diff --git a/hw/i386/isapc.c b/hw/i386/isapc.c
index 44f4a44672..1ba9ae22cc 100644
--- a/hw/i386/isapc.c
+++ b/hw/i386/isapc.c
@@ -41,29 +41,31 @@ static void pc_init_isa(MachineState *machine)
     DriveInfo *hd[MAX_IDE_BUS * MAX_IDE_DEVS];
     int i;
 
-    /*
-     * There is a small chance that someone unintentionally passes "-cpu max"
-     * for the isapc machine, which will provide a much more modern 32-bit
-     * CPU than would be expected for an ISA-era PC. If the "max" cpu type has
-     * been specified, choose the "best" 32-bit cpu possible which we consider
-     * be the pentium3 (deliberately choosing an Intel CPU given that the
-     * default 486 CPU for the isapc machine is also an Intel CPU).
-     */
-    if (!strcmp(machine->cpu_type, X86_CPU_TYPE_NAME("max"))) {
-        machine->cpu_type = X86_CPU_TYPE_NAME("pentium3");
-        warn_report("-cpu max is invalid for isapc machine, using pentium3");
-    }
+    bool valid_cpu_type = false;
+    static const char * const valid_cpu_types[] = {
+        X86_CPU_TYPE_NAME("486"),
+        X86_CPU_TYPE_NAME("athlon"),
+        X86_CPU_TYPE_NAME("kvm32"),
+        X86_CPU_TYPE_NAME("pentium"),
+        X86_CPU_TYPE_NAME("pentium2"),
+        X86_CPU_TYPE_NAME("pentium3"),
+        X86_CPU_TYPE_NAME("qemu32"),
+    };
 
     /*
-     * Similarly if someone unintentionally passes "-cpu host" for the isapc
-     * machine then display a warning and also switch to the "best" 32-bit
-     * cpu possible which we consider to be the pentium3. This is because any
-     * host CPU will already be modern than this, but it also ensures any
-     * newer CPU flags/features are filtered out for older guests.
+     * The isapc machine is supposed to represent a legacy ISA-only PC with a
+     * 32-bit processor. For historical reasons the machine can still accept
+     * almost any valid processor, but this is now deprecated in 10.2. Emit
+     * a warning if anyone tries to use a deprecated CPU.
      */
-    if (!strcmp(machine->cpu_type, X86_CPU_TYPE_NAME("host"))) {
-        machine->cpu_type = X86_CPU_TYPE_NAME("pentium3");
-        warn_report("-cpu host is invalid for isapc machine, using pentium3");
+    for (i = 0; i < ARRAY_SIZE(valid_cpu_types); i++) {
+        if (!strcmp(machine->cpu_type, valid_cpu_types[i])) {
+            valid_cpu_type = true;
+        }
+    }
+
+    if (!valid_cpu_type) {
+        warn_report("cpu type %s is deprecated for isapc machine", machine->cpu_type);
     }
 
     if (machine->ram_size > 3.5 * GiB) {
@@ -154,18 +156,6 @@ static void pc_init_isa(MachineState *machine)
 
 static void isapc_machine_options(MachineClass *m)
 {
-    static const char * const valid_cpu_types[] = {
-        X86_CPU_TYPE_NAME("486"),
-        X86_CPU_TYPE_NAME("athlon"),
-        X86_CPU_TYPE_NAME("kvm32"),
-        X86_CPU_TYPE_NAME("pentium"),
-        X86_CPU_TYPE_NAME("pentium2"),
-        X86_CPU_TYPE_NAME("pentium3"),
-        X86_CPU_TYPE_NAME("qemu32"),
-        X86_CPU_TYPE_NAME("max"),
-        X86_CPU_TYPE_NAME("host"),
-        NULL
-    };
     PCMachineClass *pcmc = PC_MACHINE_CLASS(m);
 
     m->desc = "ISA-only PC";
@@ -180,7 +170,6 @@ static void isapc_machine_options(MachineClass *m)
     pcmc->has_reserved_memory = false;
     m->default_nic = "ne2k_isa";
     m->default_cpu_type = X86_CPU_TYPE_NAME("486");
-    m->valid_cpu_types = valid_cpu_types;
     m->no_floppy = !module_object_class_by_name(TYPE_ISA_FDC);
     m->no_parallel = !module_object_class_by_name(TYPE_ISA_PARALLEL);
 }