RMweb Gold The Johnster Posted April 16, 2020 RMweb Gold Share Posted April 16, 2020 Have pre-ordered the new Hornby/H & M app based Bluetooth controller for use with a smartphone. I reckon this has got a lot of potential for DC operators wanting wireless control, and if the quality is as good as my old faithful Gaugemaster HH I will be very happy with it, otherwise it's the cost of a new Bachmann wagon up the Swanee. I'll post on how it performs when it turns up, so you might not hear from me for a while, but my experiences may be of interest or even some use to someone. 1 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold tomparryharry Posted April 17, 2020 RMweb Gold Share Posted April 17, 2020 Knowing my luck with these technical gizmos, Doing a shunt by me will involve the fire brigade, Morrisons, OFCOM, and the local plod turning up all at once. Good luck Johnster, and I'll look forward to seeing the creature in action. Best wishes, Ian. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold The Johnster Posted April 17, 2020 Author RMweb Gold Share Posted April 17, 2020 You forgot the RNLI, Mountain Rescue, and the Mormons... And the creature will heretoforward and henceforthwithly be known as 'The Creature'. It's a box with an led to show it's working that plugs in to the track feed on one side and a 12Vdc supply on the other, no more or less complex than what you've been doing since you were a kid. Actual control is by Bluetooth connection from an app you download free to a smartphone, though what appearance it takes, whether it is clicking on buttons or a virtual knob I wot yet not. It works wirelessly in the sense that you can move around the layout untethered with it in your sweaty little palm, and can control separate circuits, and up to 4 accessories such as my signals as well; there are 4 of them. Who knows, maybe one day I'll invest in another one and some point motors... Range is Bluetooth, which is more or less line of sight, but I don't envisage this being a problem. There are no chips or circuitry to go on locos or vehicles, but it can apparently accommodate extras such as sound, but not like DCC. I'm quite impressed that untethered control can be done for £25, but I suspect that it will not be a commercial success for H, though a brave try! There are a few similar systems on the market from the States, but there has been no particular advance in DC control tech since the 70s. If it could include a small chip to switch locos off, it could make complex DC layout wiring easier but anyone who can afford a complex layout can probably afford DCC, which has improved immensely since the 70s. If there are limitations to this new analogue system, it will I suspect be in the smartphone interface. I'm thinking of feeding it from the 12Vdc controlled output on my venerable Gaugemaster, as this will give me the facility to limit the voltage and further refine control, and I will have a manual knob if I want one. I likes a manual knob, me. It is the first time I have ever pre-ordered something, but Peter Lord has promised to put aside a unicycling lion 94xx when he gets them for me, which is the same thing with the advantage of a day out down at Penarth Road, stroll by the river if it's a nice day followed by vittles in the Channel View Harvester... The novelty's worn off lockdown now, and I want to go to the pub. ATB from me & K, stay safe! 1 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold tomparryharry Posted April 19, 2020 RMweb Gold Share Posted April 19, 2020 On 17/04/2020 at 18:08, The Johnster said: You forgot the RNLI, Mountain Rescue, and the Mormons... And the creature will heretoforward and henceforthwithly be known as 'The Creature'. It's a box with an led to show it's working that plugs in to the track feed on one side and a 12Vdc supply on the other, no more or less complex than what you've been doing since you were a kid. Actual control is by Bluetooth connection from an app you download free to a smartphone, though what appearance it takes, whether it is clicking on buttons or a virtual knob I wot yet not. It works wirelessly in the sense that you can move around the layout untethered with it in your sweaty little palm, and can control separate circuits, and up to 4 accessories such as my signals as well; there are 4 of them. Who knows, maybe one day I'll invest in another one and some point motors... Range is Bluetooth, which is more or less line of sight, but I don't envisage this being a problem. There are no chips or circuitry to go on locos or vehicles, but it can apparently accommodate extras such as sound, but not like DCC. I'm quite impressed that untethered control can be done for £25, but I suspect that it will not be a commercial success for H, though a brave try! There are a few similar systems on the market from the States, but there has been no particular advance in DC control tech since the 70s. If it could include a small chip to switch locos off, it could make complex DC layout wiring easier but anyone who can afford a complex layout can probably afford DCC, which has improved immensely since the 70s. If there are limitations to this new analogue system, it will I suspect be in the smartphone interface. I'm thinking of feeding it from the 12Vdc controlled output on my venerable Gaugemaster, as this will give me the facility to limit the voltage and further refine control, and I will have a manual knob if I want one. I likes a manual knob, me. It is the first time I have ever pre-ordered something, but Peter Lord has promised to put aside a unicycling lion 94xx when he gets them for me, which is the same thing with the advantage of a day out down at Penarth Road, stroll by the river if it's a nice day followed by vittles in the Channel View Harvester... The novelty's worn off lockdown now, and I want to go to the pub. ATB from me & K, stay safe! Yes..... You make it sound so simple. Well, simple for you..... I'll be ordering tins of beans over the phone, and very dodgy text messages. I might even end up with a model of Flying Scotsman. Heaven Forbid! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold The Johnster Posted April 19, 2020 Author RMweb Gold Share Posted April 19, 2020 No, you don't want Skiving Flotsam. I do not believe you are as much a technophobe as you make out. though probably like me you are enough of a technophobe to not have DCC (the real reason is that I can't afford it, though). The Creature is exactly the same as your existing controller, and wired the same way, the only difference is there is no knob or direction control, and these functions are moved by BT connection to your phone. So long as the app downloads and the BT pairs ok, it'll work and I will understand how it works. Well, when I say understand what I really mean is I'll know what it does and how to make it do it. I press a switch on the wall and my living room light comes on, and while I have a fair idea of how the electrical current is controlled by the switch and how the light react to it, I have no idea what electricity is. In fact, the top physicists in world only know what it does and have a vague idea how, something to do with particles jostling each other in a waveform, but they don't know what it is. And the only thing they really know about gravity is what Newton told them, that it sucks... I've been sticking my Dart Castings notices on the boards this evening, and will paint the back of the wooden parts brown and weather them, and install them in plausible places on the layout. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold tomparryharry Posted April 20, 2020 RMweb Gold Share Posted April 20, 2020 I am a tecnophobe, pure & simple (very simple, actually). This throws up some interesting things, as Mrs. Smith has a doctorate in computing, and I have a professorship in mud pies. I've very deliberately kept away from from emerging technology. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
cliff park Posted April 20, 2020 Share Posted April 20, 2020 Ok, off topic, but your dislike of advancing technology reminds me of the lady who said that her mum grew up using horses for transport and was afraid of the motor car. She herself grew up with the motor car but was afraid to fly. Her daughter flew everywhere, but was afraid of horses. 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold tomparryharry Posted April 20, 2020 RMweb Gold Share Posted April 20, 2020 1 hour ago, cliff park said: Ok, off topic, but your dislike of advancing technology reminds me of the lady who said that her mum grew up using horses for transport and was afraid of the motor car. She herself grew up with the motor car but was afraid to fly. Her daughter flew everywhere, but was afraid of horses. Ah, I'm not afraid of emerging, or advancing technology. My reasoning is that there is a lot of existing technology which isn't fully utilised. A extremely classic example is the mobile phone. Sure, it can power an interplanetary space mission, but the end user can't spell.......It's a bit like oil & water, Facebook & grammar doesn't mix..... 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold The Johnster Posted April 26, 2020 Author RMweb Gold Share Posted April 26, 2020 That's because the sort of underclass that habitually infests FB and grammar don't mix, it's not the tech it's the people that are to blame. I resist DCC because I can't afford it, not from any other sort of disapproval. The HM6000 should work as well as my existing Gaugemaster setup, but allow untethered operation, exactly the sort of utilisation of existing technology that might appeal to you. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium kevinlms Posted April 26, 2020 RMweb Premium Share Posted April 26, 2020 On 20/04/2020 at 21:57, tomparryharry said: Ah, I'm not afraid of emerging, or advancing technology. My reasoning is that there is a lot of existing technology which isn't fully utilised. A extremely classic example is the mobile phone. Sure, it can power an interplanetary space mission, but the end user can't spell.......It's a bit like oil & water, Facebook & grammar doesn't mix..... Facebook and grammar, isn't the worst problem, it's certain parties and Twitter that ought not mix! 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold tomparryharry Posted April 26, 2020 RMweb Gold Share Posted April 26, 2020 2 minutes ago, kevinlms said: Facebook and grammar, isn't the worst problem, it's certain parties and Twitter that ought not mix! take the 3rd vowel, and replace it with the first vowel, and you might be about right... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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