DCC suggestions

[Anonymous]

Hey gang!

I'm new to the forum and have taken the plunge to build a garden RR. I've looked at the various DCC vendors (Locolinc, Digitrax, Aristo TE, etc.) and was wondering if you could make some recommendations. I'm interested in NCE since it appears to be the most user friendly unit -http://www.ncedcc.com/index.html -.

Are there some things I should be aware of as a newbie? I plan on using track power with R/C.

TIA![8D]

[Anonymous]

Well, the R/C battery setups (Locolinc, Reed's , RCS, etc.) are very reliable outdoors, because
they do not send the command signals thru the
rails, which mean the rails don't have to be
*** and span..cleaning track is a "problem" for a lot of people, others its just "maintenance" Find out what group you are in first! The dcc firm NCE is coming out
with a G scale decoder that is BATTERY operated,
as opposed to track operated, and also the signal
is not sent thru the track. This would be the best dcc outdoors, although this product is not yet available (see NCE website).

Of course Aristo , Locolinc have r/c receivers-but the difference with the NCE unit is apparently it is a standard NMRA decoder that just happens to have special features. This means that it is NON-proprietary--you can use it with any dcc product, therefore giving you a plethora of dcc control ops for the layout. Something to think about if you like turnout control, animation,smoke and lots of lighting both on and off the train.

A lot of people that swear by R/C battery control don't like dcc because of the "track" issues, but it looks like new decoders will solve this problem, and then the NMRA dcc companys will be in the limelight for outdoor railways: more NCE-style designs will mean a huge selection for the garden runner never before available.

Regards,

Tom M.

[Anonymous]

WOOPS! Correction! Sorry folks, the AirWire 900
battery dcc system is from CVP Products, not NCE like I said in my prev. post. CVP makes the "Easy DCC" line of stuff.

Regards,

TOM M.