[V]Hello all,
I realize this question has been asked before, but…
I have had the Digitrax Super Empire Builder for about 4 years. Santa brought me the Super Chief radio this past December.
My buddy and I were wondering if it is worth selling the Super Chief radio and going with the NCE powerhouse pro radio. I have found a dealer that has the NCE radio for $499.
Besides the battery thing with Digitrax iam wondering if it really makes a difference.[?][?][?][?][?][?][?][^]
Battery thing? ALL wireless DCC cabs need a battery to run wireless.
I for one would not switch. You have 4 years experience already with Digitrax, plus by having the SEB and SC you have two 5-amp boosters available, which shoud be enough for most home size layouts (you do still have the SEB, right? You can use the DB150 as a second booster with the DCS100). Your DT400 from the SEB can be upgraded to radio operation, which would give you two throttles right away. You no doubt have some cab wiring already in place - I do not believe the Digitrax UP5 panels can be used with NCE.
–Randy
This is what I am thinking too. unfortunately or furtunately depending on how you look at it isold the SEB set for what I piad for it.
I really do not need the booster right now since voltage checks shows great voltage and amps at all locations on the set.
Thanks for the feedback.
I have a Super Chief Radio system and highly recommend it. I just pull he battery out of the DT400 when I am done with a session. They last 6 weeks or more that way. I bought a package of 12 for around $7 at Lowes. That’s a year’s supply. If it really starts to bother me I’ll put the switch in the DT400 to shutoff the battery or get rechargable ones. Either way, I found it wasn’t as big deal as I thought it would be.
RE: Battery Thing. Your a better man than I, Jeff. I’m always forgetting to pull out the battery when I’m done, and am really going through them.
All you have to do is flip them polarity-wise. The input to the DT400 is protected with a diode, so if you flip the battery and put the + in the - and the - in the +, you can store it there forever.
Do NOT flip it end for end - the back side is a metal spring to pu***he battery against the contacts and will short the battery and make a big mess.
–Randy
But, Randy, if I could remember to flip it, I’d remember to take it out. [:D]
There’s always the rechargeable option.
The battery thing with DT is what it is… If you forget to take it out, flip it, etc. you’ll eat batteries up. Rechargeable are (I think) a good option regardless of that. As you probably know, with NCE throttles you can “turn it off” when done, and the batteries don’t get chewed up.
The other big difference, and the one I think might merit the switch to NCE, is that the NCE wireless system is full duplex - the throttle talks to the system, but the system also talks to the throttle. Digitrax uses a simplex (one way) system. The throttle can talk to the system, but can’t receive any info back from it.
Biggest effect of this difference is that you rarely (if ever) have to plug in your NCE throttle to to anything. Digitrax throttles, because they are one-way, have to be plugged in to acquire a loco, for example. DT says it’s a safety feature to avoid mistakenly sending the wrong loco off and running, but the reason you need the ‘safety feature’ is that one-way system: the DT system can’t tell the throttle “yes, you’ve selected loco 4060” (unless it’s plugged in.)
The simpler way to think of it is “you can do anything with an NCE wireless throttle without plugging in”… In building my new layout, I literally haven’t even put the plug-in faceplate up yet and have programmed and run many locos many times in the course of testing the trackwork. (I’ll put it in eventually for emergency use, but the fact I’ve gone without it so long is indicative).
So anything for which you do have to plug in your DT throttle (acquiring a loco, programming, etc.) is a difference between the systems.
Some people say they don’t mind this. Some people claim to actually like being forced to plug in to acquire a loco. For me, it drives me NUTS. In my book, it defeats a lot of the purpose of wireless if I’m constantly having to plug in.
YMMV of course, but especially when discussing wireless, the duplex/simplex thing is absolutely the single most significant di
I’ve been following some discussions in the JMRI user group and now I found another reason to prefer Digitrax or Lenz to NCE. I knew Digitrax worked like this, I can see it on my own system, but I did not know NCE did not, and Lenz also did. When something happens on the system, ie a user changes speed of a loco, or throws a turnout, or activates a function, with Digitrax and Lenz you can ‘see’ this through the computer interface, With NCE, you can’t. For example, I have a couple of NCE Switch-Its hooked up to some of my Tortoises. I built a control panel in PanelPro (part of JMRI) to control them. Works great, a simple track diagram that shifts plus CTC levers that you click on to oeprate the turnouts. But what if I dial up a switch address on my throttle? Well, the screen in PanelPro changes when I do that. It would do that if I had a Lenz system too. But not NCE (and I’m not sure about CVP). This is also why DecoderPro’s Loconet Monitor and Slot Monitor work so nicely - it can see everything that happens.
Someone recently had one of the developers add the ability to execute commands when a function key was hit on his Lenz throttle. I thinkt he application was to trigger a crossing gate sound on demand.
I guess this is why people use external signal and detection systems. But if al your turnouts were controlled by eg CMRI, the only option for local control would be a traditional contrl panel with switches or buttons. With JMRI’s scripting opyion, if you used Digitrax or Lenz you actually COULD intercept switch commands from a throttle and send out CMRI controls.
Just some additional info to chew on…
–Randy