Throughout history, engineers have tried to generate more horsepower with smaller, more compact engines. General Electric's Dash-9 is no exception. Using a turbo-charged 16 cylinder prime mover, the Dash-9, also known as the C44-9W, can reach 4,400 horsepower. The Dash-9 provided many mechanical and electrical improvements over the Dash-8 line, and it is, in fact, both the culmination of the GE "Dash" engines and the forebear of a new class of locomotives. Later locomotives in this family are called AC-class engines.

Model railroaders looking to recreate the evolution of late twentieth-century motive power can do no better than an M.T.H. Premier Line Dash-8 with Proto-Sound 3.0. Outfitted with incredible sounds and operating features not found elsewhere, each handsome locomotive is produced in three different cab numbers and can be mated with an optional non-powered unit in a different cab number for a realistic 2, 3 or 4-unit lashup.