TMCC - What Do I get?

You get about everything that you listed except I have heard double heading is pretty much no good. Too many performance differences between the two different manufacturers.

 

You will get the basic TMCC control but no access to Legacy features unless you buy the Legacy base and use it to control the a Legacy engines. If you buy a TMCC engine, you will not lose or gain any features that the engine has when controlling it with the DCS handheld

 

As we been telling people, if you think you will ever be buying a Legacy engine, then go ahead and get the Legacy 990 system over an older TMCC system. Legacy engines have been available for several years now, no sense for buying into old tech.

You won't get control of smoke volume, as that is a Legacy-only feature AFAIK, and I believe you need the Legacy remote to activate it.  As Chris mentioned, I can't imagine you'll get an MU with a PS/2 locomotive working very well, if at all.  Not only will the initial speed likely be different, there's no easy way to control both at the same time when you change speeds! 

 

RailSounds 4 just has one basic crew-talk message and a garbled response.  If the engine has RailSounds 5, you should hear the expanded range of responses.

You can raise/lower smoke with TMCC, not as precise as with Legacy but it does vary

What TMCC features will I get with the DCS hand-held-remote should I buy a Lionel steam locomotive with TMCC?

You should get everything you're referring to except the MTH Lionel MU providing you install a TMCC command base otherwise you'll only be running the Lionel engine in conventional mode and have the base features only (speed,direction,whistle,bell). As John and Chris said with the Legacy system you'll be able to run the Lionel engines with the MTH remote and get the TMCC features or run the Lionel engines with the Legacy remote and get all the features.

Ron

Really, and exactly how do you do that?  The only variability I'm aware of is the boost setting as you hold the smoke key on, but once you release it, it drops to the standard and non-variable value.

Thanks all for the education. Although I have been strictly an MTH runner, Lionel makes some locomotives that I must have such as the New York Central S2 electric, so the S2 may very well be my first try with a TMCC locomotive.

 

Now comes the hut for a affordable S2.

If DCS is able to mimic all cab1 functions, variable smoke is related to locomotive capability. There are some TMCC locos released just prior to legacy that have Low Medium and High settings. On the cab1 this is dome via keystrokes:

 

"Adjusting the smoke output"

Your locomotive features an improved smoke unit with variable smokeoutput.

 

In the TrainMaster
Command Control environment, you may select low, medium,or high smoke output using your
CAB-1 Remote Controller.

 

Your locomotive is shipped from the factory in the medium smoke output
setting.

 

To adjust the smoke output,bring the locomotive to a stop,press AUX1, AUX2, 9, then press L
for low smoke, M for medium smoke,or H for high smoke. Press AUX2 again to complete the
setting.

These are on ebay all the time. http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-YO...;hash=item5aed73c4b7

The operative word is some, or perhaps a few.  Most TMCC locomotives don't have that capability.   I actually wasn't aware that was added before Legacy, I presume those are some of the models that also got the RS5 sound upgrades?

Good choice, and it comes with the enhanced RailSounds 5 sounds as well.

Correct, and I think it may be limited to  scale steamers.

I'm guessing that may be one of the enhancements that was in the later versions of R2LC firmware, I'll have to try a C13 in one of my locomotives and see if it gives it variable smoke.

Did't just plain old "Aux1" --> "8" turn the smoke off on TMCC?  "Aux1" --> "9" either turned it on, or gave it a boost if you held the "9".

 

-Dave

That's the classic for most TMCC locomotives.  Apparently, right before Legacy, Lionel added the three step smoke control like Legacy to some TMCC locomotives.  I've never seen it, or I just didn't realize it when I saw it, but apparently it exists.

My C&O allegheny #1650 has railsounds 5 with 3 different levels of smoke output. Yep, it's out there. 