Thanks All, next question: Can I use digital with a mix of Motors? ie Romford Bulldog, Sagami can Escap etc? Locos are mix of Flieschman, & scratch built. Again simple answers, and i dont give a flying fig about "snob value"!

Hi Trevor, Again the simple answer is yes. Most DCC chips allow you to adjust certain settings (CV's) to obtain optimum performance. Steph Dale appears to be pretty knowledgeable about this :D John

Steph Dale appears to be pretty knowledgeable about this Enter stage right to mild applause... " Hello everybody"... :wink: :oops: :roll: Trevor, Yep, you can. In essence, what DCC gives you is the controller on-board the loco. With most of the better/worthwhile decoders the controller can be accurately tailored to the motor type. For coreless motors you may need different decoders to other motors. The 'Bulldog' might be interesting to fit a decoder to, but with a good decoder I'd be suprised if it wouldn't only work, but work better too. http://www.euram-online.co.uk/dcc/decoders/decoders.htm is the relevant page on our site which covers the fitting of decoders (with all due apologies if your Grandmother already knows how to suck eggs) and makes a couple of recommendations. More in-depth reviews of each of the decoders follow at the bottom of the page. I hope that's all of some interest - if I can be of any further assistance feel free to contact me off-line or through the forum. Best wishes, Steph

Thanks Steph, I will try & get in contact when I get back to UK, I live fairly close to Brisel so may be we can get together? Trevor (Thats if I ever get out of this part of Africa!)

Trevor, By all means; ping me when you get back to blighty... Tim, PMT 98 has a six-pin socket I think? It's pretty small so an n-gauge decoder would seem sensible. It's also small, so on-board power might be useful, but I don't know how a Lenz Power1 could be fitted. I'd suggest something like a Zimo MX62N with a couple of capacitors for on-board power. PMT VT135 has an eight-pin socket and a bit of room, but it's only four wheel and you probably don't want to clutter up too much of the interior so maybe a Zimo MX63R with a couple of capacitors? Brawa V15 (in bits, on my workbench!) I've got the decoder for this one Tim; Lenz Gold Mini and Power1. Fleischmann BR91. Tricky this. If the loco hasn't got a socket you'll need a decoder with plain cables. I can't remember whether it's a conventional or ringfield motor either. And I bet there's not much space inside anyway. Maybe this is also a candidate for Zimo MX62? The highish current rating may make it more suitable than a Lenz 'Silver Mini', but the latter is likely to be okay if it's a current generation Fleischmann loco with a can motor. I don't think on-board power will really be necessary with this one as it's got plenty of pickups. Just a couple of thoughts, unfortunately the two PMT locos are a bit of an unknown quantity as regards motor perfromance/quality so having the full set of motor CVs is porbably a good idea. The V15 I know runs very well with a Lenz Gold Mini and Power1. I've fitted mine with that combination. Taking the circuit board out also means it fits in the cab below the window line. That leaves the Fleischmann 91 as the only 'curve ball'; space and current rating are probably the deciding factors here. Steph

Steph Do you rate the Zimo decoders above the rest? I have one loco fitted with a Zimo (Minitrix Br44) and performance is excellent. It was fitted with an older Lenz which did not give the slow speed running I had hoped for, however this could have been due to lack of fine tuning on my part The Zimo was true plug 'n' play. Too put the question another way, are the latest Lenz decoders as good as Zimo? Rupert

Robert, I like the Zimo decoders if I'm not sure how good a particular motor is. Whether good or bad the Zimo will get the most out of it, though they do require a bit of programming. As you've noticed the performance is very good when used on their default settings - I assure you it 's even better when fully programmed. The Lenz Gold and Silver decoders are very good when used with modern ready to run. I'm not particularly happy using them modern Liliput though. ESU decoders are very good too, particularly with coreless motors, though they also perform stunningly on modern r-t-r. The LokPilot V3.0 is exceptional value for money and a firm favourite. For smaller decoders the Lenz Gold Mini (+ Power1) is taking some beating. The Power1 module allowing even small locos to run faultlessly on dirty track. The Zimo MX62/MX620 has a usefully higher current rating than the Lenz - especially if you're going to use it in HO gauge models. These and all other current Zimos can be fitted with a home made version of Lenz Power1 to help with dirty track. Simply: Large loco, with space - ESU Large loco, little space - Zimo MX62 Small loco, with space - Gold Mini +Power1 Small loco, little space - Zimo MX62 + power Small loco, coreless or unknown motor - Zimo MX62 + power It's not an exhaustive list and there's more comment on the web page I referred to earlier in this thread. These are the decoders I've had some practise with and which I'm comfortable suggesting to people: Zimo; MX61 2000, MX62, MX63, MX64 Lenz; Gold, Gold Mini, Silver etc... ESU; LokPilot v3.0, LokSound v3.5 Tim, You certainly could use the CTElectronic decoder in the railcar. But with only four wheels wouldn't you like to have some power on board as well? Steph

I found their website a few years ago http://www.kuehn-digital.de/ but have never bought anything. Rupert

Tim, The Kuehn decoder looks useful. But I don't quite understand why you want a multi-protocol decoder if all you're going to use is DCC? There are plenty of other decoders that are a lot easier to get hold of for a start... Quite correct about the Zimo MX62/MX620. I've used and liked both. The 'T' designated decoders are NMRA 21-pin (eugh!), 'N' are NMRA 6-pin direct type. Useful for your PMT BR98.70, yes. But designed for it? No - the last time I tried, the decoder needed fiddling to make it fit. Neither CTElectronic nor Zimo can be used with the Lenz Power1, and the power pack circuit provided for the Zimo decoder will not work with a Lenz Gold either. CTElectronic do not provide the power pack functionality on their decoders at all as far as I can tell from the couple I've seen and from reading their blurb. Steph

Tim, Yep, MX620N for the BR98.70. The Zimo decoder can be used with home-made power modules (as detailed in their instructions) this gives a little more flexibility than fitting the, admittedly small, Lenz Gold Mini and Power1 combination. Steph