I searched the DCC forum for "mini panel" and only found one post in a thread mentioning it passing. So has anyone got one? Thoughts? I think I know the answer already to this question...there's no way this will work with a Digitrax and Loconet is there? Right now I've invested in Digitrax, but unless they have plans to release a similar product (anyone heard anything) I'd have to switch over...the mini panel just seems too good to be true. Anyway if you have one please share, I'd love to see photos of the installation. And feel free to burst my bubble and tell me it doesn't work, haha.
You may want to check out these similar Loconet compatible products: Team Digital SRC16 CML Electronics DTM30 I'm considering getting one or both for my master control panel. I was going to buy the SRC16 for my small yard control panel, but already have way too much electronics stuffed into the panel cabinet.
OK please forgive me, this stuff confuses the heck out of me...but I'm trying. The main difference between the 2 products you gave and the Mini Panel is that the panel does not have outputs for LEDs, those would have to come from the switch machines themselves. Correct? The SRC16 confuses the heck out of me. Not sure when I need a MotoD, very confusing. I have actually heard of the DTM30 before. It seems cool, just a bit pricey - especially considering I might need more than 1. Anyway thanks for the links and I'll be following your blog to see what you do and how it works out.
Dave, Aside from CabBus/Loconet, from what I can tell, I think the major differences in function are: the Mini lacks outputs, the Mini lacks routes, but the Mini has a method for basic automation. From what I can tell, LEDs would have to be wired separately with the Mini. The SRC16 confused the heck out of me until I saw the article Control Panels for an N-Trak Junction. About building a control panel using the SRC8 (SRC16 predecessor product). About the MotoD: The SRC16 outputs are something like 5 Volts, which isn't much to run turnout motors. If you want to use the outputs to run turnout motors, you can run them more effectively by hooking up a MotoD between the output and the motor. If you are only using the outputs for panel LED's then the MotoD is unnecessary. As far as price. I figured it on a per function cell basis. Mini-Panel - 30 cells (all input) @ $45 = $1.50 per cell DTM30 - 60 cells (30 input & 30 output) @ $85 = $1.42 cell SRC16 - 32 cells (16 input & 16 output) @ $42 = $1.31 I've also considered the extra cost of skipping a mini-panel solution and just wiring in the buttons and lights. I figured out that for my small yard panel, I've spent almost as much on RJ45 connectors, Keystone jacks, jack housings, terminal strips and wire as I would have spent on a SRC16. In my mind the biggest benefit of DTM30 or SRC8 is you only need 8 wires between the panel and the rest of the system. 6 wires for Loconet and 2 for power. Anyways, I haven't bought any of them, so maybe take it all with a grain of salt. But I have done a lot of considering and studying of the Loconet compatible devices & just thought I'd share what I've been pondering. .
What retailer can you get the DTM30 for $85? I saw $130 at one place and didn't investigate further. Obviously $85 makes that option more attractive. Thanks for all the info, really enjoyed reading your blog last night.
I've seen the DTM30 on display at some shows here in the UK. It's certainly impressive and I intend to use it sometime in the future once I've converted to a Loconet system. I'm currently using MRC Prodigy, which I'm very happy with except for the fact that you can't wire up a control panel without wiring up a system pretty similar to a conventional DC system. I find a control panel the easiest way to operate turnouts and to think that you can do it with just one Loconet cable and a pair of wires for the track signal is incredible - not cheap though! Cheers, Ted
As has been mentioned, there are already similar products for Loconet that have the advantage of having inputs and outputs. Another option I don't think anyone mentioned is LocoIO, developed by the same guy who developed LocoBuffer. It was mentioned that the mini panel also does automation, but I don't think anyone mentioned that CML Electronics also makes the LocoShuttle to do automation with Loconet. One problem with NCE's Mini panel is that it takes up a throttle address, so if you are not using the full blown PowerHouse Pro system, you are very limited. In fact, if you are using a Power Cab without the SmartBooster 3 upgrade, you can't even use the Mini Panel and the USB adapter at the same time, because they both use a cab address and the Power Cab only allows one additional address. With the Smart Booster 3, if you are using the Mini Panel and the USB interface at the same time, you are limited to two throttles. Also, if you need more than one Mini Panel, each one takes a sperate cab address. With Loconet products, you are not using cab addresses. With a Digitrax Zpehyr, you can have several Loconet I/O modules and still run a full compliment of 10 throttles. The Mini Panel is a neat product, but to me Loconet and the products available for it are still much more flexible. As far as I know, no. The only solution I know of is to use accessory decoders for outputs.
Our club is using DTM30s and SRC8/SRC16s on our Donner Pass Exhibit. All are LocoNet aware devices and work very well. We currently have one small panel built around an SRC8 (controlling eight turnouts) and one large panel using a DTM30 (controlling 27 turnouts). We eventually will have about five more panels using DTM30s and maybe 4-6 more using SRC16s. We are also using the Team Digital SIC24s with DBD22s for block detection and signal control logic. NCE users are always touting the user interface of NCE throttles (and they are very nice, though Digitrax has done some catchup in recent years with the DT400), but one of the big reasons we went with Digitrax is LocoNet. Our conclusion is that it is a superior architecture and they have published the protocol allowing third party companies to build LocoNet compatible devices. With NCE you have to wait for NCE to build something to hang on their CabBus. I often compare the situation to the old Mac vs. IBM PC war of the early 1980s. Mac most assuredly had the superior user interface, but their closed achitecture lost them the battle for market share.
Thanks for the info Jim, quick question - What makes your club decide where to use a DTM30 vs. an SRC16?
It is basically just how many turnouts the panel needs to control, how many routes we might need for that section of the layout, and getting the most bang for the buck. With the weak British pound right now, two SRC16s is about the same price as one DTM30. The physical size of the panel plays into the decision a little too. We are installing panels local to the area they control. If it is a big busy area like the 12 track staging yard, then it may make sense to use the DTM30. If the panel handles just a couple crossovers, then an SRC8 will do the job. With the SRC16 replacing the SRC8, we may have to refactor this a little. The SRC8 had 16 inputs, but they were organized into 8 cells, two inputs per cell. This meant you needed four SRC8s to do the job of one DTM30. The SRC16 has 16 individually configurable inputs that makes it much more flexible. We might find that it is cost effective to use two SRC16 instead of the single DTM30 unless we need lots of routes for the panel. The SRC16 still only has 8 routes of up to 8 turnouts each, whereas the DTM30 has 24 routes of 12 turnouts each. The DTM30 also has some other route features that might make it more useful for our yards and more complex track configurations. Another complexity that we have had to keep in mind with the SRC8, is that it will not control NCE Switch-8 accessory decoders. This has to do with ambiguity in the NMRA specs regarding accesssory packets. The SRC8 only sends an "On" command when you tell it to control a turnout, but the Switch-8 only responds to an "Off". Neither device is really doing all that they should be and as a result they do not work together. As it turns out, we are using the DTM30s and the Switch-8s in the same, turnout dense areas, so the conflict with the SRC8 has not been a big problem. I have not tested the SRC16 yet to see if this has been changed. So I guess the gist of all this is that there are pluses and minuses for each device. We factor these into the decision on what we need in an individual panel and decide based upon what gives us the most cost effective solution.
