Digitrax Zephyr Stopping Problem

[CSX_road_slug]

You may also want to set whatever address the ... decoders use for DCC/Analog to DCC only. ...

I've done that with 3 of my locos so far that were giving me runaway problems, hasn't failed me yet!  I'll keep disabling DC on the rest of my locos as the need arises. 

[Anonymous]

Thanks, gentlemen. I think I will set all locos to DCC only. Hadn't bothered up to now.

[jeffrey-wimberly]

You may also want to set whatever address the NCE decoders use for DCC/Analog to DCC only. I had to do that to the one and only NCE decoder I have yesterday. An E6 is a beautiful sight but not when it's running away at full throttle like a heavyweight juggernaut. It's heavy enough to some very real damage when it slams into something.

[Anonymous]

Sorry, don't have an answer for the OP but I'd like to ask in this thread:

Has anyone had a runaway problem with NCE and the Zephyr?  I had one isolated runaway prob. aftern an install.  Didn't know how to correct it, but managed by blind tinkering with the Zephyr controls.

However, I later cleaned the wheels on half a dozen locos with the spinning wheels on the cloth over the track method.  Every one of the 6 locos ran away after that as soon as touched a powered rail with the throttle set to zero!  Then at a higher throttle setting they reacted to the throttle, but back down at zero, they ran away.  Seems obvious they were getting two signals.

I cured them again with tinkering with entering the address and setting and resetting the control to forward and reverse over and over.  Must be a better way.

I did notice I had a faster cure by stopping the loco and reentering its address more than once (it was hard to tell what exactly was happening) I think only my NCE D13SRs do this.

But I think there was that ghost address throttle setting problem mentioned above.  I just learned about cleaning out all addresses and I think that might effect a cure faster in the future.  BTW whoever mentioned resetting the Zephyr, is that what you meant.....setting switch 36 to c\ ?

[N737AA]

  On the Zephyr, couldn't that also happen if one of the jump throttles was assigned to the same address?  I'm not sure if that's even possible, but if it is I would imagine that it could cause those same "phantom throttle" symptoms.

Steve

 

 

I've never tried the jump ports on mine so really don't know. If it's possible to select the same address by "stealing" it could certainly happen. Especially since both throttles would be using pots to send speed commands.

I've done it with a second Digitrax throttle when I steal an address that's selected on the Zephyr throttle. Each throttle sends its command. First one to the decoder wins.

You want to watch some eratic operation, steal an address then reverse the direction on one throttle. It will slow down then go back up to speed in the opposite direction. Thought I was going nuts the first time. 

It's easy to avoid this problem if the address is first "dispatched" from one throttle then aquired by another throttle.

Martin Myers 

 

This is probably the problem, I have done it myself and in every case I checked all of my throttles and found that address assigned to one of them in addition to the throttle I am using at the time.  Most often it is one of the two jump port throttles. 

 

[jxtrrx]

  On the Zephyr, couldn't that also happen if one of the jump throttles was assigned to the same address?  I'm not sure if that's even possible, but if it is I would imagine that it could cause those same "phantom throttle" symptoms.

Steve

Yes it could and it does.  Jump ports are a little tricky, since there's no visual indication of what loco they're running.  I bought two brand new factory-DCC Atlas locos, and found them stalling... actually sent them back to the factory and was told there was nothing wrong with them.  Ran them again and they were fine, but a few weeks later -- stalling again!  Then I realized.  I had one on bopth the jump port and the Zephyr main throttle -- which were fighting with each other. 

[mfm37]

  On the Zephyr, couldn't that also happen if one of the jump throttles was assigned to the same address?  I'm not sure if that's even possible, but if it is I would imagine that it could cause those same "phantom throttle" symptoms.

Steve

 

 

I've never tried the jump ports on mine so really don't know. If it's possible to select the same address by "stealing" it could certainly happen. Especially since both throttles would be using pots to send speed commands.

I've done it with a second Digitrax throttle when I steal an address that's selected on the Zephyr throttle. Each throttle sends its command. First one to the decoder wins.

You want to watch some eratic operation, steal an address then reverse the direction on one throttle. It will slow down then go back up to speed in the opposite direction. Thought I was going nuts the first time. 

It's easy to avoid this problem if the address is first "dispatched" from one throttle then aquired by another throttle.

Martin Myers 

[Stevert]

Hi all, I'm new to the MR forums.  I've been having a problem with my Digitrax Zeyphr.  I can be running an Atlas engine or a proto 2000 engine with sound and all of a sudden, the loco will stop.  The engine comes down to an idle and I haven't moved the throttle any, but it just stops and starts up again in 5 seconds or so.  What could be happening.  Thanks in advance.

 

Andy,

Do you have another Digitrax throttle like a DT400 or UT4? I've seen this type of problem when an address is selected on both the Zephyr and another throttle.

Martin Myers 

  On the Zephyr, couldn't that also happen if one of the jump throttles was assigned to the same address?  I'm not sure if that's even possible, but if it is I would imagine that it could cause those same "phantom throttle" symptoms.

Steve

[mfm37]

Hi all, I'm new to the MR forums.  I've been having a problem with my Digitrax Zeyphr.  I can be running an Atlas engine or a proto 2000 engine with sound and all of a sudden, the loco will stop.  The engine comes down to an idle and I haven't moved the throttle any, but it just stops and starts up again in 5 seconds or so.  What could be happening.  Thanks in advance.

 

Andy,

Do you have another Digitrax throttle like a DT400 or UT4? I've seen this type of problem when an address is selected on both the Zephyr and another throttle.

Martin Myers 

[retsignalmtr]

it sounds like you have to clean out the zephyr's memory. sometimes if a loco address is not properly dispatched the zephyr keeps it as an active address. when you select it again the zephyr will send out two instruction packets for the same address one being at speed zero and another at whatever speed your running. when it sends out a packet for to the address at speed zero your loco stops. then it sends out another packet to the address thats running and your loco starts to move again. look in your manual for option switches. there should be one for clearing the memory. on my empire builder it's opt sw # 39. i have to do this regularly on my clubs super chief.  this also corrects the slot max indication.

[Paul3]

Oh, we did those at our club, too, including a few others.  However, runaways are still a fact of life at our club (and my home) layout.  The "tricks" certainly cut down on the frequency of it happening, but it hasn't stopped it entirely.

At the club, the problem is probably due to the complexity of the layout (boosters, circuit breakers, block detection, etc.).  My home layout couldn't be simpler (200' of 14AWG bus, Zephyr, UR91, DT400R's), yet I still have runaways.  Sigh.

Paul A. Cutler III
************
Weather Or No Go New Haven
************

[jrbernier]

Paul,

  Those 'Runaways' - We saw them on the club layout too.  A couple of things to try:

• Fresh batteries in the DT400R throttles
• Turn off 'Zero Stretching'

  It has worked for us.  The original poster seems to be seeing 'booster shutdown'(if the Zephyr is really shuting down) where there is a short in the wiring/track system.  Or if only the engine shuts down, then a loss of contact(dirty track) may be the culprit.

  I saw an article on the 'terminators' a while back and we experimented with them on the club layout - They added little.  I suspedct one would need some really long runs of track 'bus'...

Jim

[Paul3]

Oh, I know that problem.  It comes and goes for me.  It hasn't happened to me lately, but with my Zephyr it has happened 2 or 3 times in a row, and then it doesn't do it for weeks.  (shrug)  One thing I did do was add a filter to the end of my DCC track bus.  IIRC, it was a resistor and a capacitor rigged to the end of the line, and it's supposed to smooth out the noise in the line, I guess.  You'd have to search this forum or the web in general to find the exact filter pieces to use.  It's supposed to help against erratic operation.

BTW, try emptying out your memory cache before every operation (or once a week, whenever).  That's OPSW36.  If you don't clear that every so often, you may get "ghosts" in the system that could cause some odd behavior.

I also get runaways with my DT400R's and UR91 radio receiver.  Why, I don't know, but at random times, they just lose control and I have to plug the throttle back in and it gets it back.  Weird, but it's just normal, I guess.  That happens on occasion at my large RR club with our Chief system.

Paul A. Cutler III
************
Weather Or No Go New Haven
************

[cacole]

What kind of track are you using?  If it's something like the Bachmann EZ-Track, or even flex track, you may have loose rail joints or not enough feeder wires.

[tstage]

Andy,

First off: to the forum!  Good to have your aboard!

Do the locos stop in the exact same place on your layout - like a turnout?  It could be dirty track.  However, I suspect a short.  Look at the Zephyr console display when this happens again.  My guess is that your Zephyr is shutting down and booting back up.

Tom

[jalajoie]

Loss of power due to dirty tracks and wheels or at a turnout, I doubt it is a problem with the Zephyr.

[Railfan Andy]

Hi all, I'm new to the MR forums.  I've been having a problem with my Digitrax Zeyphr.  I can be running an Atlas engine or a proto 2000 engine with sound and all of a sudden, the loco will stop.  The engine comes down to an idle and I haven't moved the throttle any, but it just stops and starts up again in 5 seconds or so.  What could be happening.  Thanks in advance.

 Andy