TWG

So do Uhlenbrock, Döhler & Haass and Train-o-Matic. I agree with Paul Chetter's view on the advantages of updateable decoders, but the snag is that each manufacturer has his own updating device that is suitable only for his decoders. Such devices are expensive, so one either needs to be rich or to confine oneself to a single make of decoder.

You are wrong to say that Zimo does not offer a shuttle feature. It is turned on and off in CV193. See page 22 of the small decoders instructions. If you exclude Lenz and DCC Concepts from your consideration, you have little other choice. The Tams LD-G-33 plus and 34 plus are possibilities for 8 pins. The Uhlenbrock 74120 has a feature, called Intellimatic, that allows you to programme chains of up to 256 events, which can be used to set up a shuttle.

A look at the instructions for the Basic's predecesso,r the Standard, would probably give you a rough idea of what it lacks in comparison with the Pilot 5.

Difficulties with coreless motors are, in DCC terms, ancient history. It is a question of the decoder output PWM frequency. Early decoders used low frequencies, about 150Hz. When it was discovered that this was bad for coreless motors, a higher frequency alternative was offered of about 16kHz (the first decoder to provide this was, if I remember correctly, the Lenz LE80). This was found to be suitable for all motors, so it became standard. CT Elektronik decoders still offer the original choice, but the alternative on many current decoders is between 16kHz and a still higher frequency (32 or 36kHz).

You can order direct from CT Tran.

Perhaps we have a different understanding of the word, but I do not think that Crewlisle's description of polarity switches and rail bonding as "gizmos" is appropriate. To me they are simple modifications that will save you trouble in the long run. This topic is one that has cropped up regularly over the years and Crewlisle often has dismissed, with fervour, the idea of frog switching. In some posts in the past he has revealed what seems to me the essential weakness of his argument, by saying that to avoid problems with switchblades you have to clean them regularly. On even a medium sized layout this is a boring and unnecessary chore. It is not difficult to bond the blades and switch the frog. Peco points these days are designed to facilitate the work. If you can't cope because you can't solder or your intellectual capacity is insufficient to understand the principles, then model railways are probably not the hobby for you, as they will provide more frustration than pleasure.

According to Uhlenbrock, a Daisy2 throttle consumes 25mA. The Loconet T has an output of 500mA, so there should be plenty of power.

The post to which this was a response said "It's a choice between a frog juicer or a better point motor with a more reliable switch...". This could be construed as applying to the alternative when you asked for "any suggestions". So perhaps King Edward viewed it in this light. In my opinion it is a good suggestion. SEEPs are crude devices which I see as a relic of the past. Some people think that frog juicers are in principle not a good idea. If you search RMWeb you will find previous discussions on the matter.

Flashing lights on a loco with a Lenz decoder indicate a short circuit (this also happens with Kuehn decoders and possibly others); the safety cutout has switched the decoder off to avoid damage. It is odd that this is not mentioned in the instructions. Since everything else works when the lights are disconnected, it seems likely that when you replaced the bulbs with LEDs you created a short circuit somewhere. So I suggest that you get out your multimeter and check your alterations.

I believe that Nigel Cliffe may be right in thinking that the problem could be to do with the power supply. I have recently had problems with Loconet that were cured by a change of power supplies. My situation is not the same as yours in that my Loconet serves a Uhlenbrock Intellibox rather than a Digitrax device, and the makers' interpretations of Loconet are not 100% compatible. Nevertheless the same principles apply in most respects. A Loconet accessory decoder worked erratically. A control panel encoder, similar in many ways to a DTM30, caused the Intellibox not to start properly; the last used loco addresses did not appear as they normally do and it was not possible to select a loco. Connecting the devices to a different power supply solved the problems completely.

The ready to run version does have a motor with a digital decoder and sound module. See https://viessmann-modell.com/en/product-range/gauge-h0/railmotion/2597/h0-robel-track-motor-car-54.22-db-netz-with-motorized-crane-functional-model-2-rail-version?c=240.

If you are going to change, the Z21 may well be a suitable choice, but what makes you think that you will get on better than with the Piko systems? Your post is not entirely clear, but I infer that you have both the Smartcontrol and the Smartcontrol light systems (which are not directly compatible with one another). Both are good systems in their different ways that could serve you well. Have you tried both with equal lack of success? Before you spend a lot more money, give us some details of your problems; someone may be able to help you overcome the difficulties.

There are decoders designed for 6 volt motors, such as the CT Elektronik DCX65 and the Doehler & Haass PD06.

The death of Selectrix has been prophesied for many years, but it refuses to die. Perhaps the German saying Totgesagte leben laenger (those expected to die live longer) applies. There are several small firms producing SX equipment (e.g. Digit Electronic) in addition to the firms mentioned in the Wikipedia article, who are all still active. Rautenhaus now has its own Multiplex system RMX which uses the SX system for its accessory bus. The Doehler & Haass FCC is no longer available, but this is only temporary pending the introduction of a new improved version called FCCx. For the first time Uhlenbrock offer SX capability in their new decoders and the Intellibox has always offer SX loco control. I have read that there are quite a few people in Germany who for computer control use the Selectrix bus in combination with DCC systems because of its high speed and reliability. So don't write Selectrix off yet! I am planning a tram layout which will be Selectrix controlled. When Rautenhaus introduced RMX, they took a lot of old SX control units in part exchange and sold them refurbished very cheaply, so I took advantage. It will be interesting to try something new.

It is not clear to me if the loco is HO or N gauge. If the former, I see a contradiction between the claim that it is brand new and it having a DCC/SX decoder. As pointed out above, modern Trix HO locos have mfx/DCC decoders and SX support is confined to Minitrix. I believe that the reason for this is that in Germany Selectrix still has a fairly strong following among N gauge modellers; for a long time Selectrix had decoders that were much smaller than anything available for DCC. Originally Maerklin intended to include SX in their digital control units. The Mobile Station 1 had it, but it was dropped for the MS2. The CS2 had a socket on the back marked Selectrix (which was not operational) but it has disappeared from the CS3. Doehler & Haass dual format decoders were at one time Selectrix decoders with limited DCC capabilities, but the latest ones are excellent in both modes - outstanding motor control and a very impressive specification.

Going back to the control unit, I suggest that you look carefully at the Piko Smart Control light. At about £150 it seems to me remarkable value and it would be more than adequate to meet the requirements of the layout as adumbrated above.

I have been thinking about your problem but there seems to be no obvious answer. As the decoders work with other digital centres the difficulty presumably lies in the Intellibox. It seems odd that the IB2 programmes the decoders but will not drive them; I take it that there are no problems with other types. Why are you changing CVs 17 and 18? You never need to go near them as the IB2 sets them automatically in the normal programming process. As you can read the decoders, have you checked that the loco address is what you think that you have set? To what have you set CV29? I have come up with only one suggestion, which I view as a faint hope. Are the decoders Lokpilot or Lokpilot DCC? If the latter, are the locos entered in the loco databank? If so, check that the digital system setting for the loco is correct (i.e. DCC and not Märklin Motorola or Selectrix). Some of my locos have Selectrix decoders and I have occasionally found that when a loco refused to move it was because the wrong format had been saved in the databank.

As usual, Nigel Cliffe is right in what he says. The change in the setting of the control knob is also described in section 5.4.2 of the Piko instructions. You could employ a mobile phone or a tablet for control, using the Digitrax Loconet WiFi interface, which is compatible with Uhlenbrock systems.

I have a loco fitted with a Next18 socket (a Brawa model) where I could not get the decoder to fit reliably. The loco ran for a while and then the decoder came loose; the lights still worked but the motor did not. I could not discover any reason for this, so I concluded that the socket deviated in some small respect from the specification. Normally the decoder goes into a socket with a perceptible click and is held firmly.

If you want the smallest possible decoder I suggest that you look at the CT Elektronik DCX65, which measures 6x5x1.8mm (compared with 15x7x2.7 for the Zen Nano). This is the decoder for low voltage motors mentioned by Nigel Cliffe above. Despite its astonishingly small size, it has a full specification (see www.tran.at) and will withstand a track voltage up to 21V. A low voltage alternative is the Döhler & Haass P006A.

I reply to your question with some hesitation, since I am not familiar with the Gaugemaster Prodigy, but as nobody else has come up with anything I will make some tentative suggestions. I think that the chances of messing up the Prodigy are remote. Your wording as to whether the decoder is alreay installed is ambiguous, but it won't make any difference whether it is or not. The Piko accessory decoder (which is a rebadged Uhlenbrock product), when in programming mode, registers the accessory code message sent to it and stores it in its memory; it then reacts when it next receives an appropriate message. So what you have to do is to send a point command to it while it is receptive (i.e. in programming mode). So start by following the Piko instructions: Press the programme button. The decoder is set up for progamming by the Märklin Motorola system, so press the button again to change to DCC. Then send a command for point 5. Repeat for 6. You probably know how to do this better than I, but from the instructions it seems to me that you press ACCY, enter, then five, and then either 1 or 2. I hope that you have success, as it would be a pity in the circumstances to have to buy a further Prodigy decoder, which to my mind is excessively expensive.

This is not true. There are some decoders (e.g Zimo, latest Uhlenbrock, Döhler & Haass, Lenz) which by means of CV settings can switch rear lights separately without any rewiring. Generally the red rear lights are then switched by functions 1 and 2. See, for instance, section 3.16 of the Zimo decoder instructions or page 32 of the D&H. Regrettably ESU does not, as far as I can see from the instructions, have this facility.

I have tried asking Daisy Tool to communicate with a Profiboss and it would not. A message appears saying "handset does not answer". I was using an Intellibox 2 as intermediary but I do not think that this would make any difference.

I do not think that the noise sounds as if there is a problem with the frequency of the decoder output. There is none of the stutter (literal or otherwise) that this causes. Moreover Zimo decoders offer a choice of alternative frequencies, 20kH or 40kH. The lower of these is considerably higher than is required for any conventional motor. It is high enough for coreless motors, with which a high frequency is essential.

I think that you would find the Daisy2 a good choice for simple operation. When I have exhibited my layout, club members who assisted me found, despite no previous experience of DCC, that they mastered operation very quickly and liked using the Daisy.. Setting up the roster by pushing buttons on the Daisy is a time consuming business. If you have a computer connection, you might be able to use a programme called Daisy Tool that reduces the tedium greatly; it can be downloaded, free, from www.uhlenbrock.de, but I do not know if this would work via a Digitrax digital centre.