# Questions concerning CVP and QSI products.



## Cooke (Aug 26, 2012)

I have a couple of questions also maybe you could help me with.

First off I'm planning on purchasing the NCE G-wire to use as my throttle. So that leaves me to QSI and CVP for receivers/decoders. I've had trouble on the manufacturers website determining what the minimum required. 

With QSI
Is Quantum G-wire receiver needed to be used with a titan decoder? Sound would come stock? Does this provide RC or RCC?

For CVP
The receiver is built into to the G3 decoder, right? I would only need a dcc decoder if I wanted sound? Does this provide RC or RCC?


Thanks,
Patrick


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## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

QSI needs the G-wire receiver. The QSI is motor and sound in one unit, DC, DCC and Airwire with the optional receiver. 

The CVP decoders are motor only, no DCC no DC, they MUST be used with "Airwire style" controls, ther receiver is built in. You need to add a DCC sound decoder to "round out" the package. 

I have no clue what RCC means, I think Aristo tried to coin the name...


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## SD90WLMT (Feb 16, 2010)

I'll pop right in here and ask Greg what ranges ( those ranges that come in feet, ya those kind!! ) you get using the NCE as a controller over the QSI as a decoder...? 

D :~ } never guess where I've been...?


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## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

The ranges vary quite a bit.... you can change antennas on the NCE, and you can change the antennas on the older CVP to get more range. I know the internal "patch" antennas are popular, but they don't have as good radiation patterns as the simple whips. My experience is that the range is somewhat less in good conditions and a lot less in others. 

Dirk, your layout is too large to control everything from one location! I can hear your thoughts. You need an array of base stations like track power DCC systems use if you want control of all locos from anywhere. 

Greg


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## paintjockey (Jan 3, 2008)

Something to think about. The NCE TX wasn't able to program an airwire RX. Not sure about the new G3. 
Terry


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## East Broad Top (Dec 29, 2007)

Patrick, you're on the right track. 

There are three components you "need" for wireless, on-board DCC control: A) receiver, B) motor/light control, C) sound control. There are no DCC compatible boards on the market right now which combine all three into one board. The G3 combines the receiver and motor/light control onto one board (A and B), and you must add a DCC-compatible sound board of your choosing (C). Many use Phoenix, though you can also use the Tsunami for a less-expensive option. (The Tsunami is a sound/motor decoder in its own right, but in this instance you're using just the sound side of it.) The Titan combines motor, light, and sound control onto one board, (B and C) and you must add the G-wire wireless receiver (A) receiver to the mix. 

I use both combinations (Airwire/Phoenix and G-wire/Titan), and am hard-pressed to say with any certainty which combination I like better. There are arguably advantages to having the sound and motor control all on one board, as the sound can be intertwined with what the motor is doing to a much larger degree. However, I've been using Phoenix sound boards with Airwire and you can tune them to be quite "interactive" with what the motor is doing as well. No, it doesn't do it the same way as is done with a motor/sound decoder that's reading and reacting to current draw, etc., but it's still very effective. (You do need the Phoenix programming interface to tweak the sound boards.) In terms of cost, they're both right around the $300 mark, so that's pretty much a wash. 

The NCE controller will control both the Titan and Airwire boards very nicely. As Terry states, there are reports of occasional weirdness when _programming_ Airwire boards with the NCE controller. I've experienced these myself, but others have had no troubles doing the same thing (and vice versa--I've had success where others have had troubles.) These were with the older-generation G2 and original Airwire boards; the G3 may not have these issues. 

The difference, as I see it, comes down to the higher-end functions. The Titan has a number of lighting outputs, and can control a fan-driven smoke unit coordinated to chuff or diesel exhaust, etc. It's also the more compact form factor and comes in plug-and-play format for Aristo and Bachmann locos--thus suitable for smaller-space installations. You're not going to go wrong with either combination. 

Whichever route you go, I heartily recommend getting the Phoenix and QSI programming software interfaces. The Titans are very complex, and pretty much the only "not-going-to-pull-your-hair-out" method of setting up your sounds is to use their programmer--especially if you're setting up two speakers and want to balance the sounds between the two speakers. The programming interface is mandatory for tweaking sounds on the Phoenix board. 

Later, 

K


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## Cooke (Aug 26, 2012)

Thanks for the replies. 
Greg, by RCC, I mean radio comand control. I realize this isn't an official term but to me it describes a system that has programable parameters such as momentum and braking. Kevin, your replies makes things much clearer for me, I appreciate it. 

Thanks again, 
Patrick


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