With everyone moving from DC to DCC, I feel like a traitor. I am considering getting out of DCC... I have a small layout (N-Scale, 52 sq ft). I operate alone, and only one train at a time. I am on VERY limited budget and have several locomotives that wont run decently on DCC. I recently installed a DPDT switch to the layout and connected a cheap trainset power pack to it, in order to run my RS3, F40 passenger equipment, and my SW1200. The only loco's I have with DCC decoders are a pair of SD-35's. I am seriously considering selling off the MRC Command 2000 unit and handheld, and buying a good power pack. Anyone interested in a used MRC DCC unit with handheld? Talk to me! Jeff Augsburg & Concord R.R. (a fictional shortline in Central Illinois) http://acrr.rrdepot.com
RevnJeff, Sorry to see you go, may I ask what exactly are the problems with your engines that do not run well on DCC?
It's not that my engines don't run well on DCC. In fact, the two that I have decoders in run just fine. The trouble is that I can't afford to upgrade the rest of my locomotives to DCC. These locomotives (analog) don't run well on DCC currrent. Jeff Augsburg & Concord R.R. (a fictional shortline in Central Illinois) http://acrr.rrdepot.com
Money is obviously an issue for you or you would go out and decode all your engines. DCC is the way of the future of the hobby. What you have done isn't "wrong" but you have been lied to by the DCC industry. Engines don't run well on analog with DCC, or are too noisy (which bugs me). The reason for their lie is that no one would buy DCC if they thought they couldn't run their analog engines so the industry created a system which can "sort of" run analog. Atlas has come up with a dual decoder in HO which allows superior running in analog, but this takes you right back to the money issue. A suggestion I would make is not to abandon your DCC, however, set it aside while you slowly add decoders to your remaining engines - this could take a year or more, depending on your numbers. Buy your self a used MRC power pack. I have picked them up for $25 Canadian (generally we pay more) and use this until you can run more trains with decoders. No one wants to go back to type writers after experiencing word processing, and the same is true for DCC. The problem is that we are in the "transition" era. I don't know if Atlas is following through with their press release some time ago, but they announced all their engines would come DCC equiped. This would be smart as it would drive down the unit price of decoders.
Though I am doing conventional DCC in N-scale I do not beleve it is totally the future. I beleve in time it will be radio control and no in track signals. Plus well always have DC becuase its the cheapest to intergrate into a off the shelf trainset. DCC also is not as good as people brag about. I have seen some of those Computer interface programs and I must say. Thats nowhere near worth $200+ to get. Decoders are overpriced (they want $25+ for a piece of equipment that cost $5 to purchese parts and assemble) Maybe it will inprove in time. Anyways I do agree with RSN that you should stay with DCC and gradually convert power as more releases will be DCC equipted probily.
Radio Control for HO scale maybe, for N scale, years in the future. The problem is the same for sound in N scale, there is so little room for an effective system. There would have to a receiver the size of a digitrax Z scale decoder, that was effective and affordable.
Money is part of the issue for me. I have less than $30 a month that can be spent on the hobby. Saving for a DCC equipped locomotive takes 3-4 months, same with paying someone to convert an older analog locomotive to DCC. I guess I am just not convinced that DCC is much better for the small layout. I run alone, and efforts at controlling more than one train end up with derailments or near collisions. There is NO N-scale group near me so that's not a concern. Disillusioned with DCC, Jeff Augsburg & Concord R.R. (a fictional shortline in Central Illinois) http://acrr.rrdepot.com
Imagine that!! I was just considering getting into DCC. To me, the features seem invaluable, even if the layout is minute. It sounds like great fun! Even though a fancier system like NCE's powerhouse pro sounds great, my budget is fairly limited also, so I have been looking at the smaller systems, like MRC's, Atlas's, or the Digitrax Genesis. How much would you want to sell that? I might be interested... The best place to sell it would be Ebay, I bet. First time I've heard anything bad said about DCC--whatever. See ya. Derek
