Just turn off the BEMF, then they won't slow down when you hit the whistle. Digitrax BEMF isn;t all that great anyway, even in their motor only decoders, which is why I use only TCS decoders for motor control on my Digitrax layout. And Loksound for sound, their motor control is absolutely top-notch, and speed matching is a cinch compared to Tsunami, since they support all three CVs for start, mid, and top speed control without resorting to a speed table.
I did buy a Soundbug to test out, it's plenty loud, could easily hear it in the next room even with the TV on - and that's witht he speaker it came with and no enclosure. At the time there wasn;t much as far as sound projects, now they have some decent ones, but the neatest thing is one Fred Miller did that sets up the Digitrax sound decoders to be stationary 'sound boxes' with some tracks automatically repeating and others triggered by function keys. A Sound Bug plus a surplus amplified computer speaker is probably a cheaper under-layout sound option than some of those expensive MP3 sound player
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
When I first installed the two that I had last year, I noticed that there was a problem with the locos slowing whenever the bell or the horn was activated. They both would actually slow WAY down. I emailed Digitrax and was basically told that there is not a problem and they had no idea what I was talking about. Good enough for me! So, I just removed them and will not buy anymore. Simple!
Oh, and a friend had me install one of their N scale sound decoders in an n scale Kato SD40. It was so quiet that you could barely hear it. Not worth the effort of milling the frame and the fuel tank for.
Chuck - Modeling in HO scale and anything narrow gauge
I really feel sorry for Digitrax in that they don't have the best non sound or sound decoders. I personally like TCS for non sound(they have no diesel sound yet) and Soundtraxx for sound decoders. But I use and like their systems, I have 2 of them(one being a zephyr plus and the other an 8 amp radio unit with several cabs).
Richard
Most likely, the loco slowing down is due to the horn robbing power from the motor function. Probably a design flaw.
ba&prr There are some problems with the loco slowing down when the horn is played. I don't know if that was resolved. Joe
There are some problems with the loco slowing down when the horn is played. I don't know if that was resolved. Joe
Yeah, I've noticed that too. I had a couple of these and that drove me nuts. I have since replaced them Tsunami's and got rid of them. I wonder why they do that?
I replaced mine with Tsunami's, still trying to find someone who'll at least give me a little for them. Tsunami's also have F11 braking which can make running trains pretty realistic.
The Digitrax line has two advantages. First, they're relatively cheap, and second they are easy to update with a PR3. However, they are 8-bit sound encoding, so they will never be able to reproduce the quality of higher-end decoders like the Tsunami or LokSound.
I've installed several SoundBug decoders and a couple of other sound-only units. All of these were done a few years ago, so some of my information may be out of date. The big problem I have with these is the very low volume on the non-SoundBug models. Even cranked up all the way, they are barely audible over the running noise of a train, and will not be heard if another sound engine is running in the room. The SoundBugs do have sufficient volume.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
I tried Digitrax decoders and found if you want good sound, use one of the sounds done by a member of the Digitrax group. I have an Athearn F7A with the Digitrax SDN144PS and a 1" speaker with baffle and the sound is good. Their down side is lack of sound files and poor sound with small speakers. There are some problems with the loco slowing down when the horn is played. I don't know if that was resolved. Joe
BINGO!! Having the best decoder won't matter with a crappy speaker. The speaker needs to be compatible and support the sound files. Having a bass speaker will also improve the sound quality.
Inspired by Addiction
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Check out the Digitraxsound Yahoo Group. There are a coupel of members there who have done some amazing things with the decoders, but as far as overall sound quality, they are still a lower tier than Loksound or Tsunami.
Well I like the Digitrax sound decoders for diesels. I have them in an RDC, a couple of E-units, and an AC-4400. I don't like the steam sounds as much, for steam engines I'll pay the extra amount and buy Tsunamis. But of course, they'res easier to afford since I'm saving money on the Digitrax decoders for the diesels. The diesels go thru an automatic 'start up' sequence when you access the decoder (put the ID no. of the engine in your controller). Not sure if there's a separate start-up/shut-down sequence like some other decoders have.
It's nice to be able to add your own sounds with the PRC (and you can use it to use Decoder Pro to program your decoders too). On my RDC and passenger diesels, I found a .wav file of a conductor yelling "ALL ABOARD" and used that file to replace one of the other sounds that I never use. So now when a passenger train is ready to depart, I can hit an F button and get the "ALL ABOARD" call.
How good is digitrax sound? I though about getting a PR3 and a seeing as how the PR3 and a decoder is still less than a LokSound V4 I might be willing to switch IF digitrax has good quality sound and is can be programmed with prime mover default off and press F8 for start up / shut down.
I love the LokSound decoders but if the hardware is good enough in the digitrax I can work with sound files.