Nce powercab ? Who has it ? Is it good?

[talon104]

Well, to start out after waiting about 4 weeks or so lets see if i really have my stuff here on line now to post? .........Ok, well who of you guys out there have gotten the power-cab yet, and if so how do you like it ? Is it as really good as i have read? The question pertains to me purchasing one. I really wanna get into DCC but , don't want to make my usual mistake and buy a cheap unit. Was thinking of the prodigy advanced but, have read a few posts on the other forums that people don't think they will match up to the NCE power-cab.
well, hope this thing works now ( thanks to bob if you got me up and running) And ,thank you for spending the time to read this and give your opinions.
Chris

 

[PNKFLOYD]

Pure hearsay....

My MRR club runs Digitrax, and considering the amount of pure ignorance working with it, it seems pretty reliable. We have had to repair some boosters, but Sh?t happens when dummies try to start and run a large DCC system. Amazingly, I was not at fault (not present!) when things quit working at a couple shows.
I have a friend in a large Milwaukee club that uses NCE, due to the guy who originated the DCC on their layout. They do well most of the time, but it will occasionally reprogram itself.
It is reliable after many hours of operation, but does not seem as easy to expand and upgrade as Digitrax.
Depending on the size of your layout and number of trains you plan to run at a time, you can purchase a mid-grade system Digitrax, NCE or other.
This would allow you to get started in DCC and be able to expand later as your railroad grows. My $.02 worth.
I have the same decision to make in the next 6 month, myself.

 

[grumpybob]

Talon104

I and 2 others in our group operate NCE full blown systems. In my case, i have just the main system and have been operating it for almost three years. It has been very easy to get up and running and usually have the new members using the smaller cabs in minutes of showing them what to do. I have been told that the new power cab is just as easy to operate and should handle small layouts without difficulty. the other 2 have expanded the system and added two boosters, and have nine power districts and expansion has been relatively simple.
Tony's train exchange has a number of articles on the product, and you should probably take a glance at them. When i was first looking at DCC systems, we tried just about all the major players in the market and settled on the NCE system as being the best for us. I am not necessarily recommending it, although i like it alot, but i am saying find out some groups in your area and see if you can test drive the different sytems to see for yourself. Also you might check NCE's web site.

Bob

 

[HaggisKennedy]

Don't have one, but will probably buy one eventually. A couple of folks on the NCE list say they're going to buy one to use on their workbench while installing decoders into whatever, and they can test/program them right there without having to walk to the layout.

I have not heard of any incompatibility issues, but like anything new, there could be an unknown bug somewhere lying undiscovered. I'm not overly worried about that, however.

Kennedy

 

[talon104]

thanks for the info and suggestions I am undecided on what system. i figure it is either going to be the NCE or the prodigy advanced. will have to do alot more info searching.
Thanks again for the help
Chris

 

[IronBeltKen]

One thing that had a major influence on my decision to go with Digitraxx was that at least a half-dozen of my local modeler friends had experience with it and were using it. This way I wouldn't have to depend on the manufacturer's tech support hotline being open if I ran into issues with it.

Now if only I could afford the decoders for all my locos...!

 

[Cjcrescent]

One thing that had a major influence on my decision to go with Digitraxx was that at least a half-dozen of my local modeler friends had experience with it and were using it. This way I wouldn't have to depend on the manufacturer's tech support hotline being open if I ran into issues with it.

I have to agree with Ken here. This one aspect is probably the most important, if you have issues with a system. This is generally the first piece of advice I give someone who asks the typical "what DCC system is best?".
They are all good, and all the companies have stellar repair/replacement histories. But it does pay to have access to someone who has had experience with a system. As Mike said as well, our club uses Digitraxx, and we all help each other with problems/ideas/setups etc.

Often times an issue that you are having is one that someone else in the group has already experienced and you can get some good advice without resorting to calling a tech help line, that is not available after a certain time or on weekends.