Hi everyone!
I just scored a CP Bachmann Spectrum H16-44 diesel in near perfect condition for $18.00 plus shipping. When I won the eBay auction I was very proud of myself for scoring such a bargain. Ignorance is bliss!
Turns out the thing will be a beast to install a decoder and speaker in. It is a split frame with the castings filling almost the entire body shell. The trucks are very tall so the truck mounts are almost at the top of the frame. The motor extends part way into the fuel tank so there is precious little space there for a speaker. Fortunately when the DC lighting circuit board is removed there will at least be room to fit the wires and resistors.
I have dealt with split frame DCC conversions so isolating the motor is not an issue, and I have managed to squeeze decoders into some tiny spaces but before I start chopping into the frame I would like to ask if anyone has done one of these? If so, what sound decoder and speaker did you use and where did you put them? Just so you know, I won't put in an MRC decoder.
Thanks
Dave
I'm just a dude with a bad back having a lot of fun with model trains, and finally building a layout!
Rip out the present PC board. Do not re-use the light bulbs. Under DCC, they will have 12 VDC at all times and will get quite hot.
SoundTraxx has a Tsunami with the FM sound in a light board type decoder. Install LED's and a 1 k resistor. Check the SoundTraxx site. All the decoder info is there.
Stuffing the capacitor in might also present a challenge.
No idea on space for a speaker. A 28mm round or maybe a 16mm x 35mm oval.
I looked at the loco diagram at the Bachmann site and the frame, plus trucks do take up quite a lot of the shell.
I have installed this decoder with a 16mm x 35mm oval in a Prroto FM.
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.
Thanks for the suggestions. I will investigate the Tsunami decoder. Finding space for the capacitor may not be too difficult but it will require removal of some frame material. Finding space for the speaker will be a challenge. There is just enough room below the bottom of the motor for a speaker but the enclosure would be almost nonexistant.
Before I go there, please let me ask another question. If the speaker magnet is touching the bottom of the motor is that going to mess up the sound and/or the motor performance? Seems to me that there is a possibility that the two magnetic fields might not play nice with each other.
Update:
I found the Fairbanks-Morse Tsunami decoder that Rich suggested. Tony's has it for a reasonable price and according to Soundtraxx it is designed for just such an installation.
Now to figure out the speaker location. It occurred to me that it might fit where the exhaust fans are with a little modification to the frame. That would be ideal because there would be almost no interference with sound transmission through the radiator screens. I will have a look and let you know if it is workable.
EDIT: 1/2 hour later - the speaker will indeed fit quite nicely above the rear truck with only minor modifications to the frame. This has proven to be a much easier project than I thought it was going to be.
I think Railroad Model Craftsman had an article about putting a decoder in the Bachmann H-16-44. It was I think in the last few years. If I can locate in my pile I will post the issue date.
Ron High