I have just received a new Marklin loco (37484) with an MFX decoder.

But I only have M-track and an older controller. Not white but blue.

I’ve read I can run this on an Analogue setup but do I need to do something special to do so? Given the details above?

Thanks for the help!
Pete

Hi Pete,

Nice loco - I'm thinking of getting one of those myself!

I fully second what Lasse says - The old transformers can send out a lot more power than digital electronics can handle! (I should get my oscilloscope out and see how clean the power output of an older Marklin trafo is/not some day)

There are some good comments in this post from last year which explain it better than I can: https://www.marklin-user...--white-transformer-32Va

I've got my own story to tell about the dangers of using old transformers from my school days. I plugged in an isolating transformer to help eliminate a grounding problem in our hall at an assembly (the All Blacks (NZ's national rugby team who are gods to most Kiwis) were coming and as always I had 5 mins notice) to get everything going.

This old trafo must have had an internal short in it because as soon as I turned the power on it tripped the fuses in the building killing power to the sound system, lighting desk, projector etc... Fortunately the only thing that was damaged that day was my sense of pride having to walk through a crowd of 1,200 people to where the fuse board was. At least they saw me as the guy who got things working...

A quick reply from my phone:

Thank you everyone!

No, old decoders can handle those higher voltages.
The old decoders were introduced when there were only blue transformers around.
Only the "in-between" decoders are at risk and the challenge is identifying a decoder as "in-between". The Märklin document is clear as mud with respect to that.

Not the C or M tracks solving your problem. Your problems are solved by buying a MS 2 (and the needed trackbox 60113/60116).

https://www.maerklin.de/...faq/Technik-Tipp-306.pdf

Because then, you are switching from analogue current to digital current.

Very nice locomotive!

Complementing to what others already said, I have five digital locomotives and can report on that experience.

Three of them run OK on conventional analog mode, two very well and one with somewhat lower speed than usual. Two of them have natively mfx decoders and one is a c80 retrofit.

Two older ones have Delta decoders. They could probably be made to run as well by changing the dip switches in the decoders. I have nevertheless not bothered to do so because I have similar analog locomotives.

I use only the white transformers to run my locos; the blue ones have been demoted to light trafos.

So my guess is that your locomotive will run fine with a white transformer. Getting a MS is not necessary, and can wait until you wish to run several locomotives simultaneously, or you wish to get access to the bells and whistles only available in the digital mode.

Edit: I read your last entry only after typing the above. If you have the gear you mention, then your plan is fine. It's relatively easy to switch from one mode to the other of you plan for it in advance.

I would start by grouping them as follows: -

All Delta decoders with only four switches or solder bridges for address selection are definitely 'old'

All 6080 and 6090 decoders are also 'old'.

All 60901 and later with switches to select decoder address are 'in-between'. Separation of these into 'old' and 'at risk' will need to rely on identifying the chip on the decoder to see if it matches those known to definitely be 'old types'.

All decoders without switches are 'new' and from the above discussion I take it that they can also be used with the older transformers.

Yeah that's what we have (all plastic rails and studs). When I inherited the beginnings of our developing setup I bought the connector tracks so we could run the My World trains onto the M track. I use the M Track layout at the same time with a transformer and electricity and locos. We bought them two of the My World coupler conversion cars (magnet on one end Marklin coupler on the other) so we could shunt cars to each other's layout section.

It works brilliantly.