Most of the newer RTR locos have a DC light board and a 9 pin quick-plug for a decoder, They aren't all lie the old style clip. It depends on which loco you get. To not buy ANY ever again because SOME are still made the same wat AThearn has made them for 40+ years is kind of silly. Not to mention that Athearn has made them that way for 40+ years because it WORKS. It's NOT hard to put DCC in an old BB-style loco.
In fact if my 50% success rate with the RS-3 is any indication, the older style with the big clip on top were MORE reliable.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
Thanks. The last one I did, I cut the weight out of the body shell. Just a lot of extra work. I usually run two or three locos in a consist, so the lighter weight is not a problem. But I'm not buying any more Athearn RTR locos.
Athearn is still making them that way. The weight assembly in the top of the long hood is the problem. They don't want to spend the money to retool all the shells to get rid of that part, but that part interferes with where the Quick-Plug board would go.
The current hot setup is to find a Kato motor with flywheels. The hex drive lines fit right in, the motors mounts into the same place, and the overall height is low enough to use a board replacement decoder that snaps in on top of the motor, while still fitting in the shell. Sound decoders are available in this form, and work nicely.
Mike WSOR engineer | HO scale since 1988 | Visit our club www.WCGandyDancers.com
I just picked up two Athearn RTR GP38-2s, with the old style campfire in the cab lights. I thought they discontinued that stuff a long time ago. I am going to install DCC and sound in them, and I know how, but I'm not looking forward to the extra work. When I ordered them online, it didn't occur to me to see if they were DCC ready. Have these been in a warehouse somewhere for years, or is Athearn still making them this way?
If you unclip the dynamic brake housing on the Athearn shell, the top weight should either fall out, or if it is held with double-sided tape it can be gently prised loose.
How did you get the weight loose? Thanks,
Dixon
If you want DCC and sound, I think it would be best to do it with one decoder instead of two.
Last summer I installed a QSI Revolution decoder in an Athearn RTR GP38-2. It was my first decoder install and everything went well, no smoke! This would not be a good idea for someone unfamiliar with electronics. If you are unfamiliar or nervous it may be best to try something simpler. Take your time and follow the instructions. QSI had good instructions.
Very Important!. Since the Athearn motor is not insulated from the frame you need to follow the instructions as outlined in the link you have to TCS. QSI had basically the same instructions.There cannot be any direct electrical contact between the motor and the frame or wheels.
I took the opportunity of replacing the light assemblies with LEDs while I was at it. The current light assemblies are atrocious. Some have aptly refered to them as "campfires in the cab". The QSI decoder came with a circuit and wires for LED lights. I enclosed the sides and rear of the LEDs with shrink tubing and attached them with double sided tape to the top of the body behind the light lens.
The biggest problem was finding a place to put the decoder. I finally installed it in the space where the weight was in the top of the body.
I installed a small round speaker in the ceiling at the back of the cab and a small oval speaker in the top of the very rear of the body. The speakers were attached with double sided tape. The capacitor fit in the v shaped section at the back of the body, behind the rear gear tower.
If the version you have is like the one pictured on the TCS site (still with the old style clip and not a board of any kind), you can uses either the QSI Revolution U, Loksound Select, or Tsunami TSU-1000, all of which will provide both the sounds and motor control. The motor connections will be done the same way as they are on the TCS example. One thing I would do differently is NOT connect the black wire to the front light post - they usually aren't well connected to the chassis, there's only 1 rivet used. Instead drill a small hole in the chassis and tap it for a small brass screw and solder the wire to that. Or carefully solder some decoder-type wire to the rivet on each truck's side plate - the one that does not loop up for the top clip. Connect those together and to the black decoder wire.
Then you need to find room for the speaker and enclosure. The enclosure is critical to get godo volume and good frequency response from the speaker.
It's much easier to configure a loco with a single decoder vs one that has a seperate motor and sound decoder.
So I've just picked up a rtr Athearn GP38-2, and I'm wanting to add DCC to it and sound. First thing seems to be that these engines are not DCC ready (oops) as they use the same chassis from the old version of the loco.
I found this installation tutorial for the TCS M2 'two function' decoder here http://www.tcsdcc.com/public_html/Customer_Content/Installation_Pictures/HO_Scale/Athearn/GP38-2/Athearn_GP38-2.html
But obviously that only controls the loco and the lights/reverse lights (which will need to be replacement led lamps).
So two questions.
1. How do I add sound to this loco? Is it a case of adding the TCS M2 and a seperate sound module? Or is there a 'one stop' solution that does both sound and control?
2. If I need a seperate sound module, what is the most economical one to get?