Hey the TCS decoder looks pretty good. Probably my first choice of the suggestions made so far.
How about compatibility with JMRI decoder pro? I saw a thread posted that says Economai is not very compatible. How about TCS?
Huntington Junction - Freelance based on the B&O and C&O in coal country before the merger... doing it my way. Now working on phase 3. - Walt
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HObbyguy Looking through documentation the Economai features look very similar to Tsunami but with a lower price. Are there any downsides? Soundtraxx does not seem to support 8 pin NMRA connection (which the loco on the way should have.) Others do support 8 pin. Am I missing something with this? I could buy an 8 pin wiring harness, solder the wires and then plug an Economai right in. Or remove the connector board in the tender entirely and just solder the leads to the loco wires. Right? Pros/cons?
Looking through documentation the Economai features look very similar to Tsunami but with a lower price. Are there any downsides?
Soundtraxx does not seem to support 8 pin NMRA connection (which the loco on the way should have.) Others do support 8 pin. Am I missing something with this?
I could buy an 8 pin wiring harness, solder the wires and then plug an Economai right in. Or remove the connector board in the tender entirely and just solder the leads to the loco wires. Right? Pros/cons?
Cut back the shrink just enough to expose the 9 pin connector. Buy the 9 pin to 8 pin adapter. This has been done with the Tsunami for some years. SoundTraxx has said this is ok.
Look at the link below. Bruce shows how it is done with a Tsunami.
http://mrdccu.com/curriculum/soundtraxx/tsunami.html
A new SoundTraxx decoder is suppose to be revealed very soon. Still watching for it.
Rich
If you ever fall over in public, pick yourself up and say “sorry it’s been a while since I inhabited a body.” And just walk away.
wjstix I just installed a TCS "Wow" decoder in a light 4-8-2. It was an older one so I had to create my own speaker area, including drilling holes in the floor. It sounds great with a 1" speaker. I chose to get one with the "keep alive" option - on mine I had to remove some of the weights to make room for everything so the keep alive keeps it running fine.
I just installed a TCS "Wow" decoder in a light 4-8-2. It was an older one so I had to create my own speaker area, including drilling holes in the floor. It sounds great with a 1" speaker. I chose to get one with the "keep alive" option - on mine I had to remove some of the weights to make room for everything so the keep alive keeps it running fine.
I would second the use of a TCS Wow sound decoder. I have installed several and have been very happy with the results. Any issues that have come up have been solved by customer service.
On the Econami, you can't use reverb or modify the advanced sound levels.
Take a look at the new Econami from SoundTraxx. IMO they are better sounding than the Loc Sound steam. If you have room I would up grade the speaker to a larger one if there is room. The Econami likes a 8 ohm load for its speaker.
OK, guys, looking for advice from the experts- or at least those that have a lot more experience than I do
So far I've just got experience with decoders that came with locos that I've bought. What upgrade decoder would be best for a 4-8-2 Heavy mountain? A Tsunami TSU-1000 would drop in pretty easily but I've seen a lot of good feedback for Loksound Select. What sound file would be best for a Loksound decoder? Any issues using the existing speaker? I don't know the ohm rating but it is currently being used with a Soundrax DSD decoder.
The loco I have works fine with the DSD but the sound control is very limited. And I have another 4-8-2 Heavy on the way that is DCC ready. Looking to upgrade both.