In today's mail, I received my Digitrax Zephyr, UT1 Throttle, and Loconet Panel. The Zephyr is replacing my MRC Command 2000. The LocoNet panel and UT1 will replace the handheld from MRC, that I greatly enjoyed having. While waiting for the Zephyr to arrive, I readied the layout by upgrading the power bus from 28 gauge phone wire to 14 gauge stranded wire. All bus to feeder connections are with terminal strips. It appears that 1 new feeder drop is needed for the industrial area off the branch line. That area seems to be dead. I added a programming track and quickly learned how to change the address of the locomotives. I have to play around with the programming capabilities of this great machine. I plugged the UT1 into the back of the Zephyr and was able to choose both an analog and a decodered locomotive (one at a time). Next up, install the extra feeder, cut a hole in the 2x4 that makes up the front of the layout for the loconet panel, then get the loconet line I need to hook it up. Question: Since I am using only the UT1 throttle for now, do I need to power the UP5 panel? The manal doesn't seem to be clear on that. I've got an extra 12V DC power supply that all I would need is the correct plug for. First impressions: WOW!!!!! I like the whole unit. Installation was a snap. Took everything out of the box, connected the wires, plugged in the power supply, and ran trains. Now, I need to tackle the learning curve on getting the locomotives running with the speed tables like I want them to. There's no way my Kato SD70MAC should have a lower top speed than an Atlas RS-3. Another question: The manual recommends unplugging the power supply while the layout is not in use. Is that necessary? My whole layout area, lights, power supplies, everything turns off with one switch when I leave the layout area. Is that enough, or should I add a separate cut off for the power supply? Jeff Augsburg & Concord R.R. (a fictional shortline in Central Illinois) Come see us on the web: http://www.pegnsean.net/~revnjeff
Jeff: Enjoy your new Digitrax Zephyr!! You can use a one switch to turn off your layout and power supply.
Jeff - Hope you really enjoy the Zephyr. I've had one for a while now and I love it! I have always disconnected mine, but your set up should work fine.
