# Best Amstrad CPC emulator: Caprice32, the Gold Cartridge pick

Page: https://whichemulator.wtf/cpc/ · Reference: WEM-CPC-9RWF

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Amstrad CPC 464 / 664 / 6128, Amstrad, 1984. Schneider CPC in Germany.

## Recommended: Caprice32

whichemulator.wtf calls its recommendation for each system the Gold Cartridge pick. For the Amstrad CPC, the Gold Cartridge pick is Caprice32.

Open source, cross-platform and accurate enough for nearly every CPC game. It emulates the 464, 664 and 6128 fully, loads disk, tape, snapshot and cartridge images, and ships with the CPC ROMs, so it works straight away. The Plus range is mostly there, with a few gaps. There are ready-made builds for Windows and macOS; on Linux you build it from source, which is a single make command.

Runs on Windows · Mac · Linux. Open source. Download: https://github.com/ColinPitrat/caprice32/releases

**ROMs:** Amstrad allows the CPC ROMs to be distributed with emulators, so Caprice32 includes them. You only need your games, usually as .dsk or .cdt files.

## Alternatives

- [ACE-DL](https://roudoudou.com/ACE-DL/) (Windows · Mac · Linux, closed source): Closed-source freeware, ported from the MorphOS emulator ACE, which was written from scratch against a real CPC. Known for accurate video and sound, covers the Plus range, has good debugging tools and is updated often. Pick it over Caprice32 if accuracy matters more to you than open source.
- [WinAPE](https://www.winape.net/) (Windows, closed source): Closed-source freeware with a built-in assembler and debugger, popular with CPC developers on Windows. The last release is a 2016 beta.
- [MAME](https://www.mamedev.org) (Windows · Mac · Linux, open source): Emulates the CPC range and the GX4000 among thousands of other machines. Worth it if you already use MAME; otherwise a dedicated emulator is easier, since MAME wants its own ROM sets. Official binaries are Windows-only; macOS and Linux get it through Homebrew or distro packages.

## RetroArch cores

- Caprice32: The one to use. ROMs are built in, and it handles the Plus range and GX4000 cartridges.
- CrocoDS: Simpler, with fewer formats: disk images and snapshots only.

The cap32 core's on-screen keyboard helps with games that need typing.

## Hardware

- Colours: 27 (16 on screen)
- Resolution: 160×200 / 320×200 / 640×200
- Sound: GI AY-3-8912, 3 channels
- Media: Cassette (464), 3" disk (664, 6128)
- Later: 464 Plus, 6128 Plus, GX4000 (1990)

## Notes

### About the hardware

Amstrad launched the CPC 464 in 1984 as a complete package: computer, keyboard, cassette deck and monitor in one box, with the power supply in the monitor. The 664 and 6128 swapped the cassette for a 3" disk drive, and the 6128 doubled the memory to 128KB. It did well in the UK, France, Spain and Germany, where Schneider sold it under its own name.

Games often appeared on both tape and disk. If a game was written for the 464, run it on a 464 machine in the emulator; a few early titles misbehave on the 6128's newer BASIC.

### Disk and tape images

Disk games come as .dsk files and tape games as .cdt, a CPC version of the Spectrum's .tzx. In Caprice32, press F1 for the menu to insert a disk, then type `cat` to list it and `run"name` to start the game. Disks are quicker to load than tapes and should be your first choice when both exist.

### Caprice32 or ACE-DL

Caprice32 is the pick because it is open source and runs everywhere. ACE-DL is the more accurate of the two and the better choice for demanding demos and Plus software, where Caprice32 still lacks DMA and vectored interrupts, but it is closed source. For playing the usual games you won't see a difference.

## Support the developers

- [Star Caprice32 on GitHub](https://github.com/ColinPitrat/caprice32)
- [Donate to WinAPE](https://donorbox.org/7cc48097-5c49-46af-bbc7-32523bc0e0a4)

## Questions the Ask API answers

- [Which Amstrad CPC emulator should I use on Android?](https://whichemulator.wtf/ask?q=Which+Amstrad+CPC+emulator+should+I+use+on+Android%3F&page=%2Fcpc%2F&via=page)
- [Which RetroArch core should I use for the Amstrad CPC?](https://whichemulator.wtf/ask?q=Which+RetroArch+core+should+I+use+for+the+Amstrad+CPC%3F&page=%2Fcpc%2F&via=page)