Mel,
If you're trying to get JMRI going, there are some other options, like the SPROG and others. If you're not real thrilled to be figuring out computer stuff, then the MRC device makes things straightforward. If you have MRC or some other proprietary control system, then check what units they support for the alternatives.
Mike Lehman
Urbana, IL
You may very well be able to use an alternative to the MRC controller. Check into the lists of supported products in JMRI or read messages in the JMRIusers group on Yahoo. The DCC Forum here may also be ale to help if no one else pops up here.
I have two connections that I use with JMRI. For my PowerCab on the Programming Track it's just easier to use the NCE USB controller. For my main layout Power Pro, I use a somewhat generic USB to serial convertor that plugs into the 9-pin connector on the power station.
What connection does the MRC PAS have to hook up?
OK, that's enough to start with. Here's the link to the JMRI hardware support page for MRC. This should tell you what the alternatives are.
http://www.decoderpro.com/help/en/html/hardware/mrc/index.shtml
A quick read seems to indicate the MRC 1516 USB computer interface is what's been tested and works. Doesn't mean that next week someone will hack something else and verify it will work. If it was me, I'd go with what's certain -- unless you like some electronic challenge in your life.
The ONLY adapter(s) that are going to work with your MRC system are the MRC adapter(s) made for that system.
You'd have to do a lot of reverse engineering of one of their adapters before you could build your own. The throttle to command station protocols and electrical characteristics are NOT part of the NMRA spec, and every manufacturer uses their own proprietary system. (And these adapters are basically a throttle interface to a computer.)
Having said all that, is the $60 for a computer interface a worthwhile investment? In my case it was, but I use a different DCC system (and therefore a different interface device) that has different abilities than MRC's offering.
Hopefully someone who uses the MRC adapter will chime in, although you'd probably have a better chance at a meaningful answer if you posted on the JMRI list: https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/jmriusers/info
I am using the MRC interace cable from my Prodigy Elite to my Windows 10 computer with JMRI--all functions work (at least those I have used). I mostly use JMRI for programming my enignes--the computer interface is nice for it. I have also dabbled with running the throttle from the computer--works fine, but I just prefer the feel of the knob on the handset rather than the computer. I have found the interface to be seemless in that I can go back and forth between computer and handset without a problem--the computer just acts as a second handset.
orind I am using the MRC interace cable from my Prodigy Elite to my Windows 10 computer with JMRI--all functions work (at least those I have used). I mostly use JMRI for programming my enignes--the computer interface is nice for it. I have also dabbled with running the throttle from the computer--works fine, but I just prefer the feel of the knob on the handset rather than the computer. I have found the interface to be seemless in that I can go back and forth between computer and handset without a problem--the computer just acts as a second handset.