I recently got a Kato AC4400CW and while trying to speed match it I noticed that it is stuck on what appears to be a 14 step speed table! I set CV29 to to 18 which should be 2 number, 28/128 speed table, forward, analog off yet when I go into panel pro in JMRI/tools/programmers/opsmode programmer it appears that it is still stuck on a 14 step speed table. asd per esu loksdound you cannot change values of 1 or 28 but when I tried an experiment and set step 2 at 255 nothing happened. when Im went to speed 2 on my NCE I went to speed 3 then the loco took off. I then put step 2 at 0 step 3 at 0 and step 4 at 255 went to speed 4 on the cab and nothing put my speed at 5 then the loco took off. it continued like this all the way up the speed table like it was stuck on a 14 step speed table.
Does anyone know how to fix this or has anyone experienced a similar situation? Or does this need to go back to Kato. I tried a factory reset already and that didn't help anything
Turn off the speed table, and set the values back - or just reset the decoder entirely. It's your speed table that is making it behave that way. 255 is max speed, so if you have 255 a couple of steps in to the speed table, as soon as it get there the loco will take off. The only place you would possibly want a 255 in a speed table is the last step, not somewhere in the middle. The decoder gets confused if a lower step has a higher speed than a later step, so if you have it 0-0-0-255-0-0-0 etc no wonder it goes nuts.
Loksound supports CV 2-6-5 as well, you probably don;t need to use the 28 step speed table at all. 2 is start speed, 6 is mid point speed, and 5 is top speed. 2<6<5 for values, ie, do not set CV6=200 and CV5=100, as again the loco will behave strangely.
The only way the decoder can be in 14 speed steps is if CV29 is set for it. A value of 18 would not be 14 steps, 16 would be 14 steps, 2 digit, no DC, speed table on.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
If you turn off speed tables, you can just set CV2 (start value) and CV6 (midrange value) to zero. Set CV5 (top speed) so at full throttle the engine goes the speed you want it to. The decoder then sets up a straight line "speed curve" between step 1 (zero) and step 28 (whatever you programmed into step 28) and auto-magically fills in the steps in between.
Once that's done, if the engine is a little sluggish at the start, you can move CV2 up a little to get the engine to start moving at speed step 1 if you wish.
that is the issue that you guys are not quite getting. It is also how I found the issue. I was trying to speed match this loco to another. step 2 needed to be bumped up a little on this so I did that. it was still running at the same speed. I bumped it up a little more still no difference then I did a big bump and still nothing. I finally put it to 255 which should have made it take of.......and still nothing! figuring that was odd but still being new to speed matching I brought step 2 back down then went to step 3. That responded fine and got it speed matched so I continued to step 4 and sure enough NOTHING no matter what value I put in there all the way from a modest 16 up to 255 NOTHING. I then went to speed step 5 and sure enough it worked step 6 you guessed it didn't work step 7 responded so like I said to begin with it is acting like it is stuck on a 14 step speed table. Like I also said I did do a factory reset on the decoder and it still behaves the same way. I would really like to run this in a consist with 2 BLI loco's that I have but usually I run my trains at either speed 4 or 8 on my NCE and the Kato can't be matched at those since it doesn't respond to even numbered speeds on the NCE
As you scroll up one step at a time, do the headlights alternate on and off? That would mean the system is sending 14 step speed packets.
Which NCE system do you have? On a ProCab/PowerCab throttle, poress the 28/128 button to switch modes. You probably hit it at some point and set this address to 14 step mode. It's remembered in the command station, so any use of that loco address will be with 14 speed steps - either your throttle or a JMRI throttle.
wolf10851Like I also said I did do a factory reset on the decoder and it still behaves the same way.
After the factory re-set, did the engine run normally - only run full speed at full throttle, half speed at 1/2 throttle etc.?
When you try to change each speed step, are you using a LokProgrammer (I believe you said it was an ESU decoder?) or Decoder Pro or changing the CVs for each speed step directly? If it's the latter, and you were one CV off, that might explain what's happening. You think you're increasing speed step 2 but you're actually changing speed step 3.
Something like that is more likely since you're doing so much programming trying to speed match the engine. It's a lot easier (and just as effective) to turn speed curves off and use CV 2, 5, and 6 to do the speed matching, or pick a speed curve and then use CV66 (Forward Trim) and 95 (Reverse Trim) to fine tune it up or down a little. Trying to adjust each individual speed step one at a time really isn't necessary.
ok on the cab issue. No I did not hit the 28/128 switch down at the bottom of the cab As for changing the CV value no I was using decoder pro in JMRI. I had tried to speed match other locos 1 CV at a time with just the cab and man talk about tedius! yes after the factory reset the loco performed normally...........with the exception of the 14 speed step issue but yes at full speed it ran full speed at half speed it ran half speed
All of this delicate "speed matching"....seems like a hassle. I still do it the old DC way, if 2 locos, same address, run good together? I'm in! Speed matching complete!
Mike.
My You Tube
WIth a reset, and not even reprogramming the address - so address 3, no speed tables, plain old everything - is it running at 14 steps, and how do you know this? What about running it with the cab, not JMRI. Is it still 14 steps following a reset but BEFORE resetting the address?
Again, one giveaway is that the headlight will alternate on and off for each speed step - because the 14 step speed packet includes headlight status, but a 28 step packet uses that bit as the low bit of the speed value - So step 1, light on, step 2, light off, step 3, light on, etc. That's if the decoder is expecting 14 speed step packets and is getting 28, but a reset decoder is not set to 14 steps.
Mike, I don't do all that either, I just use the 3 step method if the two locos don't run close. CV2-6-5 don't work on ESU if CV29 is set to use a 28 step speed table.
rrinkerMike, I don't do all that either, I just use the 3 step method if the two locos don't run close. CV2-6-5 don't work on ESU if CV29 is set to use a 28 step speed table.
Yes, from a another thread on the topic, I take notes on such things, for my reference. I copied your post, printed it, and it's part of the Digitrax "how to" file I have going on.