Thoughts on Prodigy Advance

Model Railroader Electronics and DCC
21

I got my PA right after they first came out. I’ve been running it for over 3 years and still love it. I recently upgraded with the wireless conversion. They have had some bugs in the wireless software, but have a fix. I sent mine in, got it back in 2 weeks at no cost, and now it works perfectly. All MRC products are much maligned on this and other mrr groups, but honestly I see only one drawback to it for anyone–the lack of a computer interface. MRC is coming out with one, but it is expensive. I have consisted reasonable well without one and probably won’t pop for it. I run a 17’x17’ N scale layout with 95’ of main and over 300’ total track and 12 locomotives with the PA’s original power supply and have never had a problem with power drop or overheating. I like the throttle on the PA better than any other I have ever used–the real reason I tried the PA when it came out. In short, I love it and wouldn’t trade it.

Ron

22

Agreed. I think the MRC dcc systems are vastly underrated; there’s a lot of misinformation passed around about them.

23

I have been using the Progidy Advance for over two years now without any major problems. I had been learning about it for iver a year and I had to get it as a matter of necessity, I had been thinking of upgrading but had a Roco Powermouse DCC system, but 3 weeks before my layout was going to be displayed for the entire family, it died, again. I wish now I would have waited with DCC until the Progidy Advance came out. It does very rarely, and at random times the controls will not respond and the solution is to restart the system. I have about 100 feet of mainline track and usaully have 6 to 8 locomotives running in 2 consists at any given time, and it handles it but there is a little bit of a power drop, but I still havent pushed it enough to overheat it yet and do not want to overheat it. I do love the consisting, it is very user friendly. At current I have no need for a computer interface, so that is not a problem if you do not need it. The Pr

24

How neccasary is a computer interface if your only going to have 5-10 locos and only a couple with sound? I know it’s really handy if you 30+ locos, but other than programing and keeping those settings stored in a memory, what else can you do with it?

25

I’ll answer your second question first - what else can you do with it? On screen throttles, signaling logic, route controls, automated running, dispatching, and I probably missed something. How necessary is it? That is entirely up to each individual user. There may be some users with hundreds of locos that don’t care anything about a PC interface, and there may be some with 5 loco’s who would not do without it.

26

Lothar, decoders are comming out with more and more features and are now bumping up the CV number close to 300 (Tsunami). The ability to graphically change or alter the characteristics of a locomotive while it is running is a delight. Look at the 28-step speed table now standard in decoders. That are 28 different CVs. With decoder pro, you can change this 28 point graph with a click of a mouse, and have them written instantly to the decoder while it is running (or stationary). Or the ability to play with horn selection, volume levels, equalizer settings, chuffs rate, ADCs…with the Tsunami.

You are right, beyond that (and advanced signaling), there is no real need for a computer interface.

The funny thing is, alot of MRC and NCE people look down upon Digitrax because programming is ‘so difficult’…or…‘you need a master’s degree’…the moment you hook up a Locobuffer or MS100, you have a whole new world opened up to you, and it gives the Digitrax user the opertunity to look at MRC, or any other DCC system not utilizing a computer connection, as a system that is difficult to program.

David B

27

Thanks. I’m going to have to look around for a shop where I can see one of these in action before I upgrade from my EZ Command. I’ve been leaning toward the PA2, but I’m not committed yet. I’m not interested in automation, but ease of operation is the key factor.

28

I just ordered my PA2 from Tony’s Trains for $199, cheapest price I’ve found anywhere, even beat ebay. Since mine is still in transit, I was just wondering, can someone tell me how long the cab cable is, and can u buy a longer one?

Thanks

29

They’re seven feet long iirc. Also, they’re the standard flat cable, which are a pain, to me. I ordered two of the below 7’ cables to replace them. Coiled cables, work great.

Cost me $15, but DigiKey is just down the road for me, so no shipping.

www.digikey.com part number H2882R-07C-ND for 7 foot, H2882R-14C-ND for 14 foot.

30

You definitely want the coiled cord. It works so much better.

31

Hi Snow,

The standard cables are about 6’ or 7’, but I did have one made up that’s 12’. It’s called computer wire ( I think), it has more internal wires than standard telephone, also the guy at the store tested the original cable for what’s called continuity and if I’m not mistaken the connectors on the ends are the reverse of each other, in other words if the locking tab on the connector is up on one end and the cable is laid out flat, the locking tab on the other end would be facing down. I hope I’m not being to confusing, (I think I confused myself though). The extra length hasn’t caused any problems since I started using it a year, year and a half ago.

Den.

32

well can somebody explain this so called easy cv thing . i must be really dumb. i dont get it. mrc sound decoder, mrc prodigy advance and the sounds dont change .

33

You are certainly not dumb, confused yes… Your question is very vague also. we have responded to your other post regarding your sound issue.

34

I have the Prodigy Advance and very happy the way it works on my HO layout. My son and I usually run two or three trains at the same time. I also have started a garden layout (G Scale) this past year. I purchased a wireless controller and a MRC 8 booster for the outside trains. I have a Bachmann 4-6-0 w/degitrax decoder and a USA S1 w/MRC decoder. They work great. For the money I don’t think you could really go wrong. Anyway thats my two cents.

Simisal

35

The connectors and jacks are called RJ-45’s, and ready made cables of various lengths can be found at most electronics or home improvement stores. You could also get a crimper tool and make your own using “cat 5e” cable.

36

Ahh, Dave, there’s so much more to it than that! [;)]

You’re completely forgetting about automation of visual and/or sound effects based on train events that happen on the layout.

And no, I’m not talking about the computer running your trains (although you can do that, too, if you really want to).

Imagine having a station announcement play, without any operator intervention, when your crack passenger train is about to leave the station.

It’s easy to do with LocoNet (not sure about any other DCC systems), and you don’t even need transponding. Block detection and JMRI, and of course a computer interface, are all it takes.

Just set up a detection block on your station track, positioned and sized properly so it doesn’t cover much more track than where the loco sits when the train is aligned with the platform.

Then, run a simple script in JMRI to listen for F0 on your passenger loco to be turned off and then back on when that detection block is occupied, and play the announcement when that happens:

Passenger train pulls into station track (block occupied)

Headlight off while in the station (F0 off)

Headlight back on as the train readies to depart (F0 on - Announcement Plays!)

And that’s just one possibility. How about a fenced-in industry where the gate across the tracks swings open when the turnout is aligned for that spur?

Your imagination is the only limit.

Steve

37

I feel I need to add my 2 cents worth!

I started HO way back with a car battery and a reostat. Upgraded to a Lionel transformer and on to many home made controls. My first entry into DCC was a Bachmann bought on E-Bay not because of merits but because of dollars. I soon found the limitations to the Bachmann and bought again on E-Bay “Roco”. The Roco units work very well except the yard type knob was prone to go from forward to reverse when I would panic because I had left a turnout in the wrong position. So when I was ready to upgrade again I looked at what I felt was best for me. I did not want to lug a Digitrak all in one control back and forth on my 16 foot switching railroad. I looked at NCE and MRC and opted for MRC solely because of a round knob rather than a thumb wheel. I guess I am hooked on round knobs because of many many years of twisting to get things moving. I guess the point I am trying to make is that everybody has a few quirks as to what they feel comfortable with. Glad we have the options that we have!

Cliff

CEO (careless employer of) Port Doom RR

38

Ok I made a discovery, the wire they use is the same as ethernet or computer networking cable. So you can buy it just about everywhere, and I know it’s the same cause right now this computer is hooked up to the internet using the MRC cab cable lol.

So far so good, it took me a good while to install the decoder (DH163AT) and fit all those dang wires in the loco. My GP-50 shell isn’t tall enough to tape the decoder to the top of the motor, so I had to fix it under the radiator fans instead. I got the Rule 17 front and rear lights going on, as well as my rotary beacon. I had an instance where the loco wouldn’t respond and after fiddling around with the system settings I discovered that reseting the cab number corrected this. I did a lot of pluging and unpluging of the decoder and the booster station while installing the decoder so that may have caused it.

The MRC PA2 allows you to set the address, start & top voltage, and momentum settings all without dealing with CVs. I used the computer decoder programer to spit out some CV numbers for me to set up the lighting. Also very streight forward, it prompts you for the CV number, then the decimal value and that’s it. I almost feel like reading the manual all the way through was a waste of time because it’s very intuitive to use.

Now I just gotta get some more decoders for the rest of my fleet and clean the track! (still under construction, plaster dust everywhere)

[quote user=“jfallon”]

[quote user=“dbradley”]

Hi Snow,

The standard cables are about 6’ or 7’, but I did have one made up that’s 12’. It’s called computer wire ( I think), it has more internal wires than standard telephone, also the guy at the store tested the original cable for what’s called continuity and if I’m not mistaken the connectors on the ends are the reverse of each other, in other words if the locking tab on the connector is

39

Question for those who have a PA system:

How do you remove a loco from a consist? I can’t find that in the manual anywhere. It looks to me that to remove a loco from a consist you have to disable the whole consist or program CV19 back to zero on your own.

Did I get this right? Or is there some secret to removing a loco from a consist that I’ve missed?

40

Joe:

Yes you can only clear the entire consist. However, it is so easy and so fast to create a new consist with the loco in question left out that it’s really no big deal. I guess if you were wanting to do this frequently it would be inconvenient but otherwise it’s not an important issue.