Hey guys.... Hope this works... If this post is an "open thread", I want to thank everyone for their response(s). Today is Monday, Jan. 4, '10. I just returned from Savannah - where I left my Digitrax DB150 "Command Center" and throttle with the dealer for return shipment to Digitrax. The dealer and the tech support person at Digitrax (via telephone conference) could not explain the failure. The 'Magna Force' power supply seems to be OK. So... I'm down for a couple of weeks - plenty of time to continue on-going work on scenery and accessories. Thanks, again.
G' Flash
It should start up in its default settings without a battery. Digitrax hasn't made any changes over the years to that part. My first one was an early model with the spring terminals. It started with no battery. BTW, you only need one 2032 battery. Two won't change a thing as they are wired in parallel and will just go dead at the same time. Length of time that the command station spends with no power connected determines the life of the CMOS battery. It doesn't take any power at all when power is connected to its fron terminals.My home unit will go several years between batteries because I leave the power on most of the time. Our NTRAK club units spend 300+ days a year in storage. We change those batteries twice annually.
Martin Myers
my old type dcs100 won't set every time without a battery in it, it has slots for 2 batteries so you can 'hot swap' them. i had an issue where to switch it on would take 6 or 7 attempts ( with flat batteries ) sometimes more. i fitted 2 new batteries and it comes on 1st time every time now. perhaps batteries are a must for the older unit but the new type can live without them??
rdettmer my super chief beeps 7 times when starting up which is the battery needs changing but it works ok otherwise i changed it once and still got the beeps, do i need to change the battery again or is something wrong with the system.
my super chief beeps 7 times when starting up which is the battery needs changing but it works ok otherwise i changed it once and still got the beeps, do i need to change the battery again or is something wrong with the system.
Yes, you need to change the battery again. Actually, the DCS100 will work OK with no battery. It will start up in its default settings every time it's turned on. As long as you have no need to change its options or to remember routes, or consists, etc it can be run without a battery. It will also start up in 22 slot mode each time so if more slots are needed, change the battery.
DCS100 CMOS battery change
rrinkerEasiest way to prevent this is to tin the wires with solder,
I have done the above as well.
Simple test, unhook the DB 150, solder some wire to a free standing section of track not hooked to the main layout and hook up the DB 150 to it. Put a engine on it and give it a try.
I have the SEB like yours and it works great.
Cuda Ken
I hate Rust
Don't overlook the obvious - check the terminal block on the front of the DB150 where all the wire connect. Make sure the power supply wires are in the proper terminals and the track wires are int he proper terminals. And make sure there is not so much as 1 stray strand of wire touching another terminal - that's all it takes to create a short that is nearly impossible to find. Easiest way to prevent this is to tin the wires with solder, the screw clam can still tighten down on the wires but since all strands are held in place with the sodler they can't sneak outside and over to the adjacent terminal.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
Craig North Carolina
The command stations communicate using beeps, so it certainly sounds as if it was working upon initial power up.
See this link for beep explanation
http://tsd.digitrax.com/index.php?a=908
Knowing how many beeps there were, will certainly help in determining what happened.
The suggestions above are what I would do also. You need to seperate the layout from the command station to determine if the fault is with the command station or the layout.
Simon Modelling CB&Q and Wabash See my slowly evolving layout on my picturetrail site http://www.picturetrail.com/simontrains and our videos at http://www.youtube.com/user/MrCrispybake?feature=mhum
Your post sounds like an initial installation. If that is the case, disconnect everything. Turn on the power supply and measure the output to be sure it is putting out the correct voltage.
Then connect it to the DB150 but not to anything else. Turn on the power and see if the the DB150 powers up properly. Measure the output of that.
Remove all rolling stock from the rails. Put an ohm meter across the rails (not connected to the DB150). It should show infinite resistance. If it does not, you have a short somewhere.
Add things one at a time until the problem returns.
Dave
Lackawanna Route of the Phoebe Snow
Hi!
I am a relative newbie to DCC (Super Chief w/booster), but maybe I can help. Is this a newly installed system, or has it been in operation awhile? If its new, you may have a wire in the wrong slot, or a switch flipped incorrectly.
If its not a new installation, it sounds like you have a short somewhere. I've had a few caused by a derailed car at a turnout, which with DC probably would not have caused a problem. Come to think of it, a new install could of course have the same problem. Oh, I also had a small screwdriver left on the track after I adjusted something, and that caused a short as well.
Digitrax is pretty reliable, but DCC can be very finicky. Wish you luck!
Mobilman44
ENJOY !
Living in southeast Texas, formerly modeling the "postwar" Santa Fe and Illinois Central
If it was five beeps it wouldsound like you have a short circuit someplace. Maybe something laying across the rails, a derailment, a wheel of a loco or car bridging the rails on a frog? Disconnect the pair of wires from the DB150 to the DCC buss and see if it clears. I also have the Super Empire Builder. Digitrax customer service is usually good except for one guy there who is not that helpful and it seems I always get him when I call there. Was it running ok before yesterday. I would go through your wiring after checking the layout for something simple making a short. It could even be a bad decoder in a loco. Take them all off the layout first.
I return to this forum because the suggestions and responses have helped me get my version of our hobby up and running. However, I have come up against a major obstacle. Yesterday, Christmas Day, when I turned on my Digitrax "Super Empire Builder" system - following the set-up and turn-on instructions (word-for-word, by the letter), I received/heard a continuous series of 'beeps'; then complete shut-down. I also noticed that the heat sinks on the DB150 were unusually warm (my 'train room' is quite cold; the power supply and DB150 are in the open air). OK... Today, some 24 hours later, I went through the whole set-up and turn-on process again. The lights on the DB150 came on dimly and very briefly; then, no lights. The power-supply/transformer's light is on. So... Has anyone out there/here had similar problems? What are some of your experiences with the Digitrax people? I'm feeling ripped off; and don't want to trash/bad mouth DCC or Digitrax. Anyway, thanks for reading/listening. Your suggestions/tips will be greatly appreciated.