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I'm finalizing the plans for my Nscale layout. I'm planning on using NCE, I've been using it at an operating session I attend and love the feel of it. What is the difference between a NCE sold separately decoder and a locomotive that comes dcc equipped? Should I buy a dcc ready engine instead? I also couldn't find a NCE decoder with sound in Nscale, do they exist? Thanks!
It all depends on the brand of loco you are buying and what decoder the manufacturer puts in the engine. Bachmann, for example, puts a stripped down version of a Tsunami decoder in their DCC equipped engines.
I would recommend purchasing a locomotive that already has DCC installed.
N scale locos are small and for a first time attempt maybe a challenge. Most locos offered today that are DCC ready means just pugging in the decoder after removing the shell and away you go.
Installing a sound decoder is another matter. The biggest task is finding room for the speaker.
I'm finalizing the plans for my Nscale layout. I'm planning on using NCE, I've been using it at an operating session I attend and love the feel of it. What is the difference between a NCE sold separately decoder and a locomotive that comes dcc equipped? Should I buy a dcc ready engine instead? I also couldn't find a NCE decoder with sound in Nscale, do they exist?
The whole point of DCC is that the controller does not have to match the decoders. An NCE command system will control decoders of any vendor.
Each locomotive vendor chooses what brand of decoder they will put into a given locomotive. I agree with the prior poster. Especially in N-scale, sound is very hard to put in. I would highly recommend purchasing locomotives with factory installed sound.
