SOU FanSo is this the correct way to hook it up, or do the front and rear head lights need to hook up tothe common as well? here is a link to the digitrax website where is shows the DH165A0 with functions. http://www.digitrax.com/ftp/DH165A0.pdf
You have the headlights correct but the ditch lights are onthe wrong terminals. Look again at the picture in the Digitrax manual. Blue is plus, you don't want two pluses. The minus side for F1 and F2 are the bottom two pads of the group of 4 to the right of the mounting clip hole. The ones you have labelled at Ditchlight 1 and 2 minus are actually the positive for those functions. Not sure why they have extra pads for those other than if you had to sodler 4 wires on to one pad it would be a bit much. Also, unles you cut the jumper, for the HEADLIGHT and REVERSE LIGHT ONLY, it's already current limited to 15ma so those LEDs would not require resistors. ONLY for the front and rear light. The ditch lights DO need resistors.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
In that case, I'd agree with David. If you really do have the negative leads to the common pad, as you stated above, then you've got the polarity reversed and they won't come on.
By the way, what does the documentation for this decoder say about turning on the functions you're using for the ditch lights? Are they activated by the F1 key? I'm wondering because most sound decoders use the F1 key for the bell, so they may have re-assigned the function to a different key. (It's a CV setting, by the way, easy to change.)
Do you have a voltmeter, by the way? If it's not the polarity of the LEDs, that would be useful in figuring out what's wrong here. If not, find a small 16-volt bulb and use that to test the decoder outputs. With a bulb, you can eliminate polarity and the resistor as the source of your problems.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
Again assuming they're LEDs - do you have resistors in series with them? I don't know if this particular decoder has built-in resistors or not. LEDs must have a resistor to limit the current, or they quickly become Darkness Emitting Diodes, or DEDs. If you saw one brief flash when you first turned them on, that was the end of the LED.
If you wired them backwards, even without a resistor, they should be OK until you get the polarity fixed. But then, you'd better have that resistor in there.
maxmanSOU FanMr. Beasley had it right. and I got the problem fixed. Off Topic: out of curiosity, did you fix the problem the same way I had to fix it, or did you find out what the real problem was and fix it differently? thanks
SOU FanMr. Beasley had it right. and I got the problem fixed.
Off Topic: out of curiosity, did you fix the problem the same way I had to fix it, or did you find out what the real problem was and fix it differently?
thanks
If all of these lights are LEDs, you have every one connected backwards and LEDs are polarity sensitive. The blue wire is positive and should connect to every LED to provide power to them. Each LEDs negative lead is connected to the respective function or solder pad.
No, it's not his fault! Somebody else had this problem right after they switched forum software. Remember? He was typing stuff in, but it wasn't working.
It was maxman. Check this thread:
http://cs.trains.com/trccs/forums/p/139527/1557257.aspx#1557257
Top of page 2, I think.
Neither does your text.
Press the Zero or F0 key on your controller to turn the lights on.
If that doesn't work, then type a message and tell us what you have -- scale, manufacturer, DC or DCC, and all the other gory details.
Entering a blank screen doesn't tell us anything.