Dcc Impulses

Bruce,

   Another great article... I have been a member of the local train club for almost 2 years and I have seen all those little boxes under the layout the power the system. I hear a couple of the members talking about the 'boosters' or the 'command station' and until your article, never really understood how all the parts played together. Now I think I understand.

Thanks,

Al

Anatomy of a DCC system

Hi Bruce,

This is a great article, especially addressing the matter on the number of boosters required and ways to go about it. Just a word on the Lenz LH-90 cab, since I am using Lenz since 2005. The LH-90 is an excellent engineer's cab, great for switching. If you program your locos CVs 3 & 4, al you need to do is to set your switching speed on the dial, and use the center off toggle switch to stop and change direction. The cab can store eight 4-digit addresses, and to punch in a new address does not have to involve the dial. There are also some programmable features to make the throttle more customizable, but I won't cover it here. So in our regular ops sessions, we use four LH-90 cabs, and one LH-100 Dispatcher cab.

In short, the LH-90 is not to be relegated to a child's toy.

Kind regards

Xander

Thanks Al

LH-90

I was not saying that it was ONLY a child's toy. You have made a far better case for its intended use than I would have ever tried to do.

My goal was to offer another view of possible ADDITIONAL uses.

DCC information is always a great a article

Bruce

I always read the DCC articles first when MRH E-zine comes out as a some what new user myself with only about 3 years using DCC and 45+ years using DC Cab control. I started DCC use with the Lenz LH100 Dispatcher's Throttle and The LZV100 Command/Power Station. I make a point to read and take in everything written or said about DCC and look forward to every article.

I actually had the same question as to weather I needed more boosters for my RR or would the command station and the one Magna Force Power Supply be enough. With my RR covering a 28' X 36' foot Basement (half of that so far) I may need one more Magna Force Power Supply later. For now I'm happy with the power use and welcomed your article and the information you supplied.

Thank for the Fine and informative DCC article.

Dan

Another great column!

I always learn something from your columns. And I re-learn some things too! I usually read DCC Impulses first when I get my copy of MRH.

Anatomy of a DCC system

Thanks for a great article. The time you take no matter how simple or not so simple regarding the DCC articles is a what nebie's like me need.

Dan - remember

Thanks

DCC Impulses

Greatest clmn out - am learning heaps and heaps and !!! Best mag this century. 

...

Bruce, I think it's fair to say this is the skeletal anatomy of the DCC system.  I presume part two will cover the addition of JMRI to a layout, along with using a wireless iPhone throttle in place of the archaic LCD throttles supplied by the major manufacturers...

Thanks, Ash

Benny

Anatomy of a DCC System

Bruce,

Thanks for another great article.  This is exactly the type of article those of us new to DCC need to be able to start to learn the terminology.  I especially liked the part of the article in which you discussed the problems with the replacement for the MF615.  Now I know why Larry, of NCE, was not recommending the use of the new power supply with the NCE Power Pro.

I'm about to place an order with Litchfield Station for the NCE PowerPro Radio system for my large N-scale layout.  I don't want to wait until the revised MF615GU power supply comes out during the summer, so I think I'll order the NCE P515 transformers with the NCE Power Pro so I can get up and running.  Is the P515 going to provide adequate power for my N-scale application?

Any comments on this idea?

Thanks,

Bob

P515

P515

Bruce,

Thank you for the response on the NCE P515 power transformer.  As a novice in DCC, this gives me the confidence that I'm headed in the right direction.

Again thank you,

Bob

Bruce

Thanks for a great article. Now all I need is some suggestions on what I need to get it to work  with G scale trains.

Large Scale DCC

Bruce:

The short answer is the same type of DCC equipment is need – usually just bigger, but as always it depends on what you are planning to run.

If you want to run small Large Scale (e.g., F, Fn3, Gauge 1, etc.) locomotives pulling a few cars, you can actually get by on a 3 to 5 amp DCC system. If you want to step up to a midsize locomotives you will need to step up to an 8 to 10 Amp system. 10 Amp systems will also power one or two big engines if you do not pull many cars. If you are looking to pull a big consist with three AristoCraft SD45's or Dash9's the 10 Amp NCE unit will just make it happen. As 10 Amps is the current limit for commercial boosters, beyond that it's a home brew beast. For demos on a small, portable layout (10' x 18') when running a Shay with six or eight cars, I can get by with a Digitrax DCS100 (5 Amp),

For some reference current draw data for a variety of Large Scale loco's check out the Tractive Effort Tests page on George Schreyer's site:

http://www.girr.org/girr/tips/tips4/tractive_effort_tests.html

The DC power pack I built for the club has three 24 VDC, 12.5 Amp switching power supplies providing power to six loops (blocks) through Aristo 15 Amp controllers. Depending upon what equipment is running (ie. DC, DCC, RC – Track or Battery Powered) and how we need to configure the layout, each of the Aristo controllers can be replaced by an appropriate DCC booster or an Aristo Train Engineer Base Receiver. Even with the available power, with all six blocks configured for DCC we are usually limited to three loco's in each block. A set of ten lighted, Large Scale passenger cars can draw more current than it takes to run a medium size HO or N layout (½ to 1 Amp), and at times we have three passenger consists running.

Also when scaling up to play with the big boys, beware: you are getting into the power range where you can really let the smoke out intentionally (Smoke units can draw Amps) or unintentionally (Small wires make good fuses). Everything needs to be scaled up especially the wiring. Think buying your feeder wire at your local home improvement store with #12 often being the minimum wire gage for your primary feeds. 12/2 underground feeder wire works well and lasts for years.

One nice point is that I do not need reading glasses or a magnifier when installing Large Scale decoders into  loco's.

Garden DCC

Thanks to you all.