Club has come up with a PFM Sierra 2-6-6-2 Mallet articulated. We have not opened it up yet, but we believe that it has PFM sound. There is a wiper on one of the drivers that appears to be for a driver revolution counter.
Looking for opinions as to which sound decoder would be most appropriate for this loco (ESU; TSU; or Tsunami2).
Thanks
Maxman
One of my favorite locos. I have one running on the layout with TSU 1000 in it. It has a can motor and the original drivetrain. It runs great but is very noisy. I run it slow and the meat grinder effect is quiet enough to not spoil the sound of the TSU. First thing I would do is run it on DC and see how well it runs and how much noise the drive train makes.
Motor: Usually these end up being re-motored as the old open frame is a power hog. The other motor option is to try replacing the magnets for better performance.
Drive train: While many of these models run well, the drivetrain is very noisy. Replacing the drive train with NWSL drivetrain requires pulling gears off of drivers (not trivial) and milling the frame in order to install it per directions. This is why mine is running with the original drive line. I do have another 2-6-6-2 with the NWSL driveline installed and it runs great.
Electrical pick up: most brass needs help in this area. This model did not need any additional pick-ups installed due to its large wheel base. Mine is running without a keep alive as well.
PFM speaker: if this model has the standard side port PFM speaker (shiny metal enclosure - the size of a small match box) – definitely use it for the decoder. These are some of the best sounding small speakers I have come across.
As for the decoder choice, everyone has their favorites. I like the TSU II for this loco but that is a personal preference thing. I would not bother with the cam as most of the newer decoders have a pretty good sync – however if you are one of those that will be bothered by slight imperfections in this area, then get a decoder with a cam wire I believe (it has been eliminated in the TSU II)
Good luck with the install,
Guy
see stuff at: the Willoughby Line Site
Tnut:
Thanks for the reply. Any particular flavor of the TSU2? (light; heavy; medium rare?)
What is the locked rotor current first?
SoundTraxx does have one and two amp decoders.
If it needs to be remotored or regeard, Dave at NWSL has been very helpful for me.
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.
maxman Any particular flavor of the TSU2? (light; heavy; medium rare?)
Any particular flavor of the TSU2? (light; heavy; medium rare?)
In the TSU 1000, I like the medium steam as the chuff sound is better to my ears. For new TSU2 they only offer one decoder with quite wide range of sounds built in...
Rich - yes, definately! always check the motor stall current. I can tell you that is way over an amp with the old open frame motors found in this model....
richg1998What is the locked rotor current first?
Thanks for the reminder, but we know to check that. I'm more interested in the different available sound flavors, and whether or not the wheel cam wiper thingy needs to be considered.
I would suggest sampling the Sounds at the SoundTraxx and LokSound sites. That way you hear what you will get. Hopefully your install will be the same but can depend on speaker and baffle.
I have used both brands.
richg1998I would suggest sampling the Sounds at the SoundTraxx and LokSound sites. That way you hear what you will get. Hopefully your install will be the same but can depend on speaker and baffle.
Yes, I could do that. But since I have absolutely no idea how it is supposed to sound, I'd probably pick something that I'd like, perhaps a SD40-2 or one of those GEs that makes the air compressor woop sound.