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Ghost Train? Loco runs wild at power-up

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  • Member since
    February 2005
  • From: Vancouver Island, BC
  • 23,330 posts
Posted by selector on Wednesday, September 15, 2010 7:16 PM

The possible values are different, but moreover, CV50 has to be involved as well, I believe.

-Crandell

  • Member since
    May 2008
  • 4,612 posts
Posted by Hamltnblue on Wednesday, September 15, 2010 3:29 PM

Do they have a similar setting to turn off DC mode?  His problem does sound like it.

Springfield PA

  • Member since
    February 2005
  • From: Vancouver Island, BC
  • 23,330 posts
Posted by selector on Wednesday, September 15, 2010 3:15 PM

I have two Trix locos, a Mikado and a GG1. Both have a LokSound varient decoder.  The LokSound decoders don't necessarily have the same CV's and settings for CV's that the more common ones found in the Big N. American manfucaturers's products.

-Crandell

  • Member since
    May 2008
  • 4,612 posts
Posted by Hamltnblue on Wednesday, September 15, 2010 3:05 PM

The most common setting for CV29 is 34

Having a loco take off at max speed is a common complaint and is usually caused by the DC mode of the decoder.

Here's a CV29 calculator.

http://www.2mm.org.uk/articles/cv29%20calculator.htm

Springfield PA

  • Member since
    February 2010
  • From: Hillsboro, Oregon
  • 934 posts
Posted by Eric97123 on Wednesday, September 15, 2010 1:31 PM

If you have not tried it, reset the decoder.. I got a new Digitrax decoder that did the same thing, stop and warp speed.. so now I do reset first thing when I install one. 

  • Member since
    July 2003
  • From: Sierra Vista, Arizona
  • 13,757 posts
Posted by cacole on Wednesday, September 15, 2010 1:10 PM

The Trix decoders may be set to 14 speed steps by default, instead of 28/128 like most other brands.  This can be corrected by adding 2 to the value that is in CV 29.  For example, if CV 29 has a value of 4, change it to a value of 6.  If the problem persists, then program CV 29 with a value of 2 to turn off DC Conversion.

  • Member since
    June 2010
  • 11 posts
Ghost Train? Loco runs wild at power-up
Posted by Cucamonga on Wednesday, September 15, 2010 11:00 AM

I just purcahsed a set of ALCO PA-1 locomotives by TRIX (Maerklin's DC/DCC line).  The problem is that they sometimes, but not always, start at some speed near max or so when I first apply power to the track.  I use Digitrax DCC.  The only way I seem to be able to defeat this is to put the command station into "Op" mode, then selecting loco 60 (that's the address coded to the PA-1s), making sure the speed is set to 0 and then selecting the locos I want to run.  Once, however, I even noticed that, while it stayed put at power-up, it decided to start moving after some minutes of my operating other locos on the layout.  That did it, I stopped using them.

TRIX tech support is just about non-existent; got no reponse to my e-mail.  The manual shows very few CV values in a brief table, most of them using the NMRA standard values.

Does anyone have any ideas what may be wrong?  Or what I might check next?  I really like the locos and would love to get them to run reliably.

Tammo

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