This is Ron now with his 2¢ worth, not Mike!
I'm back in model railroading after almost 30 years pause, and only a few weeks ago I laid my first few meters of track. So I dug out my archaic DC throttle, hooked it up with two wires - and away we went.
Point 1: Mike is right - old DC throttles never die. They are easy to use and reliable. And I remember that on my old layout in the 70's part of the fun really was the switching work for allocating the blocks to the trains. (Gary note: I'm NOT rationalizing my disklike for DCC!
)
BUT: Of course I also dream of the possibility to command several locos independently from the same walkaround throttle. 30 years back there simply was no way of doing that. Block control was the way to go - period!
Oh well, I know quite a bit about computing - and that's why I consider DCC to be a well thought-out system. (My kudos to the NMRA team which set up these standards! Their concept is easy and clear and therefore older decoders etc hardly ever can become obsolete.)
Point 2: Gary is right - DCC offers fantastic possibilities without the need for constant updating (like computers
).
So where does that leave Shawn (and me)? I think it would be best to compare both systems, trying both out. Shawn, try to find other modelers (or perhaps friendly hobby shops) where you can get the 'feeling' for both systems by hands-on experience.
As for me: I already know DC, so I looked for an opportunity to run a DCC loco. And a few days back I had the chance to run some trains on a DCC layout. I confess, I am hooked! BUT: The big minus of DCC is the cost of it. Others pointed that out - and they are right. I don't have many engines,but even so the conversion sums up to a substantial amount.
Best thing is that you can run both systems together. So I'll stay with DC for the next time. Then, after buying the basic elements of DCC (have to scratch the needed bucks together first
) I'll follow the philosophy of Gary: Conversion of my locos one by one, leaving the rest in the boxes (or on a side track as a scenery item
). With a little bit of planning this should work out - in how much time I don't know! But who cares, there's no deadline ahead!
Ron
PS: Somehow the hissing and spitting in OTHER forums between DCers and DCCers reminds me of the 'holy wars' between the Apple- and Windows-users: Non-productive, useless and outright childish.
What a relieve to have an objective discussion here! Thank you all and let's keep it that way!