Today I got the oppourtunity to run the latest engine in the genesis line, the big boy. The engine looks great, it has the typical genesis paint and detail quality, and though I’m no expert on the big boy I would say it looks very realistic.
I picked up the MRC Prodigy Advance handheld, typed in the adress and started up the loco. It didnt make much sound at idle, but as soon as you give it a little throttle, its like an explosion, there is no build up the sound just goes from zero to so many chuffs you cant pick out a single one. I really dont care for the chuffs, and the decoder must have known this since the cuffs would cut out every once in a while. Not for a long time, just a second or two and then they would come back on. Here is a visual aid: “chuff chuff chuff chuff ______________________________ chuff chuff…”. You can also hit a function that makes a rail clack noise, when you do this it makes the chuffs very quiet.
I tried all 19 of the whistles and most of them were awful. There were a few that were acceptable though. They had nowhere near the clarity of a better decoder, but if you have never heard a better decoder I suppose you could live with them. The whistle also had a mind of its own. Occasionally giving a “half toot”. On command it goes WHOOOOO, but of its own accord it will sometimes make a WHU. The whistle is better than that of the challenger, the challenger sounded like it was inside a soda can and this is certainly an improvement.
The most puzzling thing about the session was the number boards. The whole time (about 2 hours) they were blinking. Sometimes they would go steady for 10-15 seconds but they always went back to blinking on and off in a random pattern. The reason this is so strange is because it was not a result of dirty track or wheels. The headlight was steady all the time and the sound never hesitated.
So it seems yet again that athearn has produced a superb engine and fitted it with junk electronics. The decoder is better than the Cha
I also was curious. I wanted a Gensis one. At the local club I had the chance to see both the ATHEARN & PCM models. I can rest easy knowing the extra money for the PCM will be worth it. it blows the Genesis one away.
Really? I guess the PCM BB vs Genesis BB will vary depending on who you ask. I still haven’t made up my mind which is better for the money. An employee at the local shop stated the cheaper Genesis has a better whistle. I’ve never seen or heard the PCM one in person. But I have seen the Genesis run in a demo. Goregous enough, smooth running, satisfying chuffs. I don’t see how the PCM can be so much better than the other, aside from the non-traction tire driver. I guess I’ll pick the Genesis based on it being pretty good and fairly ‘low’ cost.
I hope Athearn releases some of the later version Big Boys with the relocated after coolers.
The biggest advantage of the PCM is it has a good decoder in it. If it were me, i would save some money by buying the athearn and installing a Loksound or Tsunami decoder.
I have both the PCM and the Genesis and both have short comings in different areas. The PCM has the best slow speed due to the great DCC drive, but its whistle is not correct and the bell is like a school bell. The turbo generator sound only comes on a plays for about five seconds and goes off. It is a great puller because of its weight and is very nice in detail, but the Genesis is better detailed in most areas.
The Genesis is a nice model that needs a good sound system and DCC drive. It does have a choice of 18 whistles or so and two are great steamboat Big boy and Challenger type sounding whistles. It wins in the whistle department for more accurate sounds, but the overall quality of sound is very poor and the speakers are very junk. I have installed a Tsunami and new speakers in my Genesis Big Boy and that takes care of many of the problems.
Both are nice but the Athearn costs much less even after the cost of the Tsunami