Installing a Tsunami 2 in an MTH Dash 9

[willjayna]

I recently purchased an MTH Dash 9 in HO scale because they make the most accurate version in the Norfolk Southern livery. The problem I am running into is installing my Tsunami 2 all the while keeping the LED's and not burning them out.

Has anyone installed a Tsunami 2 into an MTH with LED's and if so how do I go about doing that. I did find a wiring diagram on Soundtraxx website that suggested I need 680 ohm resistors soldered in which is no problem. I have installed plenty of sound decoders just never when LED's are involved. I have always steered clear of them but the MTH Dash 9 was too awesome to pass up.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[Water Level Route]

Personally, I would start by temping up something a little higher (2K ohms or so) and test the brightness before soldering one into place. I put 1K ohm resistors on LED's in Proto 2000 E units, and I wouldn't want them any brighter.

[richhotrain]

willjayna

I recently purchased an MTH Dash 9 in HO scale because they make the most accurate version in the Norfolk Southern livery. The problem I am running into is installing my Tsunami 2 all the while keeping the LED's and not burning them out.

Has anyone installed a Tsunami 2 into an MTH with LED's and if so how do I go about doing that. I did find a wiring diagram on Soundtraxx website that suggested I need 680 ohm resistors soldered in which is no problem. I have installed plenty of sound decoders just never when LED's are involved. I have always steered clear of them but the MTH Dash 9 was too awesome to pass up. 

There is no need to steer clear of LED lighting, but the most important thing to remember is to add a resistor to one leg of the LED and to insulate one leg from the other leg to avoid frying the LED. I use heat shrink tubing for that purpose, but you could wrap electrical tape around the leg as insulation.

The non-resistored leg of the LED connects to the blue wire (common), and the resistored leg connects to the white or yellow wire. For lighting purposes, the white wire is for the head light, and the yellow wire is for the rear light. The purple and green wires are available for "other lighting" such as ditch lights if the loco has such lights.

Rich

[rrinker]

 There is a Yahoo Group which has install details by Rick Bell which includes installs in MTH locos. There will be some rewiring of the LED boards needed to make everything work - MTH uses a negative common for multiple LEDs on the came board, DCC decoders are all positive common. There is at least one MTH install there which shows where to cut traces and add wires to hook the LEDs to a standard DCC decoder, very well may have been a Tsunami, but the same thing is needed for any decoder.

                                   --Randy