Thanks for getting back to us. Sometimes we hear nothing and sometimes we here a thank you, without identifying exactly what fixed the problem.
Henry
COB Potomac & Northern
Shenandoah Valley
Update, it was the decoder. I got another and all is well! You can see a video of the loco here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/busDaf5eoUTZKTov7
I keep an old MP-3 player at the bench where I do my decoder installs. I use it to check the sound output of speaker assemblies before I install them into the locomotive.
By playing a "wide dynamic range" piece of music I can get a pretty good idea of how the decoder will sound after it has been installed.
You can get a 1/8" phone plug and solder brass probes on to the wires. I had an old pair of earbuds and used the wire/plug from that.
While you wait for your replacement decoder you can poke these probes on to the traces of the PC board to make sure the speaker and connections are working on the motherboard before you plug in the new decoder.
Cheers, Ed
Afrosteam I didn't buy from Soundtraxx, i ordered it from EBay.
I didn't buy from Soundtraxx, i ordered it from EBay.
You never said that in your first post but you did say it is returnable. You are lucky.
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.
Same thoughts here. Most decoder manufactures want to handle warranty problems on a one on one with the customer.
I'm surprised it's returnable, best of luck with whatever works. Let us know when you get it running. I'm sure you will.
Oh, well I already put in the request for refund.
If it less than 90 days old they will repair or replace at no charge.
It's $45 for repairs... I think I'll just get my money back for the decoder. But thank you for helping!
OK, if that speaker is the one you have been using dwith the 21 pin decoder, The decoder is BAD. Very easy to do. You can still have motor drive and lidghts BUT no SOUND! Bad decoder, send it back to SoundTraxx and dwith your reciet when you purchased it. You also have to fill out a warranty return form.
Go to Soundtraxx sit and under service download the return form.
woodone
@woodone speaker tested and working.
woodone OK Let start from scratch. How do you know speaker is GOOD? got a second sound decOder you can hook your speaker to? test speaker with know GOOD decoder-if said speaker works with your known good decoder-hook that speaker to your 21 pin decoder at pins 9&10 if it does not make sounds- you decoder is DEAD on the audio !
OK Let start from scratch. How do you know speaker is GOOD?
got a second sound decOder you can hook your speaker to?
test speaker with know GOOD decoder-if said speaker works with your known good decoder-hook that speaker to your 21 pin decoder at pins 9&10 if it does not make sounds- you decoder is DEAD on the audio !
I have several sound locos but they're factory installed save for my Gs4 from Bachmann of which i soldered in the speaker myself. I also added a Mars light to it. But yeah i guess I'll check and get back to you.
@bigdaddy make that 2 locos now. I tried in on a Bachmann tornado which clearly has marked spots for the speaker wires on the board. Still nothing. I give up.
Edit: I thought about replacing those wires but since the decoder works with no 21pin i have, eh.
AfrosteamAnd I'm female, by the way.
Noted and corrected.
I could be confused too:
You have a single decoder and you have tried it in two different engines and 3 speakers?
Ed #2 has beaucoup locos. I don't think the average model railroader has a decoder tester, although in retrospect I could have used one once.
We have European member that could be of more help when they see this thread. Most of us model using N American manufacturers. If F8 doesn't work, there doesn't appear to by anything obvious wrong. Again, if you have solder extending from one soldering pad to the other, on the circuit board, that would be bad. I just can't see that for sure, but you can.
The red and black wire look thicker than the usual decoder wire. If you are going to be doing more conversions, get yourself some correctly colored 30 ga wire from one of the DCC online shops.
I have had a DCC installation that didn't work and it was very frustrating because nothing was obviously wrong that I could see. When I could see better after cataract surgery I saw what was wrong. Then again, sometimes things come from the factory broken.
Been doing that, nothing. Turning the volumes up did nothing. The speaker is an 8ohm which would work with decoder. I'm calling it defective. Tried on a 3rd locomotive nothing.
The speaker might be OK, but the audio amp of the decoder could be bad. They don’t like shorts ! You don’t by chance have the sound muted? Try hitting F8 that is the function for munting the sound.It might be turned off?
@woodone it's two different locomotives. The speaker isn't blown at least this one isn't. I tried soldering the wires to pins 9 and 10 and it did nothing. All other decoder functions work. For the tender locomotive i had to look at the 3rail sound version to see where the speakers should go but that didn't work.
BigDaddy RR_Mel I for one have a short fuse and things like this can really get me worked up. If Afrostream didn't have a short fuse before, he ought to have on after starting this thread. As someone prone to snarkyness, there is quite a bit going on. What seems to have been missed is that there are two different locos and two different circuit boards that the OP is asking about. For the first picture I would look on the manufacturer (of the loco) website for info on where to put the wires. On the second one, is there any possibility that solder from one of the pad's at the speaker attachment is touching the other pad? I can't see it that well. Sorry I have nothing else for you except that the discussion on the first page is highly uncharacteristic of this forum and of Ed #1. I expect our moderator will wack some of his responses Monday.
RR_Mel I for one have a short fuse and things like this can really get me worked up.
If Afrostream didn't have a short fuse before, he ought to have on after starting this thread.
As someone prone to snarkyness, there is quite a bit going on.
What seems to have been missed is that there are two different locos and two different circuit boards that the OP is asking about.
For the first picture I would look on the manufacturer (of the loco) website for info on where to put the wires.
On the second one, is there any possibility that solder from one of the pad's at the speaker attachment is touching the other pad? I can't see it that well.
Sorry I have nothing else for you except that the discussion on the first page is highly uncharacteristic of this forum and of Ed #1. I expect our moderator will wack some of his responses Monday.
Yes the photos are of two different locomotives. I apologize for getting upset but when i have to tell someone the same thing over and over and they keep telling me do something I keep telling them i can't...
Anyway, neither manufacture say anything on installing sound. Ibertren's manual says to attach the speaker wires to the red and black ones provided. I did that and nothing happened. Trix says nothing, someone on Reddit had to look at the Marklin sound version of the model to find where the speaker wires should go, but that provided no solution either. Im starting to think the decoder's busted.
And I'm female, by the way.
Back again-Look at post from Afrosteam- look at the link listed, go to page 15 it will show pin out for decoder- also look a post About 27 from GMpullman he shows a photo of the PCB the decoder plugs into and the two speaker connections on that board. I am guessing that the first photo you show is the locomotive- the second is the tender where the decoder is to be pluged in.
just a second ID note- the 21 pin header is really a 22 pin- just the number 11 hole or pin blocked for keying the DCC decoder board to be pluged in one way.
top left pin is #1 and goes down to pin 11 ( which is not used) then pin 12 is just to the right of the 11 pin then you go up from pin 12 to pin22.
On the board that I see where the decoder is plug into is where you attached the two speaker wires. I can’t See if these two points were IDed has speaker outputs? What lead you to attach the speaker wires at these two points? We’re these marked SPK-or some thing like that?
On the decoder board at the 21 pin header- find the blanked off pin- the two pins just above this blanked pin are the speaker outputs.
do a google search for 21 pin DCC pin out- it will ID the pins.
that may help you- BTW THE speaker out puts are VERY sensative to shorts- a breif touch of the two will blow the AMP, causing no audio .
If Afrostream didn't have a short fuse before, she ought to have on after starting this thread.
I've played with the CV volumes and reset the decoder - nothing. And yes this is a new decoder. I won't hear from Soundtraxx until Monday, maybe. Im beginning to think it's the decoder.
Maybe the decoder is busted. But thank you for trying.
Well, I see that the other forum thread I linked to is yours.
Guess there's no help there either.
Hopefully someone else can take a look here and have some helpful suggestions.
That was the first thing i did, nothing. It's shown in the first picture.
Afrosteam I've looked at manual too, there's nothing helpful in it. I tried soldering the speaker wires to the decoder, nothing.
I've looked at manual too, there's nothing helpful in it. I tried soldering the speaker wires to the decoder, nothing.
Again, the decoder and the motherboard are two different things. The speaker wires should not have to be soldered on to the decoder. Just the motherboard (that was already in the loco, I assume).
Good Luck, Ed