Comparing loco brands for newbie


Resqnu

Resqnu

Member
Not trying to start a war, just need some general idea of the quality and price between brands. How would you guys rate the different brands by name (I understand the lists are personal preference). Just want some idea how the brands stack up and how they compare and a good value/price brand.
 
From what i have seen it all depend on what you want to spend and workman ship. me I'm doing bachmann do to the price tag on as expencive.
 
Thanks,
I'm asking as I don't know the difference between all the brands. From what I can find on the web, current Bachmann seems to be a good value for the $$. I know that price is not everything. Just looking for a good value for the price. Wanted to know the pros and cons of the other brands.
 
In HO it's Bachman for me as well. For my money the DCC entry level locomotives can't be beat. I paid an average of $57 including shipping and or tax for each of mine.

If you are looking for great detail and sound The Athearn Genesis I have is fantastic, but I need a magnifying glass to see all the detail. I paid $239 including shipping for my Gold Chessie GP40-2. I don't know if it was a good price but it was the only one I could find new in the box and I had to have it! Only thing I don't like about it are the hand rails, they are fragile.

I have heard good things about the Bachmann sound value locomotive too, but I don't have first hand knowledge.

Here are links to a couple of threads you might be interested in.

Thread: Quality of Bachmann (non-spectrum) these days?

Thread: Bachmann SD70ACe....
 
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Since I'm new, I like the prices of the Bachmann. I will be converting a few fairly new Bachmann Gp38-2 and a few GP40-2 DC locos to dcc this week. But feel I need (hahaha) a sound unit with a few bells and whistles. I really like the look of the ES44ac units from Bachmann, Intermountain, and Kato. Obviously the Bachmann is less expensive, but what do the 2 other brands have that make them more expensive?
 
marriedshades said:
GWish i could be more help bachmann and model power is all i have used and model power no longer in dbusiness.
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I appreciate all input. Looks like Bachmann is working for you and Bruette! I'm sure it would be fine for me as well. Just didn't know if the other brands are worth the extra $$
 
Resqnu said:
I appreciate all input. Looks like Bachmann is working for you and Bruette! I'm sure it would be fine for me as well. Just didn't know if the other brands are worth the extra $$
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Like anything else you get what you pay for. Athearn Genesis, Intermountain, Bowser, MTH, Atlas, Walthers Proto and Kato are at the top of the market detail and feature wise, Their order of ranking will vary depending on which of us you talk to. Walthers and Athearn also have lower price point lines. The other top manufacturers also offer their products without DCC or sound for about $100.00 off the sound & DCC price. Bachmann's DCC onboasrd line and Spectrum line both offer nice models, and there is plenty of new old stock of Athearn blue box stuff to be found at swap meets. You don't need a ton of money to field a nice roster, though I would suggest some focus on your main interest.
 
Thanks for the info. I want a nice one for my first sound loco. My main interest in a dcc sound loco is it having the following.
Good value and quality
Really good sound
Headlights and ditch lights
Nice detail
Responds nice to throttle adjustments.

My locos of choice are one of these:
ES 44AC Gevo
GP 40-2
SD70AC3

I have researched a few brands and I'm drawn toward the Intermountain (higher end) or Bachmann (lower end). The Intermountain seems to be a quality piece. I want to get one on the first time that I will be happy with so quality is big and reliability.

My 2 tracks are 22" radius and 19.5" radius.



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I have just about every brand from Model Power to Broadway Limited, and of them all my opinion is Atlas and Athearn are the most dependable. I am a steam guy at heart, and BLI has some of the best (beside brass) steam around, bachmann has been pretty good if you get some of the newer (5 or 6 years old or less), and Athearn Genesis is some fantastic operating engines.
 
Thanks for the info. I I went Bachmann it would be one of the newer ones. I have read good things about the Athearn Genesis as well. My LHS had a Intermountain ES44AC w/Lok Sound on their track and I feel in love with it. I'm headed there tomorrow to check out a few other brands and see if they will put them on the track.


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Some of the older sound equipped locomotives have sound that is not all that great. For example, the older Intermountain F units with the old QSI sound have really good motor control, the horn, bell, and peripheral sounds are all great, but the sound of the diesel engine is, well, not so great. There are others with the not-so-great sound, as well. I just used that as an example.
Pretty much anything that says "Soundtraxx" or Tsunami" would sound good, and run well. New stuff with Loksound also sounds and runs great. Some of the BLI diesel sounds aren't very good, but most of their steam is. Almost every diesel engine with the words "Quantum" on the box should be steered clear of.
For a beginner, possibly an MTH diesel would be a good starter engine. They are available with sound and limited DCC for less than $175 from several e-tailers. They run very well, are good pullers, and are pretty rugged. Detail is not as good, though.
 
Thanks for the info BNSF.
I will look into the MTH for $175. I am looking for a diesel for sure. The Intermountain ES44AC I saw in a demo had the LokSound dcc. I saw a Tsunami as well and was pleased with it too.


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Nice loco! Funny you picked a Union Pacific as that is the one my son says it has to be. So I am trying please him with a UP and get me a full sound loco. If I use a NCE PowerCab, will I have access to all the features? Didn't quite understand what it was saying about that.
I am only interested in the ES44AC and 70ACE due to the size and looks. I'm assuming they sound the same if they same sound chip is used. Are there any differences between the ES44 and 70ace vs the one you linked besides size? I know the 2 I mentioned are $200 and up. I might should look more into the one you linked. Any recommendations?


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Resqnu said:
Nice loco! Funny you picked a Union Pacific as that is the one my son says it has to be. So I am trying please him with a UP and get me a full sound loco. If I use a NCE PowerCab, will I have access to all the features? Didn't quite understand what it was saying about that.
I am only interested in the ES44AC and 70ACE due to the size and looks. I'm assuming they sound the same if they same sound chip is used. Are there any differences between the ES44 and 70ace vs the one you linked besides size? I know the 2 I mentioned are $200 and up. I might should look more into the one you linked. Any recommendations?


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http://www.trainworld.com/manufactu...t-Cab-w-Proto-Soundr-3-0-Union-Pacific-8640-/
 
You will pretty much be limited to Function 0-12, though you can rearrange the ones you want into those.
For example, two functions on the engines I linked to are front and rear uncoupling. These don't work very well, if at all. I removed the factory electromechanical couplers and installed Kadees. That left slots F7 and F8 open, and I remapped two functions I wanted to those slots. There is also cab chatter, and a few others.
 
bnsf971 said:
http://www.trainworld.com/manufactu...t-Cab-w-Proto-Soundr-3-0-Union-Pacific-8640-/
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Wow! This is the exact one I've been looking for. The Es44ac or 70ACe in Union Pacific with the flag.

bnsf971 said:
You will pretty much be limited to Function 0-12, though you can rearrange the ones you want into those.
For example, two functions on the engines I linked to are front and rear uncoupling. These don't work very well, if at all. I removed the factory electromechanical couplers and installed Kadees. That left slots F7 and F8 open, and I remapped two functions I wanted to those slots. There is also cab chatter, and a few others.
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I would be fine with 12 functions and eliminating the same 2 you did. I would want to definitely remap the ditch lights. How would you do this with the NCE Powercab? Can you point me in the right direction for info?

What dcc controller is needed to use all of the functions?
the info states when using a Dcc system you can access all the features. Not sure I understand why the powercab won't access all the features.
Do you have a preference on locos between the 3 we've mentioned?
thanks for your help.
 
The Power Cab has trouble going up to F28. Your user manual should give you more insight on how to do it.
I have a Digitrax system, and it goes that high at the push of a button.
I don't have the GP35, though I have several of both the other ones. For sound and motor control out of the box, I like the Loksound equipped ES44. For rugged simplicity, I like the MTH SD70. The Athearn Genesis SD70ACe has more selectable sounds, and much better detail. The increased detail comes at the cost of fragility. As soon as you said the magic words "my son", I had visions of piles of broken handrails and detail parts.
MTH is less well detailed, but will withstand rough handling better.
Genesis has lots and lots of fragile detail.
Intermountain is middle of the road, as far as detail, between MTH and Genesis, but has better sounds with the ESU decoder.

On the MTH engine, the ditch lights come on with the number boards, function 5. They alternate flash when you blow the horn.
 
Explained very well. As I looked at the features on both the MTH models, I see that 0-12 would fit my needs. I'll look into expanding to the other features with the powercab manual. I could be happy with 0-12.
For the same price point of the 2 MTH's I like the looks and size of the 70ACe. Since you own both the es44 and 70ac, is the Intermountain 44 w/LokSound worth the extra $$ over the MTH 70ac?
Fragile and 5 year old don't go together, so Athearn is probably not the way to go right now.

Thanks for the help.


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