I have a Spectrum DCC engine and am getting rid of it (4-4-0) due to running poor even though bought brand new. Noticed it seems to have a reglar 8 pin decoder in it. Question is can I just remove it and plug it into a Proto 0-6-0. Just now starting to deal with kept engines that are not DCC. No, if I am satisfied with the Proto I will be looking for a DCC and sound decoder.
I have a Digitrax DH163LO in a Proto 0-8-0 and it plugged into an 8-pin socket. The Proto 0-6-0 should come with an 8-pin socket, as well.
Tom
https://tstage9.wixsite.com/nyc-modeling
Time...It marches on...without ever turning around to see if anyone is even keeping in step.
If the Proto loco has the same style connection used in some of the diesels, a board with 6 diodes on it, and a smaller board with all the wires going to it that has the 8 pin socket, then an 8 pin decoder can plug in, however, the lights will have to be changed - the low voltage bulbs on the loco will blow out pretty much instantly if a standard decoder is plugged in.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
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rrebell I have a Spectrum DCC engine and am getting rid of it (4-4-0) due to running poor even though bought brand new. Noticed it seems to have a reglar 8 pin decoder in it. Question is can I just remove it and plug it into a Proto 0-6-0. Just now starting to deal with kept engines that are not DCC. No, if I am satisfied with the Proto I will be looking for a DCC and sound decoder.
If it came with the low end shrink wrapped EZ Command decoder, I would toss it. I did. The CV specs are at the Bachmann site. Many have tossed them. Chek it out first.
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.
It is a soundtrax decoder which I like the currant stuff they do. So will it be just plug and play then? Has 8 pin in each but I heard some early stuff were wired diferently. The 4-4-0 was around 2012 and the Proto was pre 2005.
This is just to test things, like what to keep or sell on ebay. If it runs the motor well, it can blow the light bulbs for all I care. Still trying to deside if all new is the way to go or a mix as I move over to DCC.
The EZ Command decoder will do that just fine.
If you go to TCS, they are very good.
The problem with the "who cares if it blows the light bulbs" is that often when this happens, it also fries the light outputs on the decoder.
If you avoid hitting F0 ti turn the lights on, you might get away with it, until you accidently hif F0. And they WILL blow, no maybe about it, Life Like used low voltage bulbs, kept in check by the diodes on their light board. The decoder almost certainly has no on-board resistors to regulate the light output, those were on the Bachmann circuit board.
ANd no, you can't just swap the whole circuit board, the Bachmann almost certainly has LEDs, so the resistors are incorrect anyway. On LL diesels, it's easy to swap out the bulbs for LEDs, getting to the headlight in a steam loco can be tough, but if you end up wanting to keep it, replacing the bulb with an LED and a 1K or higher (if it's too bright, try a 2.2K resistor) is the way to go.
This is a decoder I will take out of an engine, so if the light circits fry, no big deal. Just want to try out the locos without spending $ before I decide what to do. Any locos I don't like will get e-bayed. Just wanted to know if I take out a working decoder, can I just plug it into the other engines and test it out. If I like I will then buy a really good dcoder with sound. See I have never even swaped out a decoder before.
The 8 pin plug is a standard, so yes, it will just plug in.
Having a DC test track with a decent power pack is always a good thing - you can test run the loco on DC< if it doesn;t run well on DC< it's not going to magically get better on DCC, so your options would be to tune it up and get it working smoothly on DC, or get rid of it and move on to the next one.
The Bachmann motor-only decoder isn;t one of the better ones, so if it runs but not super smooth, it could be the decoder and not an issue witht he loco - which is why first running it as--is on DC is a good idea. If it runs smoothly on DC, then it should do so on DCC - anything less than the same quality of operation with a decoder installed is on the decoder, if you know how it runs on DC first.
Most I know on DC. Really want to find out if new stuff runs better than the old which was top of the line back when they came out, talking Atlas Silver diesels and Proto steam.