I am thinking about getting Bachmanns HO scale Santa Fe 4-8-4 and I see that they come with DCC. I have a DC layout and want to know if the locomotive will run without a DCC controller?
Yes. The DCC on board and the on board with sound all run on DC as well as DCC. Look at the manuals for these locos. Just make sure you get the loco from a LHS or on line shop. If from ebay or private seller, all bets are off as some disable the ability to run on DC.
Rich
It has a dual mode decoder, but will run better on an analog layout if you remove the decoder and replace it with the jumpers included with the locomotive.
quark-
Yes, the Northern will run fine on DC if you replace the decoder with the jumpers as ACY suggests. I can add that this has been quite a successful locomotive for Bachmann due to their excellent running characteristics. Pay attention to Rich's advice, though, and do purchase from a dealer or in a sealed package if from ebay. Enjoy your loco.
-- D
Some do not know it but the steamers that come with on board Tsunami also have a DC adapter in the box. You can unplug the Tsunami. leave it in place and plug in the DC adapter but quite a bit of expense and work for just wanting a DC only loco.
Rich