It is a teardown guide, not a service manual, and nothing on this wiki should carry NC100 component values sourced to it.
* [[Battery Refurbishment]] – NC100 batteries
* '''No fault-symptom table''' and no measurement procedure.
* [[Amstrad NC100]] – IC table, board marking, specification and power arrangement
* '''No power supply data''' beyond the battery and adapter arrangement.
* [[Amstrad NC100 Maintenance Guide]] – opening the case, adaptor input and memory cards
* '''It is a secondary source''' — a community write-up derived from another author's guide, captured from a wiki page — and should be attributed as such rather than presented as manufacturer documentation.
* [[Amstrad NC100 Troubleshooting Guide]] – power supply block diagram and battery thresholds
* The referenced ''sg-nc100.zip'' attachment is not hosted here.
* [[Amstrad NC150]], [[Amstrad NC150 Maintenance Guide]], [[Amstrad NC150 Troubleshooting Guide]] – the NC150's memory and the NC100/NC150 power diagram


<pdf> File:Amstrad NC100 Surgical Guide.pdf </pdf>
<pdf> File:Amstrad NC100 Surgical Guide.pdf </pdf>


Download here: [[:File:Amstrad NC100 Surgical Guide.pdf|Amstrad NC100 Surgical Guide.pdf]]
Download: [[:File:Amstrad NC100 Surgical Guide.pdf|Amstrad NC100 Surgical Guide.pdf]]


[[Category:Amstrad Service Manuals]]
[[Category:Amstrad Service Manuals]]
[[Category:Documentation]]
[[Category:Documentation]]
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