See how good Randy is?
"The true sign of intelligence is not knowledge but imagination."-Albert Einstein
http://gearedsteam.blogspot.com/
Randy, Thank You so much for all the times and others have spent answering my questions!
Well the BB 150 has problems. Reason I know? It is acting right again!
Hard to fix something that is not broken.
Ken
I hate Rust
The ground connection on the connector on the DB150. Test betwene there and rail a, and there and rail b. If they are significantly different, verify that address 00 isn't set to some speed other than 0. This shows each half of the DCC signal, and if address 00 is at stop, they should be identical. The top half should equal the bottom half. What can happen is a transistor can burn out int he output driver, so you end up with only half the DCC wave, either the top or bottom. So all commands work - you cna control everything, but motors only get half the normal voltage. Us the DC Volts setting for this. If you don't flip the test leads (ie, black in the ground red to rail a and then red to rail b), one reading will be + volts and the other will be - volts, but the number should be the same.
Def do a reset first, unhook any Loconet cables, plug the throttle right in to the DB150, either Loconet port is fine. Se the mode switch to OpSw. Select Switch on the throttle, enter 39 for the address, and hit C(losed). Then put the mode switch back to Run, and turn everything off, then back on again.
Also check the power coming in, make sure that is OK as well, if the power supply has stopped working properly then nothign else will, either.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
Randy, track power does look orange. Can't say it looks any different, like I really paid attention to the color it self.
rrinker Check the voltage from rail a to ground and rail b to ground, --Randy
Check the voltage from rail a to ground and rail b to ground,
Sorry to sound stupid here Randy, but what do you mean by Ground?
Just looked on the New Digitrax web site and did not see any repair cost listed. Looks like I will be back on the E Z Command again. I will try resetting the DB first.
Definitely reset. And look at the track power light. Is it more red or more green instead of orangy-looking? Select address 00 and make sure it's at speed 00. Check the voltage from rail a to ground and rail b to ground, they should be identical if address 00 is stopped. If things are running about half the usual speed, this usually means one phase of the output had died, that's what the voltage check will verify.
I would just reset the DB150 as it is so easy to do. That way you have eliminated or confirmed on of the items.
Last year when I had problems with programing decoders i did a DB150 reset. it did not work. When I called Digitrax and explained the problems with decoder programming the first thing I was asked is if I did a reset. When I said yes and it did not help. i was told to send it back to them
It came back working perfectly. That's my DB150 story.
Ken G Price My N-Scale Layout
Digitrax Super Empire Builder Radio System. South Valley Texas Railroad. SVTRR
N-Scale out west. 1996-1998 or so! UP, SP, Missouri Pacific, C&NW.
Trains started running slow while I have it on HO scale. I doubled checked the switch on the DB 150 and it is on HO. While the train was running, I flipped the power to N Scale and the train did not slow down.
I know the next step is to check the voltage at the track or the front of the DB 150.
Right before the slow down started, I tried to change some CV's on a Blue Line engine (pretty sure it did not cause this) using Po mode on the main. CV's I changed where CV201= 2 CV202=8 and CV203=15.
Could it possible be I need to reset the DB 150, or do you think there are other troubles brewing in the DB it's self?
When the problem first started I was running 1 Blue Line with sound, 2 PK 1000 F3's, 1 Bachmann FT A and a Blue Box F7 A with a Hump Yard Motor.
Thanks for the coming answers.