I have both Athearn's N scale Challenger and Big Boy that I wish to retrofit with better quality sound decoders.Although my BB hasn't flawed yet,my Challenger has lost it's memory once,wich I consider a warning that it may very well be one of the doomed MRC decoders,considering it has only about twenty minutes running time so far.On top of this,I'm not thrilled by the sound quality either.Since I plan on using them occasionally only,like the club's public show,I want reliability out of them.I sure would hate to see one "smoke" in front of a public...although that could be some show to see.
I also have a Heritage Mallet and a Rivarrossi Northern that I'd like to retrofit to DCC/Sound eventually but that will come as budget allows.These probably will be somewhat harder than the Athearns to retrofit but since I've done it to a few older Rivarrossi's and Con-Cor's(regular DCC) so far,I believe I can handle the job.However,I have a few questions before I buy Tsunami's.
Although I can handle the mechanical part,I am no pro with programming.Are Tsunami's relatively easy to program?I'm not one to tweak on minute details,if it runs good,it'll stay as is but what if I want to program a new adress?
Do I need a special booster to program or my Digitrax DCS200/DT400 setup can handle it?I also have a PR3 but haven't set it up yet.
Do Tsunami's come complete or you need to buy everything separate like condensers,speakers,etc?
Are the instructions that come with them well detailed as to how to program,LED installs,etc?
I've read and heard so much about Tsunami's that I'm very confident it is an excellent product but it is new to me and want to be sure I'll do it right.Thanks for any infos.
I use only the steam Micro-Tsunami decoders and they come with a 220ufd capacitor for stay alive sound. You have to buy your own speakers. Since you know about the decoders, you must have seen the info at the SoundTraxx site. Instructions come with the decoders but a few people are known to ignore instructions. Your mileage may vary.
Just make sure the motors do not draw over 700 ma or so, maybe 600 ma. Some people mount the bottom of the decoder on a piece of metal the size of the decoder. This was recently discussed on the Yahoo SoundTraxx Group.
Litchfield Station has free shipping over $75.00 the last time I ordered and Bruce is very helpful.
I use a NCE Power Cab with no booster so cannot comment on your DCC system. Others will know.
Rich
If you ever fall over in public, pick yourself up and say “sorry it’s been a while since I inhabited a body.” And just walk away.