COMPARISONS: QSI vs Loksound

Model Railroader General Discussion (Model Railroader)
1

Non Sonic comparisons:

1.MIXING - out of the box? 2.STARTING VOLTAGES? (QSI takes 6V to start). 3.Other? 4.DC? - no CV adjusments.

My over-the-years experience with ATHEARN is they do not let quality (or accuracy) get in the way of lower price (42" engine wheels / MRC sound / unbalanced motors).

If this is redundent, I apologize. I posted same but my Computer quit. WHO was it that said “Nice Computers don’t go down”??

2

Don, your question is expressed a bit too cryptically for my mind. What do you ask for in your first instance? Mixing in what respect?

3

From the ‘Crypt’:

Speciffically mixing older Genesis QSI ‘F’ units with their newer (current) LOKsound 'B’units (when using DC).

Thanks for your response.

4

Okay, gotcha. Can’t help there…sorry.

-Crandell

5

My experiance with mixing any DCC engine with a DC engine on a DC layout - A potential problem. Even ‘no sound’ decoders use up some voltage, and the starting voltage of 2 ‘matched on DC’ engines will be different if one has a decoder in it. Usually ‘Sound Decoders’ have an even higher starting voltage.

That said, I have not even tried running DC and DCC engines together in MU on a DC layout. My layout and the club layout are only DCC, and I have adjusted the starting voltage of my sound and non-sound engines so they work together. I cannot do this in a pure DC enviroment(at least I have not been able to do it).

Starting Voltage - 5-6 volts is about right for a Sound/DCC engine. My sound GP9’s(QSI) MU with the other P2K GP9’s with Digitrax DH163L0 decoders. I may have adjusted the first one to match/MU with the QSI ones, but I have standard ‘files’ I download into my engines with ‘Decoder Pro’.

No CV adjustment with DC mode - Maybe so, but you lose a lot of the ‘functionality’ available in the decoder in DC mode as well.

As far as Athearn units:

  • 42" wheels(basic Blue Box engines). Genesis engines should have the correct N/S wheels.
  • MRC sound is not the best - No way around it. I do NOT have sound in any of my Athearn Genesis F’s. I do have P2K F’s with QSI sound. They are very good engines and campare with the Genesis and are a step above the Intermountain F’s.
  • The Genesis F’s I have do not have older ‘unbalanced’ motors. A very smooth can motor. Comparing present day Athearn with the 20 year old ‘Blue Box’ is not a fair comparison. Even the Athearn ‘RTR’ units have the new ‘hex’ drive line and run much better. I have one of the new SD40-2’s(Milwaukee Bi-Centenial) and I basically dropped in a DH163
6

COMPARISONS on DC - (out of the box). Similar engines/brands older/newer (different) sound modules . Not using CV’s. I realize DCC allows some programming.

I am interested when running on DC layouts. (Our club has a DCC branch, but DC MAINLINE). QSI can run on either.

Problem: is matchability of QSI equipped and LOK equipped Genesis ‘F’ engines for mixing in ABB or ABBA combinations.

Does anyone have duplicate engines usinG LOK and QSI?

7

COMPARISONS on DC - (out of the box). Genesis is selling similar engines with newer LOKsound modules. How do they compare with older QSI? when not on DCC? I realize DCC allows some programming.

I am interested when running on DC layouts. (Our club has a DCC branch, but DC MAINLINE). MOST Engines run on one only. QSI can run on either.

Problem: is matchability: QSI equipped and LOK equipped Genesis ‘F’ engines for mixing in ABB or ABBA combinations.

Jim: I am not interested in running DC with DCC. (It’s either, or).

Does anyone have duplicate engines usinG LOK in one and QSI in the other?

8

First of all, Athearn Genesis is NOT selling anything with Loksound in it. If a loco has Loksound (other than Precision Craft), someone put it in.

Athearn has a long standing deal with MRC for all of their sound and decoders.

Keith Turley