Prodigy DCC advice needed.

[Anonymous]

I am using the MRC Prodigy system with the AD490 handheld controller. I want to put in a remote jack for the controller using CAT5 cable and jacks. The jacks I am using appear to match the MRC jacks and the cable is 8 wire like the MRC wire but when I put it all together it does not work. Has anyone had success with this type of arrangement? Thanks for any input.
John

[cacole]

There are two types of CAT5 cable -- straight through and crossover. Whichever one you have, you probably need the other. The cable should be marked somewhere near the ends to indicate whether or not it is a crossover cable for a cable modem. If it's not marked as a crossover, then chances are it's a straight through; i.e., pin 1 to pin 1, pin 8 to pin 8, etc. with none of the connections reversed like they are in a crossover cable.

[dano99a]

Are you sure it uses CAT5 (8 pin/wires)? Digitrax uses CAT3 (6 pin/wires) (for what reason I don't know) but with both you have to BE EXACTLY SURE that the wires on both ends connect to the same points. 2 wires in the wrong places will screw-up the whole thing. OR if MRC does use CAT3 then CAT5 will not work.

Take a REAL close look at the MRC connectors or call/email MRC. Nine times out of ten the problem most folks have with either CAT 5 or 3 is getting the wires in the wrong slots onthe jacks.

Unless you bought premade cable you may have bought a crossover cable as stated above and that won't work because it's use to network two computers together. Where as regular CAT5 connection cable is just a through-put connection.

I only state all this because I just went through this whole thing with my digitrax system. It was FAR cheaper to but CAT3 cable and 6 pin jacks and the jack crimpers then to buy the digitrax premade cable. (which they use the flat kind which is worse for data anyway)

[Javern]

i determined how much cable I needed, went to Radio Shack and they had bulk wire and added the RJ45 connectors on for me, works great.

[dano99a]

great! It's good to know all this as my uncle is getting ready to install an MRC prodigy onto his layout.