Rail Master concerns.

[TATICMOOR]

Nice piece of DCC software, but two things wrong with it. first the price of £60 is a bit steep. Secondly it only works with Hornby controllers, I thought these DCC accessories should be standardised for compatibiliy reasons.

[jawz786]

I agree with the standardistaion and maybe £60 is a little much but in all fairness compared to some pay DCC programmes its alot cheaper. Also with the average console game costing about £45-55 its not much more than the average video game, that said a discount for club members would be appreciated I am sure. :)

[bocaj]

Hi, £60 is a bit exspensive. I don't actually like the new Railmaster softwhere so I will not be getting it. Jacob

[poliss]

It's the cheapest propriety software package I've seen. For example two other systems are £86.00 and £205.00.

[kingfisher11]

2000man

I can`t blame Hornby for making it to be used with only the Elite.

What other train manufacturer supplies controllers/locos etc and software to control your layout.



At least to start off with. I believe the future might prove different.

It could will be compatable with other systems in the future.Time will tell.

However I doubt if you will ever be able to use it with the Gaugemaster system their computer software is somewhat lacking and you can only use their software.

Shame really as they have good controllers.

[Gregd99]

Guys, snip <>... a few manufacturers have a poprietary computer interface and proprietary software to control /programme locos. The interface from the Elite is a standard Xpressnet interface (except for the bugs). This means if you wante to use a difefrent controller with the honby software it would probably work fine. Like all software this would nee dto be tested and as you can imagine such a test might not be high on Hornby's priority list. I am not sure what capabilties the Railaster sw will actually have. We need to wait and see. Some people use computers to control tehir layouts (me:-)) others just to programme decoders and save an off line version of the config. Did you know that the Sapphire has almost 100 CVs that you can read/write!! all the best Greg

[NFSCARBON]

I would have thought that the software would have some limited compatibility with other manufacturers controls. A few clever programmers will likely find a way of making it work properly on other makes of controller.

[Montywb]

[Montywb]

On this screen you can set the language you prefer for all screen messages and labels and you can also tell Rail-Master which DCC Controller you have. Currently, only the Hornby Elite is officially supported, although choosing this controller may allow other manufacturers’ hardware to function. Any NMRA compliant controller with a USB port should work with Rail-Master. The above is taken from the Railmaster manual so it looks as if other controllers may function with it.

[wash]

Hi being 66 i have seen a lot of new wonders  and i think the new Hornby railmaster is the tops and i will be buying it .

[Augustus Caesar]

Apart from the small 'ish' amount of self advertising that Hornby themselves have done for this software and the information at hand no-one has really pushed this tool very much. It seems that already it is being criticised for not doing everything but make a cup of tea!! So what if it doesn't cover other companies hardware. I am sure that if it were me I would be very reluctant to do just that when my own product serves most folk very well. This software will be expandable but it will depend upon the uptake and sales for this to be worth their while doing. Personally I don't care if it doesn't cover other manufacturer's hardware. The box says HORNBY - get over it. There are other options out there so if you want to stick with Hornby software then why do you want it to cover other manufacturer's gear? If you are mixing your locos / decoders between different companies then do not expect a company like Hornby to cover your needs. They can't cover all scenarios and all folks requirements anyway. Why? The software would very quickly become 'bloatware'. Now who wants that? A program too expensive, full of weak points and certainly loaded with bugs! Not a good way to start selling a product and not a good way to stay 'true' to its loyal customers. I hope this software is as good as what I have read - but I doubt if it will cover everyone's needs as no software could ever do so. At £60 a shot it isn't too highly priced when one considers other prices and how much the software will get used. I wish Hornby success with this venture. Will I buy it? Yes I probably will and I will enjoy using it. I have converted my old 3 pole loco's to DCC and they run very well alonside my newer DCC ready engines with the Elite controller so I am ready for the new addition. My apologies to the authors of posts above if I come across negatively to your thoughts but that is not the intention. Maybe Hornby will one day modify the software, if possible, to run the way you wish. Who knows... anyway, enjoy!

[Junglehouse]

Hi Everyone, I actually thought the price was very reasonable - I was expecting it to be over £100 and would have been willing to pay that for it so I was very pleased when it was only £60. However, that's only if what it offers actually matches what it delivers and only time will tell. I would love to read other people's experiences of using it and compare it to my own as I have now ordered it. Regards, Tim

2000MAN said: Nice piece of DCC software, but two things wrong with it. first the price of £60 is a bit steep. Secondly it only works with Hornby controllers, I thought these DCC accessories should be standardised for compatibiliy reasons.

[Montywb]

FAO Admin. My previous post wasn't a request for help, but as its title implied, an observation. However, I have followed your suggestion to send a message to support, except that I can't because it does not work and results in this message - "Error sending help request."

[Montywb]

It seems that depite getting the above error, suppoort did get my message as they have told me that by placing one of the point controls on the actual point itself, then both of them click into place correctly.

[poliss]

DCC is the sucess that it is because it is not tied to one manufacturer. It is based on the NMRA standards. All current Hornby decoders comply with these standards. The Hornby Railmaster software uses the Xpressnet command bus which is used by many manufacturers. The more systems Railmaster can be used with, the more Hornby can sell. DCC and the Xpressnet protocols were developed by Lenz.
-----------------------------
Get off the line Bobby.

[Fireman_Ian]

Yes, I discovered that after i bit of trial and error, I you work using a zoomed view the layout design goes together more easily, but on the downside you cannot see the whole of the workspace.

Montywb said: It seems that depite getting the above error, suppoort did get my message as they have told me that by placing one of the point controls on the actual point itself, then both of them click into place correctly.