Complete Massoth Dimax kit just popped up on eBay....

I have a 1200 Massoth - Really nice piece of kit - Wireless range is fantastic, the bolt ons (I have a shuttle unit) aren't cheap - but their rock solid in build and performance.

I'm looking to buy a SPROG - I've installed the software on a fellow G Scalers laptop and had a "play" with the read out and programming abilities of the SPROG - and it beats, hands down, any other MTS programming application I've seen.
It's frightning what you can actually do with this piece of kit! :love:
 
Mmmmmmm I am reading this thread with real interest. I have 3 distinct sections on my layout run by three separate TE receivers fed by a 13 amp TE Crest transformer. This all works great (track damage allowing - see Thursday 21st thread)....but I have been thinking of going over to the dark side of DCC on one or two of the sections, or at least having the facility. I purchased an LGB MTS 2 parallel system some time back becuase it was going cheap and it has sat in its box with added controllers and booster. I have only got a couple or three locos that are chipped and have really baulked at the cost of chipping the others as some are apparently real pigs to install into, according to the advice.
I also find the LGB programming system as about intuitive as a very unintuitive thing (that is me and I know that there are many of you who would scream "WHAT!?... is the man mad?"). But I am an Apple Mac man through and through and believe that if it is not easy to see what you have done while you are doing it, then it ain't intuitive.
I have to run three locos triple headed for decent length trains on the mainline, due to the incline on the layout, so the fact of chipping them for sound power and smoke (they are mostly USAT locos), as well as the power that they draw when dragging up the incline, has made me stick with what I know best .....analogue.....
BUT I saw Steve's (Bigjack) system which is a Massoth 1200Z etc with switch modules, wireless navigators etc and saw how slick DCC could be and also intuitive due to the graphic feedback on the Navigator screen.

I bought a Sprog system for Mac and have tinkered with that to explore programming and found that very intuitive.

So.....all in all
Although the Massoth is one hell of a beast and has some pretty slick features. I would save money, get a used MTS 2 or 3, a Sprog programming system and a Massoth Navigator and spend the rest on chips, or other lovely stuff.
But what do I know? I am a backward analogue kind of guy.......... well... in the trainworld that is ..........
 
beavercreek said:
......... I have only got a couple or three locos that are chipped and have really baulked at the cost of chipping the others as some are apparently real pigs to install into, according to the advice........
Click to expand...

Yes Mike, if you already have a large loco stable then chipping them all (especially with sound) is going to get pretty expensive... that's where I am glad that I started off with MTS this time round (I originally had some LGB back in the mid to late 80s, then sold it all again, regretted it and re-started collecting about 2003) - as I've added locos, I've either gone for ones that were ready-chipped (with sound where possible) or else have bought sound decoders for them as soon as possible after buying the loco - there are still quite a few that are waiting to have the chips installed, but at least I have them bought and paid for. Suddenly needing to do a dozen locos at once is an expensive proposition all in one go!

Installation of chips really isn't that hard, in my experience (caveat: most of the ones I've done are LGB, not US types) - so far I've done a variety from modern direct-plug-in types right back to very old LGB yellow-box stuff from the '70s, where you basically have to strip out all their internal wiring and start from scratch - but it's not that difficult in most cases, and (dare I say it) can even be fun and enormously satisfying when you do an install and everything works!

Jon.
 
Zerogee said:
can even be fun and enormously satisfying when you do an install and everything works!

Jon.
Click to expand...
Hi Jon
Yes those last few words in your posting are the real catch. As most of my locos are USAT, Bachamann (large scale and 1:20.3), Accucraft or Aristo (with a couple of LGB mallets -one of them really old and not DCC ready) I fear the eccentricities of the wiring without losing the smoke, lighting, sound etc will leave me with a few 'hard' expensive mistakes to learn from. The Newer Bachmann and even the newer Aristo locos do have an easier plug and play system providing you use Quantum decoders. The USAT jobbies and older Bachmann shays and climaxes are possibly the ones that will cause the most 'challenges'.
But I think that am really trying to convince myself that analogue is the way to stay as it is easier, if not for using all those great functions etc.

There is of course battery operated..........mmmmmmm.....more expense
 
I do appreciate what you mean, Mike, and yes, I've had a few problems (sorry, "learning opportunities"!) along the way - fortunately nothing that was too expensive or irrecoverable, touch wood. For older locos like you mention, I think the best way is to just get rid of whatever circuitry is already installed, and go back to first principles; as long as you can get access to the four important connections - track power feeds and motor terminals, either through existing wiring or by soldering new wires on - then those can be directly connected to the new decoder, along with everything else (lights etc). Even things like voltage regulators can be stripped out and discarded, because you can set up the decoder to feed the required voltage to each component - that's especially easy to do with the Sprog, which i agree is the most wonderful little piece of kit!

Jon
 
Zerogee said:
I think the best way is to just get rid of whatever circuitry is already installed, and go back to first principles; as long as you can get access to the four important connections - track power feeds and motor terminals, either through existing wiring or by soldering new wires on - then those can be directly connected to the new decoder, along with everything else (lights etc). Even things like voltage regulators can be stripped out and discarded, because you can set up the decoder to feed the required voltage to each component
Click to expand...
Excellent advice from Zerogee. The LGB wiring boards are surprisingly crude in many cases, so ripping them out is certainly no hardship.

Go on, enter the dark side! You know you want to! :bigsmile:
 
I started with MTS 2 in a starter set, and with in minutes i had my first head on train wreck:thumbup:

From here i could see the potential of DCC and that the layout when built would require just two wires to the track and i could park locos anywhere i wanted no section breaks to wire up.

Next came wireless remotes and reciver

Moveing on i acquired a MTS 3 to allow use of the Massoth navigator if funds allowed.

Navigator was eventually purchased, this came via a forum member:thumbup::thumbup:

The navigator is complex but the more i play with it the more i come to understand its abbilitys.(He awaits sarcastic comment)

Again via this forum:thumbup: an interface was purchesed to allow all my LGB stuff to work with the massoth dimax if one was ever sourced.

Due to my loco collection even expanding i needed to have more power to the rails and purchased the MTS booster and additinal transformer, howevre this was short lived due to the section breaks all falling on steep gradients and as the trains swap from one to the other there is a slight pause and caused a juder in the trains progress. (might be fine on the level but not mid gradient)

Then went for the 1200 central station still putting it to use and i am sure there is lots still to learn about it...

So here i am with full massoth set up and LGB add ons and a very happy chappy
Expensive yes but i am worth it:bigsmile::bigsmile:

I run mixed decoders LGB and Massoth and both makes of switch decoders as well.
 
Ian_S said:
I'm looking to buy a SPROG - I've installed the software on a fellow G Scalers laptop and had a "play" with the read out and programming abilities of the SPROG - and it beats, hands down, any other MTS programming application I've seen.
It's frightning what you can actually do with this piece of kit! :love:
Click to expand...
I use a Sprog, great bit of kit. The JMRI DecoderPro is so easy to use, that I sold my LGB 55045 MTS PC Decoder Programming Module.
 
littletone said:
I sold my LGB 55045 MTS PC Decoder Programming Module.
Click to expand...
I just brought one of these?

Brought an MTS 2 (P) from Zerogee at the beginning of the year. Getting to grips with it now and it's an excellent bit of kit. I have the Universal Remote (Zerogee advised that this is required for programming decoders) but would prefer the loco remote as I prefer an analogue control knob to digital buttons, and now I've got the 55045, I might look into swapping....
 
Come on someone please bid and save my marriage!!!
 
What marriage - theres one of these on fleabay.
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I've got a Sprog too, absolutely invaluable for programming and really good value for money. Worth noting that the DecoderPro software which is free is compatible with many different central stations too - the catch is that the computer interfaces alone can be more than twice the price of a Sprog, so even then the Sprog is the best buy unless you are connecting your central station to the computer for reasons other than programming.
 
well ive come out of the darkened room,,,, read a bit more,,, and gone back in again,,

i actually thaught someone was using a small child to programme his set up,

sprogs,,, i take it that this is not of a small humanoid form then,,,
 
Cheeky Monkey said:
The Sprog leaves the LGB programmer standing, the LGB unit only programmes up to CV99 the Sprog covers all CVs the LGb unit is only really any good if you only use LGB chips otherwise a Sprog is much more useful (especially with sound chips)

Bit of a bugger if you buy a Massoth XLS only to find the LGB unit can't access all the functions
Click to expand...
The LGB55045 with firmware v1.0 can read/write CVs 1-127, firmware v1.1 can read write CVs 1-255.

The Massoth DCC programming software can utilise the 55045 to its max. If you have an LGB555045 (or a Dimax Central station or Massoth PC programming unit) I would suggest you give this software a try.
 
musst,,, turn,, light,,,offfffffffffffff,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

errggggggggggg,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
 
daveyb said:
musst,,, turn,, light,,,offfffffffffffff,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

errggggggggggg,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
Click to expand...

That would be CV 41 to access the light turning function:rolf::rolf:
 
muns said:
The LGB55045 with firmware v1.0 can read/write CVs 1-127, firmware v1.1 can read write CVs 1-255.

The Massoth DCC programming software can utilise the 55045 to its max. If you have an LGB555045 (or a Dimax Central station or Massoth PC programming unit) I would suggest you give this software a try.
Click to expand...
Is this software available on a CD Mark?

I'd also like to have a CD copy of the LGB software for the LGB 55045 if this is available....
 
I went for the Lenz system from day one, it does the job for me. I've got the computer interface so I don't need to bother with a separate programmer, and wireless control via cordless phones works great. I added a booster to increase the power. I know plenty who have the Massoth system and it is good but I don't think it has anything my Lenz system doesn't have and I know I've spent less. My system doesn't support serial functions but I've no decoders that need it.

I think it is worth looking at all of the options and consider your needs before deciding on a digital system and don't only consider those systems traditionally associated with large scale.

Handheld tablet computers are now becoming much cheaper and I would not be surprised if these soon took over as wireless controllers for DCC systems. It can already be done.
 
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