Hi all
I glad to see the news about a possible new CS, I was just about to spend 1,300 euros on a mega start set to get a CS! I will hold on to the money and wait and see.
Perhaps something will be said at Goppening, sorry I cannot spell, in a couple of weeks.

Or on a lighter note, perhaps I'll wait for the Apple/Marklin i6 Central station!!!!

Harry

In the grander scheme of things I would be very surprised if Marklin introduced a CS3 (or whatever its called) until component availability becomes a issue for the current one. After all ROI is the most important consideration for most businesses these days, not pandering to a vocal minority of tech obsessed model railroaders. I'm quite sure the average punter doesn't even come close to using the CS2 (or 1 for that matter) to its full capability.

The current unit is more than capable considering the interfaces and SW updates will manage future "loco/accessories" features with perhaps a conversion "box" to deal with any unforeseen developments.

Lets face it we are running model trains and not trying to do real time video conversion or play world of warcraft on it so it is more than up to the job at hand from a technical point of view. Well assuming you aren't trying to run 100+ loco's without computer control.

And for pete's sake who the hell needs 32 functions on a loco, god the real ones don't have that many .

Just my take on it of course, I could be totally barking up the wrong tree

I guess MS3 will arrive out too...?

I can verify that Tom was NOT seeing things. I checked the Marklin website as soon as I read his post, the 60215 was definitely shown as 'No longer produced'.



My thoughts, exactly. Thirty Two functions is way too many, and I really can't see the point of it except for someone to have bragging rights.......'My loco has 32 functions, yours only has 10....nah nah nah.......'

Who in their right mind is going to sit there activating all of those function, let alone try to control 32 functions on multiple locos. Personally, I don't use more than about 5 or 6.

John has hit the nail on the head, if you're going to have 32 functions, then there needs to be some method of automatically activating them.......whistle when a loco goes into a tunnel, smoke on when it comes out, etc.

As for having a CS3 as a black box, with no screen or throttle, rather it requires the use of an andriod / ithingy/PC tablet/phone/ whatever plus wifi to control it, the problem with that is that it would preclude the CS3 from being included in a mega starter set. Most folks buying a mega starter set would not want to have to purchase wifi plus a tablet/whatever to get the thing to run - yes I know most folks have that stuff already, but there are those who do not.

To me this is the reason for having so many functions available. It means a whistle will always be on a given function, smoke will also always be on another function that will be unused on an electric or diesel loco, but a diesel loco will have a startup initiated on another function that steam and electric won't use, etc. It means you don't need to have maps listing the functions of all your locos for automatic control of sounds such as whistle at railway crossing or tunnel.



If they do produce a 'front panel-less CS' then I suspect it will be alongside the CS2 which will still be required for start sets.

Rather than something without a front panel, I would suggest that a new CS would be similar to the existing one but also have a built in wifi to allow use of smart phones without needing a router, or maybe Bluetooth instead of wifi. It could also have only a single control knob as part of the means of making the manufacturing cost cheaper - well why would you need two controls when you have a facility to use one or more smart phones as controllers?

This is what M doesn't want to happen, but I think there would be an out of stock situation for maybe component reasons, as Tom suggested, with a new version to be announced.
I think the layout and appearance of the CS2 is pretty good, but a larger screen would be nice

I recently acquired an I Phone 6 plus and it is so good I don't know how I made my iPh IV do for so long. M would never do a colab with Apple for a Controller or rather Apple wouldn't bother doing a colab with them on one.

I had a little running session last night with my newly converted EP5 (Brown E52 Loksound V3 M4) from my 2860 Set using the
iPh 6+ and it brings a few new features to Touch Cab, and is a nice sized tool for the job

Anyhow I continue to operate very happily & reliably, with my CS1-R with router attached for I thingys.
I will wait for my layout to be fully functional to buy a new Controller.

I think the subject of this thread may be being unfortunately presumptuous.

The next Central Station (Ok lets call it 60216) may be a CS3 or it may be a CS2 extension. It is also possible that there may be both a tradition CS2 box and a blackbox version - but running the same code.

We have already seen that the CS2 may have a "soft" marketing update purpose (60213->60214 = primarily DCC support which was just software) or a more substantive feature ((->60215 = 5 Amp support for 1 Gauge). Who's to say that the next iteration may not be another "soft" marketing announce to distinguish/brand and align thinking with the (software support) capabilities of the new decoders. Further, marketing may feel the need to call it a CS3 simply because it has a "3" in it to align with the "3" in the msd3 and mld3.

In the last week we have seen other bits of information that really show no outward distinction that the new environment will have a different look that the current CS2 box.
1) The videos of the decoder program (version 2) show the familiar CS2 image as an option on the programming tool for the new decoders, at the same time making reference to the 32 functions.
2) the mAR marketing propaganda for the "Disco coach" again shows the familiar CS2 layout but with the F8-F15 functions using the right physical buttons.
(sure this may be to support the gimmick, but it does provide an insight into the thinking that is going on - the implied extension that I take is that F16-F31 will be the "touch only" indented rows on each side.)

As to the subject of 32 functions, I do think that some people are jumping to conclusions when they make the assertion that this automatically means that there will be 32 distinct functions. Again we have seen that there is no direct correlation,
1) Today you may "steal" one (or more) of the 16 Function positions of a loco and connect it to a CS2 memory function in order to run a sequence. That sequence may not even include any activity relating to the loco! What this DOES mean is that either, you cannot use this feature if the loco already has 16 functions, or you have to sacrifice one to make space.
2) The New Decoder video (programming example) also , quite distinctly, shows that F5 is not a tangible function at all but a sequence of 3 actual functions.

The funny thing is that this thread started in 2012 and that "next year" refers to 2013.

As of now, the 60215 is not marked as discontinued.
Time will tell what the 60216 will be and when it will be announced.

The problem is cost of producing.
CS2 are expensive.
To upgrade programs cost for Märklin too.
Bugs and defaults happens for some of the customer.
To fix the problem cost for the Märklin under the warranty.
I believe Märklin start to fix the problems,by solve it.
To do it,it´s to change the digital system to more clever and better ideas.

I come back to my premise that any new controller will have one control knob (to lower the production cost), though possibly a bigger display, and a Wi-Fi or Bluetooth interface to use smartphones or possibly their own android handset (like ESU have done) as a new wireless device.

This would allow them to produce mega start sets with a controller that is cheaper than the current one, and many purchasers will probably already have the necessary hardware in the form of one or more smartphones or tablets for additional controllers. There may even be a coupon to pay for the app download in with the start set.

So, actually it will be an CS/MS3 then, all in one unit