Begineer Questions

[Anonymous]

Hi everyone,
I've always wanted a layout and have been researching into HO scale as I like A merican style loco's and the cost is resonable.
I'm not quite sure about these DCC ready or equiped loco's.
Would it be worth buying a DCC loco and controller for a setup which will probbably have 2 maybe 3 engines.
Can these controllers also work crossing lights etc?
Thanks.

[Anonymous]

The answer is if you are willing to spend the money is yes. DCC cuts out alot of wiring headaches and for each extra locomotive you run. is one less set of wires your not running for block control. Plus the decoders can do alot of neat things like make ditch lighes function and operational. as well as make your locmotive soound like the real thing if you want to go to the extreams of what DCC can offer.

As for the Crossing gates. Yes they can. But I am not familiar eneugh with the neccisary detectors and modules that you would need for the system to tell you how to do it.

I suggest that you post the crossing gate question at wiringfordcc.com. They cover how the properly wire a layout for dcc and have a question and answer forum that would be good for that type of question.

James

[AltonFan]

I am not likely to get into DCC, because I have too many engines to convert, and most of those engines will require drastic and intricate work to install decoders. However, if I were starting from scratch today, I would definitely buy DCC-ready equipment to start with, and if I could afford it, I'd get a DCC system and decoder-equipped engines right from the start.

[Anonymous]

Crossing gates aren't usually hooked into DCC, since they can be done with a simple block detector setup. or my favorite, a Photcell detector group, since it doesn't break the track.

[Anonymous]

Arron:

If you are buying new equipment now almost any current loco will be DCC ready. meaning it has an NMRA socket. Some vendors have factory installed decoders. Some are very good and some not.

NTDN is right that crossing gates are not usually controlled by DCC although they can be.. That may change as more vendors are coming out with DCC signalling systems. DCC is very good for controlling turnouts. If fact, DCC can control anything that uses electricity.

Ken

[preceng]

As a beginner, I would decide (DC vs DCC) as a function of my electrical proficiency. If you are good w/ electrical components (or aspire to be) either works well. If you are unsure about your electrical prowess, I would start w/ DCC, even if you intend to run only two loco's. I saw that Kato is packaging a nice starter 4x8 set that can be DCC.
http://www.katousa.com/