Power Functions versus Powered Up (for Fairground sets)

Steve_J_OM

My Fairground sets (Mixer, Ferris Wheel, Roller Coaster) will be coming out of storage soon and I'm looking to power them up. Right now I have just a single Power Functions M-Motor and Battery Pack. I'm wondering whether to buy more PF motors/battery packs on Bricklink, or to invest in the new Powered Up system.

I have NO idea where to start with Powered Up, or what the equivalent components I'd need to power these three sets. 

Interested in hearing the experiences of anyone who has made the move to Powered Up, and how it compares to PF. Would also love some clarity on what Powered Up components I'd need if I go that route. 

Thanks!

Fizyx

Steve_J_OM said:

My Fairground sets (Mixer, Ferris Wheel, Roller Coaster) will be coming out of storage soon and I'm looking to power them up. Right now I have just a single Power Functions M-Motor and Battery Pack. I'm wondering whether to buy more PF motors/battery packs on Bricklink, or to invest in the new Powered Up system.

I have NO idea where to start with Powered Up, or what the equivalent components I'd need to power these three sets. 

Interested in hearing the experiences of anyone who has made the move to Powered Up, and how it compares to PF. Would also love some clarity on what Powered Up components I'd need if I go that route. 

Thanks!

One of the potential negatives for Powered Up is that I believe you MUST have a hub to drive the components. So no just direct connection to a battery box with a simple on/off switch.  On the plus side, you will have much more control over how the motors/lights/functions operate.  On the minus side again, you will have to learn how to utilize that functionality.

I will say, having gotten a couple of Power Function pieces (M-motors and battery packs) over the last few months, if you're going to get more PF items, get them NOW.  The cost has already been skyrocketing, and I think it's likely to get quite a bit worse before it levels off.

EDIT: To clarify:  There is no out of the box, approved method for hooking the new Powered Up motors and lights to a battery without a hub that I know of.  But... if you're adventurous and willing to potentially burn some components out and knowledgeable about electronics, it's not like you can't get to the wiring through the jack without damaging it...

Steve_J_OM

Thank you! I wouldn't mind investing if the hub if it was worthwhile, but I'm not convinced from the bits I've seen online that it's worth it. 

What I'd really love is a way to activate all three sets at the same time from a single hub. Any chance that's possible with Powered Up?

CCC

Steve_J_OM said:

Thank you! I wouldn't mind investing if the hub if it was worthwhile, but I'm not convinced from the bits I've seen online that it's worth it. 

What I'd really love is a way to activate all three sets at the same time from a single hub. Any chance that's possible with Powered Up?

Yes, so long as they are not too far apart. One of the nice things if you use a programmable hub like in the Mindstorms 51515 is that you can program it so that one ride runs for 2 minutes with a 20 second pause before starting again, another one runs for 1 minute with a 15 second gap and the third for 2.5 minutes with a 30 second gap, so that they are all staggered and run in and out of sync with each other like a real fairground. But it is expensive for that.

If you just want to run them all continuously and don't mind going non-LEGO, you can buy really quite cheap motors, glue a LEGO gear/cog on the shaft and  you have a perfectly good DC motor to power LEGO creations you can connect to a power source. If you pick 5V motors, they can all be run from a USB power bank. You can then enclose them with hot glue in a brick shell and hide the DIY look away. Not as pretty as the LEGO version but you can do three for well under a tenner.

Cyberdragon

There are third party accessories for both systems out there. I'm not sure what's available, but it would not surprise me if there was a simple analog battery box for PU available so you don't have to use that app control nonsense if you don't need it.

Steve_J_OM

Thanks all. I think I'll grab a few extra PF components while they're getable, and I can always explore Powered Up in time, and some of the advanced options like those @CCC describes.

CCC

You have probably missed the boat uf you are after PF M, L or XL motor, the prices have gone crazy. The only reasonably priced ones are the train motors, I wonder if they have high enough torque to run fairground models rather than trains.

Steve_J_OM

CCC said:

You have probably missed the boat uf you are after PF M, L or XL motor, the prices have gone crazy. The only reasonably priced ones are the train motors, I wonder if they have high enough torque to run fairground models rather than trains.

@CCC if memory serves I think I was using this M-Motor when the sets were previously assembled - seems reasonable enough on Bricklink: 

https://store.bricklink.com/85toys?itemID=272377830#/shop

But based on your comment I'm wondering if I've got the wrong type...

CCC

That's the one. I guess "reasonable" is relative. They used to cost £5.99 direct from LEGO before they ended PF.

Steve_J_OM

CCC said:

That's the one. I guess "reasonable" is relative. They used to cost £5.99 direct from LEGO before they ended PF.

That's probably it - I had no recollection of the RRP. And I'm otherwise desensitized to the price of anyting LEGO :) 

JRBricks

With PF, if you can, get the rechargeable battery box. It has a speed control dial, but I think it's a bit pricey now vs the regular battery box with no speed control. I believe you can control the speed with a receiver and remote though correct?

Switchfoot55

Correct. The IR Receiver and related controller have speed controls. 

Steve_J_OM

JRBricks said:

With PF, if you can, get the rechargeable battery box. It has a speed control dial, but I think it's a bit pricey now vs the regular battery box with no speed control. I believe you can control the speed with a receiver and remote though correct?

@JRBricks You're not kidding - about €100 is the cheapest I can find in my neck of the woods on BL! 

I asked above about powering multiple sets at the same time with Powered Up. I just want to check if I'm right here:

Let's say I bought the Hub 88009 and x2 motors (either the Medium Linear Motor -currently out of stock - or the Technic Large Motor). Could I connect the two motors to the Hub (the A/B ports respectively) and power the Ferris Wheel and Roller Coaster at the same time? Is that how it works?

Thanks again for helping me navigate all this :) 

panchox1

I'm not very knowledgeable about this stuff but would the boost hub, 88006 be a good option?

Modeltrainman

BOOST is the programmable option. It's cool, because you can drag and drop instructions, program sounds. the coaster is made specifically for it, so it'll run the coaster, and make minifigs scream...The BOOST hub also has multiple outputs, so if close enough, you could theoretically put it under a removable hill and have it drive multiple rides.

Mcleay

I asked above about powering multiple sets at the same time with Powered Up. I just want to check if I'm right here:

Let's say I bought the Hub 88009 and x2 motors (either the Medium Linear Motor -currently out of stock - or the Technic Large Motor). Could I connect the two motors to the Hub (the A/B ports respectively) and power the Ferris Wheel and Roller Coaster at the same time? Is that how it works?

Yes, the instructions to add Power Up to Haunted House 10273 has exactly that setup of one 88009 hub / two M motors. 

The Boost Move hub 88006 has two in built motors and two ports so I think theoretically it could run 4 at the same time. But that hub restricts the setup quite a bit with the 2 built-in motors (especially when you factor in the access needed to change batteries.)

Steve_J_OM

@Mcleay Thanks for confirming that 88009 and x2 motors would power two rides.

Since I started this thread initially, I got my hands on a Carousel, meaning I have four rides to power instead of three (hooray!). 

So I am thinking about 88009 x2 and M motors x4. Does anyone have experience coding such a set up on the Powered Up app? Would it be easy to set all four rides off at once?

mhe4

I reconfigured my Roller Coaster to use the Move Hub's two internal motors with one running the chain and one running the station kick wheel.  I also have two color/distance sensors on the other two ports.  One sensor is at the lift hill (as in the optional instructions) and the other is under the loading platform to allow the kick wheel to act as a "switch" if moved back and forth quickly.  I manged to get a reliable program in the Powered Up app and a not-so-reliable version loaded on the hub with py.bricks.  Sort of left it there, but plan to get back to it eventually. 

I have the same issue as @Steve_J_OM with 4 rides to power at some point.  The very short wires on the motors and no cheap extension cords makes using one hub for multiple rides challenging unless you like long and tortuous axles running all over your builds.

Also agree with @Mcleay that changing the batteries on the Move Hub when connected to things via the motor outputs is a royal pain.

To answer the last question about staring all 4 rides at once in the Powered Up app, yes, it is quite doable and as "easy" as anything else in there given the lack of official documentation of the control tiles.

Steve_J_OM

@mhe4 I'm happy to say I've finally figured it out! I ended up buying two regular 88009 Hubs and four Medium Linear Motors. I then picked up two extension cables from PV-Productions (not cheap, as you say, but very happy with them). 

And here's the finished setup (almost finished - next up is installing light kits!):

https://youtu.be/SOpVcQYilSc

autolycus

Bumping an old thread here, but I have similar questions.

Short version: Can Loop run on a PF M-motor? If not, what about a PF L-motor? Or if not even that, what about a PU hub and PU motor instead of the Technic Large and Technic battery?

I've got a basic PF battery box, IR control pairing, and 2 M motors that power my Ferris Wheel and Carousel. I have a second PF battery box and 1 more M motor that can power my Roller Coaster. That one doesn't have its own IR set though. I have to move the IR back and forth, although I might have a 2nd one somewhere.

But... now I have Loop and the Haunted House. Looks like those need 3 motors total. It's 2 medium PU motors and a PU hub for the HH and 1 Large technic motor and technic battery pack for Loop. Does Loop run ok with a PF M or PU M motor instead of the Large Technic? If so, I can get away with the following:

1 PU hub and 2 M motors for Haunted House
2 PF battery boxes, 2 IR receivers, 1 IR controller, 4 M Motors for the others

A single PF motor, even at the relatively high BL prices is still cheaper than a PU hub and required motors or the Technic battery and Large motor. It actually looks like the PF Large motor is cheaper than the M one, so if I need that for Loop, that's fine too.