Question For Bill Denton. Your magazine article is great and your idea is even better. I looked for an ESU #73806, per the article, and never found it. I "searched" their files and it said no such match. Where should I be looking? Thanks Carl
Thanks Carl Try here http://http://www.esu.eu/en/products/loksound/loksound-select/ordering-information/
Thank you Bill. I was looking on the main ESU web and I guess your page is from ESU USA. I guess Litchfield can download from USA. Carl
Bump... fYI, ESU now has an improved version of the EMD 567 prime mover, with a manual transition option, ESU 73836 appropriate for earlier F units as well. I am just so impressed with these decoders! Motor control is superb and the sound is excellent. I do have a question:is there any reason, other than wiring complications, why a single .75 Amp Loksound decoder couldn't drive more than one N scale Intermountain unit? Could one wire an AB set off one decoder, or even a ABB? Has anyone tried? Otto K.
Otto, I can't imagine you'd want to risk overloading a $100 decoder by running two motors off the thing... maybe ESU's simpler $20 decoders have similar motor control profiles for lashups? Regrading sound decoders in ABB/ABA/ABBA lashups of the same locomotives; I have run two, three, four, and five sound-equipped FP7's all at once, just for kicks. Never cared for it, then I changed the horn sounds on one or two of the units and it made all the difference when the locos' horns chimed in all-at-once, so I can verify that, in lashups, "more" sound is not much to speak of. It's the different sounds that will make it really pop!
Well, that's my question: why would two IM F units come anywhere near overloading the .75 Amp decoder? They draw but a fraction of that....what am I missing? Oh, and the Loksound Select Micros can be had for around $80 now, not that I want to burn them... Otto K.
Answer - if you have grades or long trains, the power used by the locomotive will increase, sometimes quite substnatially. See how much current a single locomotive is drawing and see how much a doubling of the current use will be. Also it is better to have each locomotive have its own decoder in the event the B unit is not really close to the same speed as the A unit. If they aren't, some more current will be used because of the push/pull happening between the two locomotives. The other point is that you are also bypassing the all the electrical pickup of the locomotive without the decoder. So if the A unit hits a dirty spot on the track, both locomotives will stop.
A little addendum to my article on adding sound to Intermountain F units. I thought the A units would require frame milling but I came up with a better way. I just removed the cab interior and stuck a Zimo 12x8mm "Sugar Cube" speaker up front in its place. I painted the speaker box black and it's not noticeable thru the windows. The LED wiring runs under the speaker for the dual headlights. Mars on top and regular headlight below. Sweet !
While not an "A-B-B-A" lash up, here is an "A-B-B" lash up. B units have Loksound and 8 x 12 Sugar Cube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tja7vOLMn-4
My photos had to be moved to a different server and I don't see a way to edit my post to change the url of the photo.
Yes I can't see a way either to edit my posts. I have your article from NSR and was following this thread with the A unit sound and now that I am ready to order the decoders and speaker to do it in my FTA the pictures have gone AWOL!
During the move, the links to all the pictures in RailImages changed. This is known, so yes, many threads have broken links right now (including most of mine). Still trying to figure out if there is a semi-automatic way to adjust them, to point to the images new location. This will not work, of course, with images that were on an external server that no longer has them. In that case, staff can go in and edit individual posts, if the links are provided. Or, one can just place a post at the end the thread, especially short ones like this, with the pictures at their new links
With the introduction of the economi decoders I am thinking I might do this install with one of them in the A unit and and a 2 function soundtrax decoder in the B unit so I don't have to mill the frame since the FT B units don't have front indentation for the cab.
OK, I dug out the photo of the A-unit with sound. The install is the same as the B-unit only with the smaller "Sugar cube" speaker.
