Andy Y Posted March 22, 2017 Share Posted March 22, 2017 A quick poll for BRM to assess the balance of DCC usage vs DC. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Y Posted March 23, 2017 Author Share Posted March 23, 2017 It is possible to vote for both as I know people who operate different layouts accordingly but I think it's interesting that DCC may be in the majority now; that was my gut feel from shows and visiting layout owners. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stevelewis Posted March 23, 2017 Share Posted March 23, 2017 I see we can now reply! As a matter of interest In my local area I have contact with 7 other Model Railway Enthusiasts all in a similar age group to myself (ie old) 6 of those are Digital users, the other one has remained Analogue I am posting this on here as I believe all but one dont 'go on forums!!' Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold PaulRhB Posted March 23, 2017 RMweb Gold Share Posted March 23, 2017 (edited) IMO the results are flawed a bit, or at least don't give an accurate picture of the real split. Quite a few modellers aren't on the web, and most of those are DC operators. Then there's a large contingent that don't visit RMweb, or if they do, haven't registered and therefore can't vote. (but it's an excellent reason to join the community if you belong to that group ) So BRM would do wise to calculate in a considerable margin/bandwidth. Like any survey it's limited to the group asked, with so many members though this is likely to get to a fairly broad section of the community. Just look at the number on here who remain devoted to dc because it doesn't offer them anything extra to convert existing layouts which run quite happily. I voted both even though they effectively cancel each other out because I have no intention of converting all my locos to dcc. Two of my small layouts will also remain dc and they are exhibitable too. Edited March 23, 2017 by PaulRhB Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Y Posted March 23, 2017 Author Share Posted March 23, 2017 IMO the results are flawed a bit, or at least don't give an accurate picture of the real split. You don't think I'm going to be able to get an answer off every modeller in the country do you? 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
wollastonblue Posted March 23, 2017 Share Posted March 23, 2017 i would like propose the addition of both as an option. As the Swiss layout I am building is DC, the US layout I'm planning will be DCC. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium New Haven Neil Posted March 23, 2017 RMweb Premium Share Posted March 23, 2017 OK, I've got the popcorn and settled in my seat..... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium nick_bastable Posted March 23, 2017 RMweb Premium Share Posted March 23, 2017 internet / forum users are generally more comfortable with technology which is why I suspect the bias here towards DCC NIck Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Y Posted March 23, 2017 Author Share Posted March 23, 2017 i would like propose the addition of both as an option. As the Swiss layout I am building is DC, the US layout I'm planning will be DCC. I don't need to as you can vote for either or both. At present it's 63 for DC and 92 for DCC from 136 members therefore 19 are both. 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian Abel Posted March 23, 2017 Share Posted March 23, 2017 (edited) I don't need to as you can vote for either or both. At present it's 63 for DC and 92 for DCC from 136 members therefore 19 are both. Blimey, there's no end to your talents - arithmetic too Oh, and Neil, I'll bring the buns.... Coat, hat... whoopsie Edited March 23, 2017 by Ian Abel Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris M Posted March 23, 2017 Share Posted March 23, 2017 Where do I vote for battery powered radio control? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Y Posted March 23, 2017 Author Share Posted March 23, 2017 Where do I vote for battery powered radio control? Same option as clockwork, hand-pushed and nuclear; it's just a mainstream snapshot rather than every possibility. 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold PaulRhB Posted March 23, 2017 RMweb Gold Share Posted March 23, 2017 Batteries still supply DC 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Worsdell forever Posted March 23, 2017 RMweb Gold Share Posted March 23, 2017 Hand pushed is Digit-al... 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Storey Posted March 23, 2017 Share Posted March 23, 2017 Batteries still supply DC ...and DCC with a couple of US systems now. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Huw Griffiths Posted March 23, 2017 RMweb Gold Share Posted March 23, 2017 Where do I vote for battery powered radio control? Same option as clockwork, hand-pushed and nuclear; it's just a mainstream snapshot rather than every possibility. Hand pushed is Digit-al... I suspect that some people - determined to use nothing but "old fashioned" DC - might have a slightly different "digital" option - a choice between 1 and 2 digits ... . Meanwhile, some of our Stateside friends refer to R/C battery power as "dead rail" - that's right - this option doesn't exist here. As for the "nuclear option", I can't see too many people wanting their model trains to glow in the dark ... . Seriously though, I doubt if it would really be feasible to cater for all potential power / control options - but I'd expect DC and DCC to be the most popular options. The results could be interesting if visitors to "Ally Pally" or "Warley" were to be surveyed - the same goes for visitors to small, local, shows and club open days (especially if they're somewhere well served by public transport - and advertised in local papers, libraries and on posters). Huw. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Storey Posted March 23, 2017 Share Posted March 23, 2017 I think I get the point of the survey, and the outcome will be interesting, even if disputed for the various reasons above. For those who will dispute, it is worth pointing out the relatively high correlation between the wish list surveys on here and the subsequent new products in following years. Not foolproof, but good enough to suggest that manufacturers would appear to regard this forum as a reasonable cross section of the hobby (as well as their other sources). But as with DC (from the simple H&M etc one loco in steam through to the multiple cab control systems and so on), "DCC" is no longer just one classification. It ranges from the Elite user through to the mobile phone operated system through a plethora of computing terminology and specialist knowledge, of which I have neither the skills, knowledge nor interest. It is apparent from many of the threads on here, that there many of us reluctant luddites who have gone digital just for sound, or for simplified wiring or some other one-off reason. The last thing we want is for playing trains to become more like playing a Nintendo, or even a Train Simulator. This is why the ex-ZTC and Digitrax Zephyr still have a market, but the market seems to be heading inexorably towards the computer programmer/modeller, whilst a few are trying to simplify the interface in order to make it easier for the dimwits of us to buy more complex stuff (which we then can't work out how to fix when it fails). I worry that there may soon be a situation where the mid-range packages move ever upwards in capability, because they perceive that is what the majority of potential buyers want. In any of the threads on the subject, those with seriously expert knowledge tend to dominate the debate, and thus the perception, as many of us just tune out. As such, I plead for a future survey which explores the extent of desire for more automation against the desire for systems to just do what they do now but more simply at reasonable prices (the new British ACE system is a good example, which started as a very good, simple to use, mid-range system with an excellent large display, at a very good price, but is now attempting to meet many more needs, and its complexity and price will rise, I would guess). I don't know how to phrase this, and I do not know enough in order to describe the choices adequately. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
TonyA Posted March 23, 2017 Share Posted March 23, 2017 One thing that ticking both boxes does not highlight is proportion. I currently have three small layouts of which 2 are DC and the other is DCC. However, a new layout is in plan and that will be DC for the foreseeable future. It may well be a reflection of my skills but DCC was more sensitive than I had hoped and the sound, although nice, gave me far more functions than I needed or would use. Basically I cannot justify the expense and "tweaking" for the marginal benefits to my particular activities. Tony 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
coachmann Posted March 23, 2017 Share Posted March 23, 2017 (edited) You guys get too bogged down with pedantics. It doesn't matter whether you have one layout with DC and one with DCC or whatever. If you've got DCC, which is relatively new, then put your tick in that box to show you are taking an interest in it. Don't worry, it will have no bearing on any images in magazines unless BRM has come up with a way of adding sound.... Edited March 23, 2017 by coachmann 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Huw Griffiths Posted March 23, 2017 RMweb Gold Share Posted March 23, 2017 (edited) As some people here know, I'm an electrical engineer - with some experience of instrumentation. Some people might imagine that I'd be likely to want all the bells, whistles, "57 engines in steam" and all that malarkey. Sorry, guys; I want something I understand - something I can fix, myself, without using exotic (for which read "expensive and difficult to use") equipment and pre-programmed chips that can only be bought from one guy knocking them out in his back room for half an hour, once a fortnight. If I get chance to build a layout, I want simple wiring that's easy to faultfind - just 2 wires, per section of track - that sort of thing. If I build any locos or railcars, you can be certain I'll include an 8 pin socket, with standard wiring - not because I actually want chips onboard, but because bringing all the wiring to a single socket with standard wiring would make it easier to faultfind. In other words, I don't want to be forced to go digital - but, if any part of the DCC "package" makes my analogue life easier, where's the harm in using that part and allowing for future compatibility? At this point, I could imagine some people suggesting that 8 pin sockets would be the wrong way to go - the new standard is 21 pin, 22 pin, or whatever - well, as one guy put it to me at a tradeshow, "the really great thing about standards is that there are so many of them". For me, the really great thing about "8 pin" is that sockets and plugs can be easily converted from ordinary integrated circuit sockets (preferably "turned pin") - and these are easy and cheap to obtain. It's also easy to insert or remove jumper wires - or even use additional sockets to produce custom "patch leads". In other words, for what I want, "8 pin" works just fine - so why change it? Anyway, if I ever were to go digital, all my loco wiring would be to an existing scheme and easy to convert - likewise, any track wiring would be sensibly and clearly laid out, clearly labelled and again easy to convert. That is, if I'd actually need to convert any track wiring - after all, the layout concepts I'm interested in right now are actually microlayouts, suitable for 1 loco at a time, shunting and that's about it. In fact, as long as I ensure that all wiring is conservatively rated - and any switches are closed before I even consider getting any DCC gear - I probably wouldn't need to change much at all. That is, if I ever make the switch - and I'm in no rush to do so - it just doesn't suit my purposes right now. Huw. Edited March 25, 2017 by Huw Griffiths 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Huw Griffiths Posted March 23, 2017 RMweb Gold Share Posted March 23, 2017 You guys get too bogged down with pedantics. It doesn't matter whether you have one layout with DC and one with DCC or whatever. If you've got DCC, which is relatively new, then put your tick in that box to show you are taking an interest in it. Don't worry, it will have no bearing on any images in magazines unless BRM has come up with a way of adding sound.... Well, I suppose they could start putting reviews on their cover DVDs. I'm not saying they need to - or even that they should - but I'm sure they could, if there were any point in them doing so. Somehow though, I don't see them being in any rush to try this. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
cal.n Posted March 23, 2017 Share Posted March 23, 2017 Even assuming the results are slightly biased towards DCC (online forum, more comfortable with technology etc...), could you be comfortable in saying that more in the hobby use DCC than don't? I would be interested to see a breakdown of how much from each scale/gauge and era use DCC/DC Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nile_Griffith Posted March 24, 2017 Share Posted March 24, 2017 Crikey!!!! This is worse than asking a group of people to choose a restaurant and then place an order. It's a simple question, not a contractual obligation. No one's going to burn in hell for making a choice contrary to someone else's perceived wisdom and I'm fairly certain the U.N. won't be penciling in a late night session to discuss the implications of the poll, should of course the result ever be anounced. In other words lighten up!!! It's a finger in the wind measure of which way the wind is blowing. What I think would be useful is that this information isn't lost in the vaults and that the same question is asked again at maybe a two year interval (maybe a bit too soon perhaps), just.... you understand........ to see if the wind is changing direction. P.S. If you want pedantic......... Then where is the Blue Tooth control option???????? 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Junctionmad Posted March 24, 2017 Share Posted March 24, 2017 It's clearly DCCexit. !!! So stop moaning you DC people. Ok ok I'll get my hat ...... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SRman Posted March 24, 2017 Share Posted March 24, 2017 I have a foot in both camps, although I'm primarily DCC. There is a rotary multi-pole switch that allows me to switch from DCC to DC (powered by an ancient H & M Duette), with a mid-position that switches the track power off completely. The latter is useful in avoiding potential disasters when I wish to drill or solder the tracks using the same power points to plug in. The switch applies only to the low level tracks; the upper level, when completed, will be DCC only.The switch powers both tracks on DCC from my NCE Power Pro system, or one track each from each side of the Duette. It did take me a while to work out the wiring of the switch! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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