I installed the Digitrax DZ143PS into a sound equipped BLI SD40-2. Was working fine, but then I started monkeying with it using DecoderPro. Not sure what I did (but hey, at least I admit it). What I wanted to do was reduce the delay when you throttle up before the loco starts to move. Now what happens is as soon as I change direction, or throttle up to 1, the unit advances an inch, then stalls until I throttle up to 40, then it starts to move. (i did try changing from 14 step to 28 step motor curve, but then set it back) I also noticed that only one of the ditch lites is working now. And the motor sound is constantly cycling up and down. I tried resetting the decoders, but it didn't correct these problems. After restting the decoders I was able to re-establish the 4-digit address.
Any help would be appreciated.
Do you have another decoder you can put in? Sometimes the OEM caps, etc can make programming difficult. If you have another decoder, maybe you can put this one in another loco and then try resetting again. But first I would try resetting a few times. Another decoder would also confirm that all of your problems are based in the decoder itself or not.
Richard
From your description, this is obviously a Blue Line locomotive. I think you have botched up the Blue Line sound decoder. Check the documentation that came with the locomotive or download the instructions from the Broadway Limited web site on how to reset that decoder -- I don't think the procedure is the same for it that it is for the Digitrax decoder. The motor decoder has to be removed to reset the Blue Line sound, if I recall.
To reset a blueline it's best to put the dummy plug back in it and do the reset. I beleive it's CV8 = 8
Springfield PA
Thanks, guys. Apologies for not getting back sooner. I ended up having to remove the Digitrax decoder in order to reset the stock BLI sound decoder. I also installed the Digitrax decoder on another loco and configured it there. I've got this working like I wanted now. Thanks for your help!
memsdThanks, guys. Apologies for not getting back sooner. I ended up having to remove the Digitrax decoder in order to reset the stock BLI sound decoder. I also installed the Digitrax decoder on another loco and configured it there. I've got this working like I wanted now. Thanks for your help!
I have a BLI loco with a similar decoder, the DN143IP. The "143" series of Digitrax decoders support decoder locking, and the BLI sound decoder supports it as well.
If you're going to be changing CV's on that loco very often, it may pay for you to read up on, understand, and use decoder locking. That will allow you to unlock one of the decoders to change it's CV's, and then re-lock it without affecting the other decoder at all, and without having to pull the motor decoder out.
Otherwise, as you have found, the only real way is to pull the motor decoder out of the BLI, program it and the BLI sound decoder separately, and put the motor decoder back in.