Hello!
Has anyone put in a mobile decoder into an HO Proto 2000 2-10-2 that already has a sound decoder?
Which one did you choose? Did you wire it in? Was it an 8-pin or 9-pin easy installation?
Thanks!
dan.
Huh? It has sound but no motor control decoder -- I find that hard to believe. Practically all sound decoders are also motor control, especially in something like P2K models.
What makes you think it doesn't have motor control? It should have a QSI decoder (sound/motor/light control) factory installed unless you added something youself.
Your subject like indicates it has Q1a sound -- that is the new QSI Revolution decoder which does already have motor control.
If the locomotive won't move, you've probably put the decoder into "shutdown" mode. Unless QSI has changed it, you can wake it up by double-pressing the "6" key.
Yes Dan ,cacole is right you should have motor control if is got stock sound. if thats NOT the case please rephrase the question or problem you're having ....Jerry
QSI decoders are mobile decoders with sound amplifiers aboard, so it should run if the decoder is sound (in good condition) and if it is connected properly to a motor that is also correctly connected to a drive mechanism, say a gear tower and drive axle with no missing or broken gears. If it isn't running, but is making sounds, you may have to press F6 a couple of times to get it out of a neutral/standby state, or perhaps the tether is defective/not tightly connected and the pins are not fully engaged.
Crandell
Thanks for replying!
I am just now trying to convert my locomotives to DCC. First up, were two Blueline which were sound capable without mobile. Those locos were easy to convert with Digitrax 8 pin decoders.
Next is the Proto 2000 2-10-2 that I mentioned. The sound worked on the DCC system, but no motor control under address 3, nor 2952 which is the address I changed the decoder to.
I will look at the following: Did I not change the address correctly? Do I need to disable analog mode? I should press '6' as suggested. I will also look for a factory reset and just start over. I will also double check that the engine still runs on a DC system.
I read all the information that came with the loco, and I searched the QSI website for a Q1a decoder. I could not find the decoder on the website and could not find an answer in the documentation. So maybe I read it incorrectly.
Anyway, the next best source of information is you guys! I have learned much from the DCC Forum. In fact, I have read the DCC forum for two years before attempting a conversion to DCC. I even searched the DCC forum before posting my quesiton.
Thanks for you help!
If you tried to reprogram the address from 3 to a long address and didn't change CV 29, that could be your problem. What DCC system are you using ? Some automatically configure CV 29 when you change the address, and some don't Try giving CV 29 a value of 34 and see if the engine wakes up.
Yes except for the Blueline engines, any engine that comes from the factory with sound uses a decoder that controls motor and light functions also. (However there are "piggyback" sound-only decoders that you can add to an engine that already has a non-sound decoder.)
I suspect as noted the problem is that CV29 may not be set to allow for "extended" address (any address over I think 127). You could first try setting the address to the last two digits of the locomotive (52) and see if that works.
Sound decoders can have a lot of options / settings (paricularly Tsunamis!!) so if possible, I'd look at setting up Decoder Pro - it makes it a lot easier.
Sometimes life (i.e. model trains) is just confusing.
I sat down to accomplish the above, but I didn't have to do anything! The sound came on and full motor control was there. Wow! So there is mobile decoder functionality. Thank you all for replying!
The problem now seems to be a communication error, specifically wireless communication. When I tried to change the address of the engine, something failed. I put one of the Blueline engines on the same track, and communication was not there.
I then plugged the cab into the command station and I had full functionality on both engines. I unplugged the cab, and I still had full functionality.
But when I tried to change the address again, something failed. I am using MRC Prodigy Wireless and a cab that has been programmed as #1.
Tonight, I will make sure the cab is at full power, and will look at 2 versus 4 digit addressing as suggested.
Thanks again guys!