I'm trying to find the best simulator for me?

A

ActiveAndy

New member
Hello, With the high expense of putting together a actual model train layout, I'm instead looking for a simulator that will allow me to build my own railroad with LOTS of detail. Would y'all recommend Trainz as a simulator that will allow me to build my own railroads with a high amount of detail (cities, track layout, landscapes, industries, etc.)? If not, which simulator would you suggest? Thanks in advance, Andy
 
I would definatly suggest Trainz for what you would like to do. I have played with the creations tools for building layouots and have downloaded many layout by other people that are simply amazing with the detail they can put into them. How ever i would recomnend getting the highest version your computer will support. I have TS2012 and TS2010, I beleive that N3V still supports back to TS2009, there is also plenty of free content created by others in the comunity.
 
I agree with James. Trainz has, I believe, far more available content than all the other sims combined, and most of it is free to boot. And you can go to town on the detail. To give you and idea of some of the detail objects available, Dave Snow made some electric meters with service (poles), as in the kind that run into houses and businesses. I've made some garden and walkway lights. And things are easily kitbashed (not to mention some people make actual kits!) so you are not stuck simply with pre-made buildings and objects.
 
Be aware though that the more detail you have in the scene the more polys you have thus the more powerful computer you need to get reasonable frame rates and if the mood takes you you can always build your own assets in Blender etc. Which time period / geographic area had you in mind?

One of the strong points of a sim is narrow gauge locos and rolling stock aren't the same issue as in a model railroad. Murchison payware is probably a very good place to see an example of a first class large layout with detail. http://forums.auran.com/trainz/show...Layouts-scenic-realism-to-immerse-yourself-in

There is a lot of free content but some performs and looks a lot better than others.

Welcome to Trainz and have fun.

Cheerio John
 
johnwhelan said:
Be aware though that the more detail you have in the scene the more polys you have thus the more powerful computer you need to get reasonable frame rates and if the mood takes you you can always build your own assets in Blender etc. Which time period / geographic area had you in mind?

One of the strong points of a sim is narrow gauge locos and rolling stock aren't the same issue as in a model railroad. Murchison payware is probably a very good place to see an example of a first class large layout with detail. http://forums.auran.com/trainz/show...Layouts-scenic-realism-to-immerse-yourself-in

There is a lot of free content but some performs and looks a lot better than others.

Welcome to Trainz and have fun.

Cheerio John
Click to expand...

First, thanks everyone !! I was considering the B&O Railroad. But just as a starting template.
 
ActiveAndy said:
My computer has Windows 8, NVidia, I5 processor. I have never had any problems with even with the largest games (WoW, SWTOR, WoT, etc.) Does that help?
Click to expand...

Which Nvidia card have you got?

Also, your processor will need to be at least dual-core in order to run Trainz properly.

Shane
 
Welcome to trainz! You will like the route building options of most if not all versions. As been advised before: Take the latest one your PC will support which most probably is TS12.
shaneturner12 said:
Also, your processor will need to be at least dual-core in order to run Trainz properly.
Click to expand...
As far as I know, the i5 processors are at least dual-core.
List.
 
oknotsen said:
Welcome to trainz! You will like the route building options of most if not all versions. As been advised before: Take the latest one your PC will support which most probably is TS12.As far as I know, the i5 processors are at least dual-core.
List.
Click to expand...

Is the "boxed" version by Just Trains worth the shipping time? It comes with a 250 page manual. Or, is the download by NV3 just as good? Andy
 
ActiveAndy said:
GeForce 310
Click to expand...

That one is a bit on the light side http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-graphics-card-review,3107-7.html but there are people who are using it successfully.

The i5 should be fine, 64 bit operating system with at least 4 gigs of memory is advisable. Mont games have professional artists who are very careful with poly counts per screen Trainz is a bit more open ended. Select the assets and place them nicely and you'll get the same frame rates as other games but its very easy to select assets that aren't quite as optimised as they should be.

The forums and community are the strong points of Trainz, if you want to do some background reading try here: http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Trainz but at $40 for the download version of TS12 its cheap enough to just try. youtube has a few videos just search for Trainz.

It's a fairly rich environment and extremely flexible for example http://forums.auran.com/trainz/show...etc-Animated-Drivable-People&highlight=walker we tend to specialise so we have people who spend there time getting the steam engine specs correct according to the size of the firebox etc. Others who are into the rolling resistance of wagons and box cars. On the US search the forum for Whitepass he has done some very nice box cars etc.

Cheerio John
 
If you have a decent internet connection, I would leave the box on a shelf somewhere and go for the digital download. Most, if not all, the information in the book can also be found on the forum or any of the related website.
 
Hi Andy,

I agree with Johnwhelan your config seems to be the pickup car version instead of the truck to carry the appropriate load.
It's like her in Asia you see every day over and over again pickups in all kind of shape and age carrying towering loads higher than big trucks ending up on the next slope crashed or dead flat on.

Oknotsen is right too no need for any boxed version in the digital age and all docs if you need any is avaialble out there but hands on and hit buttons is faster than reading some manual that many times put you on the wrong foot.

trainz is the most "rich" simulator and best modeller based and has a community quiet unique in many aspects.

Its more than worth the money almost to cheap for what they have to deliver and maintain so support them and buy digital from them.

good luck

Roy
 
ActiveAndy said:
Is the "boxed" version by Just Trains worth the shipping time? It comes with a 250 page manual. Or, is the download by NV3 just as good? Andy
Click to expand...

I would avoid any third-party edition of Trainz. If you like physical, boxed copies and manuals, as I do, get the "TS12 Anniversary Edition" from simulatorcentral.com (N3V's store.) It has the printed manual. If you don't care about that, get the regular download from that same site. Many if not most third-party editions of Trainz are or have been problematic, including older Just Trains editions. The point being, as a general rule, it's generally not worth the hassle of buying from other than simulatorcentral.com.

As others have said, spend a little time on the forums and follow a few of the basic tutorials, like Chuck Brite's guide to laying tracks and signals, and you'll be creating great layouts in no time. The 250-page manual is nice, but you'll probably learn more in a few days hanging out here and going through a few tutorials.
 
I fully support the idea of purchasing directly from the N3V shop, as you are just asking for complications downloading from Steam and other 3rd party sites (although I seem to remember: USLW, Jointed Rail, RR Mods and other reputable sites sell the official N3V discs, or downloads).
 
As a former model railroader myself, I highly endorse Trainz. You'll be hard-pressed to find a better simulator and the support here on the forums is top notch. I'd still like to have a model railroad for that hands on experience; however, who has a house big enough to build a 100 mile or larger layout. This you can do with Trainz and really get the feel of operating a railroad. Go for it, you can't go wrong.
 
Welcome to the forums, Andy and to Trainz.

You'll never regret getting the program. I used to run TS12 on a GTS-210 so even your video card should handle the program fine. You can always upgrade your video card later should you need to - just check that you don't need to replace your power supply.

I will echo what the others have said here. Get the program directly from Simulator Central (N3V's shopping site), or one of their authorized dealers such as Jointed Rail who I highly recommend. Steam has its own issues including their DRM which affects the installation of add-ons and other 3rd party goodies, as well as patches and service packs. The Just Trains version requires you keep your DVD in the drive at all times for DRM issues. With either the direct download or purchase from N3V or Jointed Rail, for example you can be rest assured that none of these "extras" are included.

I agree with you on the cost of the real model railroad. Virtual layouts aren't quite the same, but they sure are fun and very much addicting as the real thing. You'll find that once you get the program it will consume your life as you build routes and experiment. The latter point is one of the best features, besides being able to build a 100-plus mile route without needing a barn. If you don't like how a junction looks, or a town looks, rip it out and do it again. You can go as far as import Digital Elevation Maps created with a 3rd-party program called TransDEM. Using files off of the major map sources, such as the National Geological Survey servers, you can build nearly any route, past or present with the tools.

In addition to the ease of use, truly there's nothing like building a real layout only to have to tear up the layout after spending all that money. Believe me. I've done that more than once in my life. Using a virtual railroad in this respect is the best of both worlds because you can move it from computer to computer and continue working on it since it takes up no physical space other than what's on your hard drive.

John
 
JCitron said:
Welcome to the forums, Andy and to Trainz.

You'll never regret getting the program. I used to run TS12 on a GTS-210 so even your video card should handle the program fine. You can always upgrade your video card later should you need to - just check that you don't need to replace your power supply.

I will echo what the others have said here. Get the program directly from Simulator Central (N3V's shopping site), or one of their authorized dealers such as Jointed Rail who I highly recommend. Steam has its own issues including their DRM which affects the installation of add-ons and other 3rd party goodies, as well as patches and service packs. The Just Trains version requires you keep your DVD in the drive at all times for DRM issues. With either the direct download or purchase from N3V or Jointed Rail, for example you can be rest assured that none of these "extras" are included.

I agree with you on the cost of the real model railroad. Virtual layouts aren't quite the same, but they sure are fun and very much addicting as the real thing. You'll find that once you get the program it will consume your life as you build routes and experiment. The latter point is one of the best features, besides being able to build a 100-plus mile route without needing a barn. If you don't like how a junction looks, or a town looks, rip it out and do it again. You can go as far as import Digital Elevation Maps created with a 3rd-party program called TransDEM. Using files off of the major map sources, such as the National Geological Survey servers, you can build nearly any route, past or present with the tools.

In addition to the ease of use, truly there's nothing like building a real layout only to have to tear up the layout after spending all that money. Believe me. I've done that more than once in my life. Using a virtual railroad in this respect is the best of both worlds because you can move it from computer to computer and continue working on it since it takes up no physical space other than what's on your hard drive.

John
Click to expand...

Thanks again everyone! I'm downloading now. See you on the tracks. Andy
 
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