Just wondering...

[SchemerBob]

I was just wondering, is MTH's DCS system better than Lionel TMCC? They claim you only have to hook up 3 things with DCS and also say you have to have a "pile" of stuff to activate all of the features of DCS with TMCC. This may be true because I had to "hop" around the different pages in a Lionel catalog trying to find all of the things you just had to get to run non-command locomotives!

Can you run regular (command) Lionel and MTH engines on DCS without extra junk?

Just wondering...not that I'm ready to buy or anything.

[Big_Boy_4005]

I run TMCC with a single wire from the command base to the track. It doesn't get any simlper than that. I have no conventional control and don't want or need it. I don't use any of the accessory controllers. I don't even use toy train transformers.

I guess it depends on what you want to control as to how much "junk" you need.

[Anonymous]

The above is true....

TMCC for TMCC locos, easy... thge more you want, the harder it gets.

[spankybird]

What has been stated is correct if you wi***o operate TMCC command only. If you with to also run MTH PS1 or PS2 engines then you have to add more to the Command base. IF you also wi***o run conventional as well as TMCC then again more is need to be added.

If you have DCS and wi***o run MTH PS1 or PS2 or any other engine in Conventional mode then DCS (TIU plus remote) is all that you need. In a small to medium size layout, just taking the wires from the transfer to the track and adding the TIU between the transformer and the track is all that is need.

If you wi***o run both MTH PS2 and TMCC in command mode, then you need the DCS and add the TMCC command base to it. This will also allow you to run any engine, either in command or conventional mode.

Here is come cost comparisons.

The entree cost of $100.00 will only allow you to operate your TMCC engines with the Cab 1.

The other cost you may end up spending is:

Power Master (to run convention engines from your Cab 1 = $66.00

TPC (300) (to operate PS2 engines in Conventional mode only) = $94.00

Action recorder (Make recordings of your favorite layout scenarios and play them over
and over again. Record layout scenarios using your trains and
accessories) = $62.00

You should also have a surge protector (Scott’s Odd-n-ends) to protect all your electronics = $50.00 (approx. – depending on which one you buy)

Total cost is now = $372.00

DCS does cost more but has all of the above built into it. = $270.00

IF you add a TMCCcommand base (to also control TMCC engines) = $45.00
Cable to connect TMCC command base = $20.00
Total = $335.00

You will spend the about the same amount. The one advantage with DCS, it will run both MTH and TMCC engines in Command.

The prices are based from:

http://www.hobbystation.net/tmcc.html

[Anonymous]

Short answer to your first question:

"Better" is a purely subjective evaluation. Lionel fans will tell you TMCC is better; MTH fans will tell you DCS is better. Which system is really better is wholly up to you, based on your needs and interests.

Is DCS more versatile than TMCC? Yes, it most definitely is.

[tgovebaker]

Alan's comment is, I fear, a little misleading for one reason: TMCC has become the standard for other manufacturers, including K-Line and Atlas. This means that you if you are just starting out in command, or if you have mostly Atlas motive power, then TMCC may be the better option.

In reality, both systems are easy to use, and introduce a new level of control that is a lot more fun than it has any right to be.

[Big_Boy_4005]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Allan Miller

Is DCS more versatile than TMCC? Yes, it most definitely is.

Allan, I have to disagree with this part of your response. While DCS may have more features than TMCC (most of which I find useless, since I'm not into sound and smoke), when it comes to control of motion DCS has a real handicap in my opinion.

The word versatile is where you lose me. The ultimate versatility comes from having the command codes, and being able to issue live, real time commands to running trains, directly from the computer. None of this mimic stuff, which Lionel has now created a box to copy the existing DCS feature.

I'm talking artificial intelligence used to simulate real railroad operation. TAS is working on such software, and other companies have had similar products on the market for years now. That's powerful stuff.

I'll be the first to admit that this capability is probably not what the mainstream market is looking for. I know I'm a weirdo, and there are only a small handfull of others that are up to a technical challenge like this. Is this the way of the future? Maybe, maybe not.

Personally, I wonder what train control will be like 20 years from now. It really does depend on what a person wants. What will the market want 20 years from now?

100 year old technology can make a train go in a circle, but to me, that isn't enough. I can live without the sound and smoke, I want to run a real railroad. The computer allows me to run as many trains as my track will hold, and keep them from crashing into each other.