Decoder Drop Just to add, I recieved my decoders today Robert I would be happy to trade with you if you are desperate to get your hands on them, contact me off list if you like. No I really have to get on with something!! mg::teeth: Regards Tom
After canceling my order at Tony's, and receiving a "yawn...life is hard" type reply, I emailed Southern Digital, and they quickly replied they have them in stock, so I bought all 7 of them! 1 hour later I got the UPS confirmation that they are shipping. So, Out with Tony's Train Exchange, and In with Southern Digital as my new favorite DCC supplier! No love lost, bidness is bidness, and there's no compassion in bidness!
I don't know about anyone else - but seeing a fellow board member treated so poorly really burns me. Bob's reply to Robert's inquiry was weak. No apology, just a flip reply giving Robert no more information then he had before he sent his message. Then, when Robert cancels his order you would expect Tony's to apologize and tell him they understand his frustration and want to make things good - get him an expected ship date, free shipping, and throw in a free item of some worth - to save his business. Forget the fact that Robert is a valued member of our community - this kind of fly-by-night style bidness practice is unacceptable. I hope Digitrax does the right thing and apologizes to Robert for his treatment by one of their resellers. (As a business owner with over 140 resellers around the globe - I would personally put a boot up someone's arse if I saw this kind of bull malarkey coming from one of my resellers.)
Well said Graves. I too am a business owner and this type of BS can destroy a company's reputation and credibility. As i am new to buying DCC, these few post have pushed me away from Ton'y as a prospective source. This sucks for them, as with me being new to DCC, i am a valuble new client that will be spending lots of $$$. I to will join Robert and take my busness elsewhere. I'll look back up at Roberts last post and contact his new favorite for my needs. Thanks guys for keeping little fish like me aware of the preditors. Tony B....
FOUND SOME!!! call: Gadget Tom's Hobbies** 9472 Rhone Valley Way Elk Grove, CA 95624 (916) 686-9949 he had 10+ as of noon today (Nov. 2). and a GOOD discount price on them too! dave f.
Great find Dave! I got 5 from coming him, and the real good news is he is in CA so I won't have to wait a long time for shipping. Great price too! Now I have a total of 12 coming. I might even be able to mod them to fit in an AZL SD45, since I am not having any luck with the Uhlenbrock decoders yet. Jeff Merrill has been dispatched to Europe, and was instructed to buy $1000 worth of tiny CT Electronik decoders http://www.tran.at/Produkte/DCX74z.htm which are 4 function, 9mm x 7mm x 2.6mm DCC compatible decoders. I hope he can find them, as it would be nice to control the US supply of Z Scale wired decoders that can actually fit in AZL locomotives without shaving metal or plastic! There are still 13 DZ123MO decoders left at Gadget Tom's!
I got the first 5 in the mail today, and slapped one in a GP. At first I had it upside down, so the lights ran backwards, but I flipped it over and it was perfect. I ran the loco for a bit, and am very happy with this easy installation.
Hey Robert, what brand and model of decoder to be the best in the AZL SD70. I know you said you set one up with ditch lights, so i imagine you used a four function unit. I'm hoping to not have to modify the loco very much. Tony
I had to use the NCE Z Scale decoder and modify it to get ditch lights. It has 4 functions and is as small as the DZ123 decoder. Still too wide for the AZL so I mounted it diagonal. The Uhlenbrock 73400 is supposed to be a 2 function decoder, and although small enough to fit, if it is just 2 functions it won't do ditch lights. The other possibility is a decoder Jeff Merrill discovered, the CT Eletronik http://www.tran.at/Produkte/DCX74z.htm, which is 7mm x 9mm x 2.6mm and has 4 functions. Being a European decoder, I don't know what kind of effects the functions have, so there is no guarantee that it can do ditch lights effects. Do the European decoders support the same kind of lighting effects as US or do they have different effects?
Stupid question from a non-DCC person starting to consider the switch. Can 2 function and 4 function decoders in MU'ed locos run OK together? Thanks, Randy
Dumb answer from someone not too much in the know. I would say "Yes" since at least on the Lenz system once the MU is set up you can not control each engine's parts unless you specifically address that engine. By that I mean if the MU #46 consists of engines #1234 and $4567 and #2468 you can not control lighting by commands going to address #46, but only by going to address #4567 <OR> #1234 etc. Is this any thinner fog?? ..don
Any idea when the drop in for the SD70 will be out, and how i can pre-order them? From who? Ect... Tony.
TCS is working on the decoder. Yes, it will be a drop in. TCS is trying to have it done by the end of the year. Rob
Rob, If you have a say please try to make it a 4 function decoder. I'll adopt this for all the GP's too. Kim
Yeah, 2 function is boring... yawn! I need ditch light effects, beacon effects, class lights and other features. It don't take any extra space, and cost is maybe 25-30 cents more, yet you can charge $3-4 dollars more!
Ben, it is really difficult to add the SMD devices to an already tiny decoder (e.g. DZ123, 125). The much larger surfaces of the Digitrax DZ123M0 (<---that's a zero) or the TCS MZA4 make it MUCH easier to place the 3 extra components. Still a lot of work. The advantage of the TCS is it is already done. .
