Is it safe to run a loco with a sound decoder installed but no speakers attached?
It’s probley Ok, but I would set the volume of the sound to zero and turn off the sounds. The sound on will cause some heat so there is no need to have the decoder generating heat.
Why would you have a sound decoder with no speaker though?
I'm beginning to realize that Windows 10 and sound decoders have a lot in common. There are so many things you have to change in order to get them to work the way you want.
BNSF UP and others modeler Why would you have a sound decoder with no speaker though?
Because I don't have any speakers for it yet.
(rest of story)...........
I bought a couple of NOS Bachmann DD40AX at my local hobby shop at a really good price. Both have DCC & sound (DCC Sound Value series). These are pretty nice locos for the price I paid ($135 ea). Then I thought I would add a 3rd one - without sound - same NOS series (I thought). Don't need sound on all three. It turns out that the non-sound version doesn't run at all like the sound version. The sound version has a single custom made (for Bachmann) Tsunami decoder that runs lights & both motors (unlike Athearn that uses two). The sound and non-sound versions are not compatible running with each other on DCC. There is a HUGE difference in accel/decel, start up voltage and running speed at the same thottle setting. I also got the third DD40 at a great price ($70). Ordered a NOS sound decoder from Bachmann.
I know from my audiophile experience that generally speaking one should not run solid state direct coupled (no output transformer) amplifiers with no load. But we're generally talking much higher power output. I didn't know if it was safe to do this with a model loco decoder. I've ordered the speakers from Bachmann (they come as a single part already installed in the fuel tank) but these won't be here for a week. So just wondering if it's safe to run without speakers in the meantime.
Oh. Sorry.
I wouldn't do it. Put a resistor across the outputs.
Ed
Arto It turns out that the non-sound version doesn't run at all like the sound version. The sound version has a single custom made (for Bachmann) Tsunami decoder that runs lights & both motors (unlike Athearn that uses two). The sound and non-sound versions are not compatible running with each other on DCC. There is a HUGE difference in accel/decel, start up voltage and running speed at the same thottle setting.
There is a huge difference when running sound and non-sound engines together on DC. In DCC, you can adjust the control values (CVs) on one decoder to speed-match them so the engines start, run, and stop together like one engine...regardless if one or both or neither have sound.
I have a number of engines that often run together where one is sound and the other isn't, adjusting CV2 (start) CV3-4 (momentum) CV5 (top speed) and CV6 if available (mid-speed) was all it took.