Hi all: I have an HO medium-sized layout (mainline approx. 100ft. The layout is cab control with 5 blocks. Power is fed to track every 10ft. I would like to convert to DCC using ROCO DCC equipment. Can someone help me with some basic conversion tips? My specific questions are: 1) Wiring of equipment to track using existing wiring? 2) How can I send power and signals at different points in the layout? 3) Should I expand the starter DCC equipment to allow me to run more trains 4) Do I need to eliminat the blocks in the tracks or can I used the existing wiring that feed each block? Thanks in advance for any help!!
My first question to you would be, why Roco? Responses follow each of your questions: 1) Wiring of equipment to track using existing wiring? You can use your existing wiring. Just feed the track power from your command station/booster into one of the cabs. Be sure to remove the existing power input first. 2) How can I send power and signals at different points in the layout? I am not sure what you are asking here? 3) Should I expand the starter DCC equipment to allow me to run more trains Again, I am not sure what you are asking. A starter set normally has a command station, either a built in booster or a separate booster, and a throttle. The throttle could be part of the command station/booster (Atlas,MRC, Digitrax Zephyr, etc) or it could be a separate handheld job. Buy more as you need it. Start with the basics. 4) Do I need to eliminat the blocks in the tracks or can I used the existing wiring that feed each block? Yes, you can use the existing wiring. See answer to 1) above. Just position your block control switches to the postion supplying power from the DCC unit. David
David Thanks for the feedback. I thought on choosing Roco as most of my locos are from Roco. I take it from your question that is may not be an appropriate critera for choosing a DCC System Would you mind giving me your recommendation(s) on a DCC System? My main criteria would be ease of installation/use with some ability to expand the system Thanks Greg
I am not that familiar with the Roco system. I am only familiar with the Roco DCC crane. Most of the major DCC systems are acceptable and expandable. The Atlas (AKA Lenz) and Digitrax Zephyr systems are very good starter sets. I don't have time right now but I will do a little research tomorrow on the Roco system and see what I can learn. David
OK, I did a very limited amount of research on Roco DCC. Their system was originally designed by Lenz and most of Roco's components are compatable with the Lenz system. Some concerns I have are the limited nature of the system. Here is what I found: a. It is a 2 digit system instead of a 4 digit system. This means you are limited to decoder addresses of 01-99. Most people prefer to be able to use the 4 digits from a locomotive as the decoder address. It makes it easy to remember for us older timers. b. Their decoders are rather expensive for what you get. They appear to be 14/28 step decoders. This means they don't offer as fine of control as do the current 128 step decoders. Please note, the system is supposedly NMRA compliant so you can use any decoder. You don't have to use Roco brand decoders. c. The output from the Roco booster is around 2.5 amps maximum. This is only enough to run between 2 and 4 locomotives at one time. Also, I think I read, but I am not sure on this, that you were limited to a total of 5 boosters for the layout. d. One nice thing I found was that their starter sets are complete train sets that include locomotives and cars. These sets appear to be a pretty good value. e. Support might be limited in the US. I had a hard time finding information on the system. The best source I found was at http://www.mgsharp.com/Roco_Digital.htm I would like to hear what you finally decide and how you made your decision. David
I recently bought a Roco DCC starter set and I'm quite pleased with it. As David said, the Roco system was originally made by or used components of Lenz. I really like the use and feel of the LocoMouse althoug it is limited in functionality. However, if you continue using DCC you can convert later on to a Lenz system and still use the Locomouse as a controller as it can connect to Lenz' XpressNet (DCC network protocol). For more information on this see Roco's DCC page. You are not limited to Roco's decoders as you can use any DCC compatible decoder available on the market thanks to the NMRA standards. As for wiring you're layout, you don't have to make a lot of changes, if any. I wired my layout for cab-control. Now I can switch the power to the tracks either DCC or regular DC, as I still have a few analogue locos. All works very fine. If you have more questions regarding wiring a layout for dcc take a look at this website. If you have any questions regarding Roco's DCC set or my setup feel free to ask. Kind regards, Wilbert
