VINTAGE SYSTEMSVintage PCs, built for what you want to run
Custom builds and OEM restorations from the DOS era through Windows Vista. Spec'd with you, built on our bench in Shorewood, shipped anywhere in the world.
The window is closing
The parts that made these machines special were never made in huge numbers, and fewer of them work every year. A Voodoo3 3000 regularly sells for hundreds of dollars on its own now. Top Sound Blaster cards, clean Socket A boards and uncracked beige cases keep getting harder to find.
If there's a machine you drooled over as a kid, you can still have it built properly, with tested parts and a clean install. That gets harder every year you wait.
Pick your era
We build and restore every system on this list and nothing newer. Not sure which one you need? Tell us the games or software and we'll recommend one.
- MS-DOS 6.22 and FreeDOS
- Boots straight to a C:\ prompt. DOS games with Sound Blaster and AdLib music, and the old business software that never moved to Windows.
- Windows 95
- The first Start menu, early Windows games and the first DirectX titles.
- Windows 98 SE
- The sweet spot for late-90s gaming: Glide games on a 3dfx card, DOS games on the same machine, and drivers for nearly every card of the era.
- Windows ME
- Built on request for the full 2000 experience. For most people 98 SE does the same job with fewer headaches, and we'll say so.
- Windows 2000
- Stable NT for early-2000s software and games.
- Windows XP
- DirectX 8 and 9 gaming and the widest software library of the whole era.
- Windows Vista
- Late-2000s games and DirectX 10 on period hardware. This is where we stop.
- Q4OS Trinity
- Linux with the classic KDE 3 desktop, light enough for older hardware and still kept up to date. A good fit for a vintage machine you want online.
What goes inside
Graphics
3dfx Voodoo, ATI Radeon, NVIDIA GeForce and Matrox, chosen for the games you'll play. Glide, AGP and PCI builds.
Sound
Creative Sound Blaster, from ISA cards for DOS through Live! and Audigy. Real hardware synth and EAX, not emulation.
Processors and boards
Pentium, Pentium II, III and 4, Athlon and Athlon XP, Athlon 64. Boards checked and recapped where they need it.
Storage
Period IDE drives, or quiet solid-state storage behind an IDE adapter if you'd rather not trust a 25-year-old disk. Floppy drives or a USB floppy emulator.
Front panels
Custom front I/O, period drive bays and bezels, clean cable runs. The outside matters as much as the inside.
Monitors
Restored CRT monitors from our own bench, if you want the full setup. See CRT sales.
The badges you remember, on the parts we build with.
Custom builds
A machine spec'd from scratch around what you want to run. Budget builds and no-compromise builds are both welcome. If you don't want to be oversold, we won't oversell you. If you want the monster you couldn't afford in 1999, we'll build it and show you where the money goes.
OEM restorations
Dell, HP, Compaq, Gateway and the rest, brought back as close to factory-fresh as they'll go: cleaned, recapped where needed, fresh storage and a clean install with the right drivers. Bring your own or ask what we're working on.
Every system leaves with
- A custom system manualWritten for your machine: its parts, its drivers, how to look after it.
- A restore discPut it back to exactly how it left the bench, any time.
- Worldwide shippingPacked for the trip, wherever you are.
- A Stripe invoiceNothing is sold on this site. Once the spec is agreed, you get an invoice.
- Call or emailTell us what you want to run and roughly what you want to spend.
- Spec and quoteAn honest parts list and price. Builds are taken case by case.
- Build and testDemand is high, so there's sometimes a wait list. We'll tell you where you stand.
- Invoice and deliveryPay the Stripe invoice, then collect by appointment or we ship it.
From the bench
Questions people ask
How much does a build cost?
It depends entirely on the parts. Tell us what you want to run and what you'd like to spend, and we'll tell you honestly what that buys. Some cards cost hundreds on their own, and some great machines don't need them.
Can I buy a machine off the site?
No. Nothing is sold on this site. Every system is spec'd with the person it's for, then invoiced through Stripe once you've agreed the spec.
How long does a build take?
Demand is high and builds are accepted case by case, so there's sometimes a wait list. We'll tell you where you stand when you call.
Do you ship?
Yes, worldwide. Systems are packed for the trip. Local customers can collect by appointment.
Will you build anything newer than Vista?
No. We only build and service systems from the DOS era through Windows Vista, plus Q4OS Trinity for vintage Linux.
Can you restore the PC I already have?
Yes. Call or email with the make and model, and we'll set an appointment to bring it in.
Call or email to get started
There's no cart and no booking form. You talk directly with the person who does the work.