Will old DCS Remotes work wirelessly with the new WTIU? Their descriptions dont really address it clearly. They do say "Tethered Layout Control Using DCS Handheld Remote". I sure hope so as not everyone wants to or can use their phone. Thanks JB
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My understanding is that the new wifiTIU will not work wirelessly with the previous DCS remotes. Cabled operation only.
Tethered operation only is the option with the new WTIU. In other words, pretty useless! 
No. The remote must be tethered with a handset cord. I prefer the remote for the way I run trains. In the world of DCC. Many use a tethered remote. With multiple stations around the layout to plug into. Especially ones with layouts designed for operations with multiple operators. I asked MTH if that would be a possibility. Although it was a conventional control throttle before 3 rail command. The short lived Al Trol throttle was tethered.
MTH has the ability to run Lionel engines. Yes you need both bases. I know MTH in it’s present state is probably not developing new product. But if they had designed a new fancy wireless remote to go with their TIU. They may have got some Lionel runners into their camp just to have a remote to run their trains.
@gunrunnerjohn posted:Tethered operation only is the option with the new WTIU. In other words, pretty useless!
I have 2 tiu's and 3 handhelds. I did order the WTIU when it was first announced, and I have no idea why I did. I think I got caught up in the electronics scarcity scare of the time.
I made sure I had lots of TIU's before they went extinct, a few years ago they were selling for peanuts. I figure in about another year the two complete Rev. L TIU's with a remote each will sell for enough for another Vision Line locomotive! 
Thats really disappointing! Why leave out this segment of users? I was looking forward to a new/modern electronics TIU as our club has burned through 4 over the years and we sue them alot. We are on the last one with 3 good channels...
John
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For sure John - you can fund your retirement!
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@John B posted:Thats really disappointing! Why leave out this segment of users? I was looking forward to a new/modern electronics TIU as our club has burned through 4 over the years and we sue them alot. We are on the last one with 3 good channels...
John
It's a mystery why they decided to eliminate the wireless feature of the remote. The only good reason might be that the reallocation of the 900mhz frequency bands rendered their remote obsolete. I can't think of any other good reason for the decision.
HO has wireless remotes no reason O gauge can't have them too.
It would seem that operating existing TIUs in passive mode would help preserve then if you have one now.
@feet posted:HO has wireless remotes no reason O gauge can't have them too.
Certainly not. I think what is being discussed here is why the existing remote was abandoned since they obviously can talk to it with the tether. If it were the radio board, it would have been classy to simply design a new transceiver board for the DCS remote as a retrofit upgrade. Since the transceiver is a separate board, there would have been possible without changing anything about the rest of the remote.
I have a previous post from a couple of years ago about addressing the WTIU & Wireless remote problem. I suspended development on this because of some technical details that Dave Hikel pointed out. I plan to resume development once I get a WTIU and time for such projects. GRJ may be on to something here because the 900MHz radio boards I planned to use are NLA and my quick searches haven't yielded any good substitutes.
Below is my previous post: https://ogrforum.com/topic/dcs...2#159660139098152932
Below is a little project I started on just before Christmas and with the help of an engineer at work as well as "borrowing" a prototype project board from a customer at work, we believe it is possible to use one or more DCS remote(s) with the new WTIU.
We are running on the assumption that the Remote Input port on the WTIU will work the same as it does on the current TIU. I don't see why it wouldn't.
We removed the 900 MHz transceiver from a REV. L TIU to ensure the remote couldn't communicate directly and communications had to run through our apparatus into the Remote Input port. I've had to hide the "Magic" inside of a temporary black project box at the request of the customer who loaned it to us. The radio board you see on top is a Panstick that is used as the new transceiver for the communications to and from the DCS Remotes. So far we have been able to interface 3 DCS remotes at the same time to this single TIU through the Remote Input port. I would have tried more but that was all the more remotes I have available to me right now. We are pretty sure that Super TIU mode works as we linked this setup with another regular TIU in Super mode without issue.
Not sure where this project will ultimately lead as it started out only as a proof of concept. When I get my hands on a WTIU I will test it again to verify the concept.
Very cool, something that was only at the TIU end would be super!
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