What is DCC?

DCC stands for Digital Command Control, many people without an understanding of electronics, at this point simply nod their heads, feigning comprehension of the words, with whatever their interpretation is, based upon the words and their personal experience and knowledge.

Really what DCC is, a set of rules, or rather a communication protocol, which allows the different devices to speak the same language, those rules are regulated by the National Model Railroad Association (NMRA), who in return, certifies different manufactures equipment saying that it follows the rules, allowing the manufacturer to use the DCC logo and certification when selling their products.

What this means is that any DCC system will work with any DCC decoder, as they speak the same language. However, this does not mean that one manufactures handheld controller will necessarily work with another manufacturer’s handheld. The handheld controllers often use their own form of communication between the command station and the handheld.  However, Luckly, there is often interfaces and software that can communicate with the command station via a common household network using the same communication protocols as any other network device.  This protocol, in today’s world most people have worked with and heard about, the protocol is called TCP/IP, which again, is simply a defined set of rules which allows one device to communicate with another.

 So, what is DCC? It’s simply a digital communication protocol, which allows you to send digital signals with power on the tracks, to a digital decoder, which receives those commands to do various tasks, from turning on or off a light or playing a sound. Or any combination thereof, bringing your model trains to life, and allowing any number of digitally controlled trains and devices to exist on two rails, with two wires from your command station to those rails.

For some technical information: The digital signal used with DCC cannot be transmitted wirelessly, a wireless signal is only analog, this is based upon the physical definition, analog is identified as a sinewave whereas digital is a square wave, so if someone says to their wireless control system can work on DCC, the rhetorical question, is can you control the locomotive with a DCC system or is just drawing power from the track, but being controlled by their interface – this is not DCC or even working with DCC as defined by the NMRA, but rather a specific preparatory communication between the third party devices.  

This means that companies such as CVP’s Airwire, Rings Railpro, and Revolution are not DCC – some of them use the same command structure internally, all of them with the correct circuitry may be operated from any power source, such as Battery, Track AC, DCC or DC.

Blue rail, or Bluenami – use their own interface via a phone, to control a decoder, this is the same as using an Airwire or revolution add on receiver board.

Hope this information provides a basic idea of what DCC allows you to further enjoy the hobby.