I am using digitrak system and looking into buying a PR4 to hook up my computer and loconet for programing using JMRI. Now I have JMRI on my computer is the PR4 what I need to do the job before I spend the money. If it is digitrak also as a program should that be downloaded. I'm not looking into running the layout with this now only for programing changing CV's making life easier. This is a new step for me in DCC I thank all of you now for your help.
George
Yes. I just bought one a couple of weeks, haven't played around with yet.
The PR4 as a power supply that comes with it, and it also features a place to wire up a programming track. I don't think the earlier versions had that feature.
You also have to download the program for it, so the system recognizes it. It's a free download on the Digitrax site, if I remember correctly.
Mike.
My You Tube
Yes, the PR4 would be a good choice of devices, because it can functioon two ways, and JMRI handles the switching between those modes for you.
First, you can hook the PR4 (with a power supply) to a piece of track and use it with JMRI to program loocos independent of your DCC system.
Second, you can hook the PR4 to the rest of your system via a standard Loconet cable, and you can use JMRI to program through the command station (instead of using your throttle) and ytou cna also use JMRI to do other things like run trains with on-screen throttles, load the WiThrottle server and run trains from your smartphone, control switches and signals with input from block detectors, and all sorts of things.
SO if you currently have no interface device to connect your computer to Digitrax, the PR4 is an excellent choice.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
Mostly. There aren't CVs to indicate all the possible options from a given manufacturer, so there is no way to tell what specific form factor the decoder is or inthe case of sound decoders, what sounds are loaded. For example, EVERY, Digitrax DH166 decoder will return the same ID information, could be a DH166PS, a DH166MT, who knows. But that's not critical for programming it anyway.
Likewise, it can tell the loco has a Tsunami TSU-100, but it can't tell if it has EMD 645 sounds or GE AC44CW sounds or Alco 244 sound.
Kelly523If you don't know what decoder you have will jmri find that for you.
From the videos I have seen yes it will. Looks like sometimes it will narrow it down to a few but then selecting any of them will do the job.
Thanks Randy