DCC Back too Analogue...

[dude2112]

I have now used DCC control for over 6 months and to be honest I have found very few advantages over DC control, yes you can turn the different lights on and off. I.e cabs and driving lamps but am I missing something ?

I still use points the same and

 

still move one loco or another at a time...Please tell me how the extra expense of DCC makes it worth it, plus ma lady is not happy with the extra cost of converting locos and has missed out on some trains she wanted on the layout.

[walkingthedog]

Apparently dude it means you can run lots of locos together in different directions on the same piece of track if you want with lots of expensive sound. That is if you can remember which loco is doing what and can remember what number/name you allocated

 

each loco.

I went to my local club two weeks ago on an open day. Had a long session on a DCC layout. Got very confused. The reason I was able to have a long session was because the other four layouts had a waiting list, they were DC. I shall not say any

 

more as I will be shouted at and told I am living in the past. Not all new things are better.

Back to my cave I think.

[poliss]

What controller and which decoders are you using dude? Same with the club layout WTD. What were they using?

[walkingthedog]

Think it was d am is poliss

[RDS]

@dude2112

I returned to the hobby, about 5 or 6 years ago after an absence of a number of years. The first thing I did was decide to go digital so I have very little recent experience of Analogue. The thing that has made a massive difference for me

 

though is the addition of RailMaster to my Elite. It is RailMaster that has really enabled me to get the best out of digital, because like you, I was really only controlling one loco at a time when having to control them myself but RailMaster, especially with

 

it's programming capability has brought out the real advantages of Digital.

 

[Gregd99]

I have used DCC since 2006/7 and have found it an interesting and sometimes frustrating experience. Hornby's initial entry into the world of DCC was somewhat troubled with the 8215 decoder in particular being a poor performer.

 

The later versions

 

of decoders and the later versions of software for the Elite have been pretty solid. I have not used the Select but note that it comes with a few caveats and seems to be generally best suited to use with all Hornby kit.

 

With the Elite you are able to

 

easily control two different locos at the same time using the two separate throttle knobs. With a little more effort to control more is relatively straightforward due to the use of the key to cycle through locos that have been used in an operating session.

 

Notwithstanding

 

all of the discussion about buses.... the above can be achieved with a single, or a few, power connections to the layout.

 

The get the maximum utility from DCC I agree with the comments above that some sort of computer connection is important.

 

Computer

 

access has been available for many years through third party suppliers and is now available from Hornby with the Railmaster package.

 

Personally I am comfortable doing binary or hex arithmetic but many have no interest. Railmaster or JMRI or.... provide

 

an easy interface when you decide you want to adjust some of the many config variables (CVs) that are available in even the simple decoders. Tick boxes and slider bars are easier than bit twiddling.

 

The next level of sophistication is some sort of remote

 

control. If this is your thing then converting your points to DCC control is now needed. I don't have a touch screen but I think that relatively inexpensive touch screens will make this even easier.

 

My own approach is.....

1. use the elite knobs

 

to control trains if operating manually

2. use switches to throw points if operating manually

3. use pc control to operate the layout automatically.

 

For point 2 I have built a switch panel... that is monitored by my pc so that I physically throw

 

switches.... but the pc converts this to DCC commands as the points are DCC. This allows for eiteh “manual” or auto-operating.

 

In the end it is a personal choice as to whether DCC or DC is what you want to do. There are a few fervent believers in one

 

approach or the other but many recognise that both systems have merits. It does seem to be generally accepted that if starting form new today that DCC offers many advantages.

[Fishmanoz]

Dude, take a look at my post at the bottom of this thread https://www.hornby.com/forums/hornby-forums/hornby-digital/4463/ While I'm talking of the advantages of Elite over Select there, in the process I've listed many of the more then very basic advantages

 

of DCC.