DCC chip for Arnold Brighton Belle

[ChufferHeams]

I'm a complete novice when it comes to DCC but I bought the Arnold N Gauge Brighton Belle recently and decided to construct a new "Southern Railway" layout.  As the Brighton Belle has a DCC socket I thought I might as well get into the 21st century but I can't find anything in the instruction leaflet about DCC conversion.  Can anyone tell me what DCC chip I will need for this model.  Will either of the two Hornby chips (R8249 or R8245 sapphire) do the job or are they too big, being intended only for OO gauge?  Do I then need to use exclusively a Hornby controller (I might anyway) or are they compatable with other brands?  If the Hornby chips are recommended, can I also use Hornby chips on other manufacturer's locos?

Sorry if I am asking nursery school stuff.  I guess I need a DCC primer.

[Fishmanoz]

Hi Chuffer, I'm no N gauge expert but I would expect you will need a small direct plug decoder, not one with a harness.  Hopefully poliss our resident N expert will be along soon to confirm.

 

In general, all DCC equipment is made to the same NMRA specification so you can mix and match brands without problem, although the cheaper Hornby Select controller is an exception to this and may not work with non-Hornby decoders.  I wouldn't recommend buying it anyway as it is very basic, although it will certainly get you started into DCC.

[poliss]

The Brighton belle has 6 pin socket that takes a NEM 651 decoder. Avoid the really cheap decoders and go for the most expensive one you can find. Look for 1amp continuous in the specs. According to a review, the space for a decoder is 15mmx9mm.

Hornby don't make a 6 pin decoder, so suitable ones may or may not work with the Select.

It's high time Hornby made the select NMRA compliant.