Hello crew!I just learned that TCS will be making diesel horn sounds available in their "WOWSound" series decoders. Currently they're in the BETA Testing stage. Although listening to sounds online poses limitations, to me, the samples sounded sweet! I especially enjoyed the horn "quilling" feature which adds an enjoyable depth of realism to the melodic sound. Below are the YouTube clips. Listen carefully and state your feedback/critiques. The K3H and K5LA samples on the first clip are really nice! On the 2nd video clip the narrator explains which buttons to press for the different horn effects.
(Oh, and respectfully to our anti-sound friends: "Yes; I know that small scale sound will not equal the low frequency response of the 1:1 world.")https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0gufLs10lM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Io93bBjy9bg
"I like my Pullman Standards & Budds in Stainless Steel flavors, thank you!"
Hi, Antonio
I have been eagerly awaiting the release of the WOWsound Diesel.
Other threads are here:
http://cs.trains.com/mrr/f/744/t/243286.aspx
http://cs.trains.com/mrr/f/744/t/239110.aspx
And a reply from Norm when I asked about availability:
Best Regards,
Norm Stenzel
Train Control Systems
267-733-3408
norm@tcsdcc.com
I had a chance to see and hear the prototype this past September at the Railroad Museum of PA during the NMRA event there........WOW is a gross understatement about the sound on this new decoder.
Dennis Blank Jr.
CEO,COO,CFO,CMO,Bossman,Slavedriver,Engineer,Trackforeman,Grunt. Birdsboro & Reading Railroad
rdgk1se3019 WOW is a gross understatement about the sound on this new decoder.
WOW is a gross understatement about the sound on this new decoder.
I don't follow, what, exactly are you saying? That it's superior to the real thing? If so I can't wait to get one
Dean
30 years 1:1 Canadian Pacific.....now switching in HO
mactier_hoggerI don't follow, what, exactly are you saying?
If they're as good as the steam version they may become the new standard by which all others are judged. I'm still very impressed with what Matt Herman is doing for Loksound but having another great choice just raises the bar for everyone. I wonder how the folks in Durango will respond?
I hope they offer a dual 567 option for E units
Ed
Sounds like great things to come! Sorry for the cheap pun! My second one tonight on the forum. My bad!
I used to have a horn reference chart saved in my favourites but the link is broken. Can anyone suggest a website where we can identify exactly which horn was used on which engine, or do we have to search out each engine's specs and hope they name a horn?
Thanks
Dave
I'm just a dude with a bad back having a lot of fun with model trains, and finally building a layout!
hon30critterI used to have a horn reference chart saved in my favourites but the link is broken.
Dave,
Sometimes I find these helpful...
http://atsf.railfan.net/airhorns/
http://www.dieselairhorns.com/
http://www.soundtraxx.com/choose/choose4.php#use
I find it somewhat unfortunate that there is a segment of "diesel horn collectors" out there whose sole intent is to sneak up on unsuspecting pedestrians, blast an air horn mounted on their vehicle and record the results for the entertainment of the unwashed masses.
I think this practice has made locomotive air horns more scarce and, in turn, has driven up the price and taken some availability away from "genuine" collectors.
Just my Ed
Ed:
Thank you for those links. Great resources!
I had an experience with miss-used air horns . Several years ago when I was a member of the MG Car Club of Toronto one of the members had a transport truck sized air horn mounted in his MGB. It was deafening! He did admit that it didn't work as well as hoped. The sound was fine but when he honked it invariably the offending motorist would look up to see where the 'transport truck' was, thereby usually looking too high in the air to see his MG.
Based on the response from Durango to Loksound passing them by, I'm expecting that the new TCS WOW will be the tops - for now. Until ESU makes their next round of improvements. The interesting thing is going to be if ESU can match or exceed WOW with just firmware updates or if we will be needing to see a Loksound V5.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
TCS decoders have a menu to use for programing.....also to help chose which horns/whistles you want to use.
ESU actually has very poor quality sound compared to the new TSC decoders.........they are the only decoders with CD quality sound.
Tsunami claims 44KHz sampling too. Fairly useless for the typical speakers used anyway - they can't get anywhere near the 22Khz theoretical limit for 44KHz samples.
No one else seems to publish their information. Likely all the same, or else 22KHz, which actually is fine for the dynamic range of the tiny speakers. Hooked up to a real audio system, then it would be noticeable. That, however, is not a realistic representation of what you will get when the decoder is installed.
These days, all are 16 bit, unless MRC is not telling the truth about their newest decoders.
Not saying WOW isn't top quality - but it's not the sound quality necessarily, but rather the more features and the way it uses those sounds, at least on the steam version. All that automatic chuff level and rod clank stuff, completely automatic from the BEMF. What I find insteresting is that TCS and ESU have gone out and made fresh quality recordings, whereas Soundtraxx only saya that they remastered their recordings for better quality - hinting that many of them are the same as in the old DSD and LC series, just with the orginals now downmixed at a higher quality than the ones used for those older decoders. Believable, when I had a Tsunami 567 alongside the old DSD-LC 567 I had. Quite close, since the LC had a HUGE speaker (filled the inside of an F7 B unit dummy, less the decoder space), compared to the ralther small speaker on the Tsunami.
In the "horns" arena, I find it interesting that some of us will say "The Tsunami Nathan M-such and such horn sounds better than QSI's version"; and so forth. I'm guilty of this too.But something that I keep in mind. Let's say that I have three sound equipped diesels that have M5 horn sounds. Well, I certainly don't want them to sound "EXACTLY" the same! Like the prototypes, there should be some variety.For example, when viewing YouTube vids of the earliest BLI EMD hood and cab units, one thing that drives me nuts is hearing the same EXACT horn and bell on every QSI equipped diesel. This was in the past but I'm sure that particular horn and bell scheme has been burned into the memories of a number of us here (me included). I used to want to pull my hair out every time I heard that horn when I was a member of a club because at least four guys had locomotives with that same sound scheme. Here's an example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TgdCtkIvE4EYes, thankfully QSI expanded its sound library and has made many improvements. The Titan's horns, imho, sound impressive. From my understanding the prime mover "pitch blend" issue was updated ( I hope). During my past railfanning ventures (when I recorded trains with a portable recorder) I noticed how no two locomotives within the same class equipped with the same type of horns (such as Amtrak SDP40fs) rarely sounded alike. Depending on maintenance practices some horns sounded very melodic, some squealed, some were "raspy" and others blew more air than music, LOL . In my HO world, I want a bit of variety which is why this has me very interested. I like LokSound's decoders but am willing to try other quality brands like the Titan within my fleet (as long as it also has good motor control).I hope that this TCS diesel version will be a winner. It's likely that after the BETA Testing feedback, TCS will continue to tweak and improve this product.
Apparently, some of the WOWdiesel decoders have shipped but the handful of vendors I checked still listed them as out of stock or not listed at all.
TCS' website says The Wait Is Over: NOW SHIPPING
http://tcsdcc.com/
Credit card in hand...
[edit] make that credit card smokin'
Tony's seems to have the WOWDiesel in stock at what I believe is a reasonable price.
http://tonystrains.com/shop/?adv_search=wc&post_type=product&relation=AND&tax%5B0%5D=product_cat&op%5B0%5D=IN&val%5B0%5D=manufacturer&s=wow+diesel&min_price=0&max_price=720
I have four on the way
I have always thought the name of the TCS sound is a bit funny "WOW" sound. What will they call the next generation sound that is even better a few years down the road? OMG sound? LOL Gotta love America!
Rio Grande. The Action Road - Focus 1977-1983
AntonioFP45 Well, I certainly don't want them to sound "EXACTLY" the same! Like the prototypes, there should be some variety.
Well, I certainly don't want them to sound "EXACTLY" the same! Like the prototypes, there should be some variety.
You can change the speed of how any sound file plays in the Loksound decoders. This is a great option for creating slight variations of the same horn. Have one set to play normal, one set to play just ever so slightly slower and another slightly faster. All the same horn, but all sound ever so slightly different.
This can also be done with the prime mover so all the engines in a consist aren't an exact carbon copy of each other. They will go in and out of sync with each other as they run.
Mark.
¡ uʍop ǝpısdn sı ǝɹnʇɐuƃıs ʎɯ 'dlǝɥ
riogrande5761
Just imagine if they were made in Canada. Then they would be called 'WOW Eh!'
Sorry.
OK, now for a serious question.
I know the EMD 567 was produced in various configurations, i.e. 8 cyl., 12 cyl., with and without blowers etc. Does anybody know which versions are available on the WOW decoder? The TCS website doesn't seem to clarify, unless I missed it.
hon30critter OK, now for a serious question. I know the EMD 567 was produced in various configurations, i.e. 8 cyl.(am I right on that?), 12 cyl., with and without blowers etc. Does anybody know which versions are available on the WOW decoder? The TCS website doesn't seem to clarify, unless I missed it. Dave
I know the EMD 567 was produced in various configurations, i.e. 8 cyl.(am I right on that?), 12 cyl., with and without blowers etc. Does anybody know which versions are available on the WOW decoder? The TCS website doesn't seem to clarify, unless I missed it.
According to their Facebook page, the new decoder includes the 567 roots blown, 567 turbo, 645 turbo, and 710 turbo prime movers.
Thanks Mark:
I'm afraid I'm a bit of a dinosaur. I don't have my own Facebook account, and I rarely visit my wife's.
Mark,
I feel like a relic. That is so cool! I did not know that is possible to change the speed of LokSound's sound files!
I'm still planning on obtaining LokSound V4.0 decoders but am looking forward to "hearing" more about this new WOW diesel decoder as well. I'm definitely interested but don't want to "jump the gun" without seeing/hearing reliable reviews.
I'm assuming that TCS, which has a good reputation, is pushing for high quality.
On a personal note: This might sound silly, but the horn quilling feature heard on the YouTube clips is what really got my attention! It brought back some fond memories.
During my early teen years in the 70s, some Seaboard Coast Line locomotive engineers running trains in my area enjoyed "making music" when blowing horns instead of just "blasting" them. One particular SCL engineer running Amtrak SDP40Fs equipped with S4T's could artistically quill 1 trumpet, then 2, then all 4. Very melodic. Easy to tell that this gentleman enjoyed his job.
Mark R. You can change the speed of how any sound file plays in the Loksound decoders. This is a great option for creating slight variations of the same horn. Have one set to play normal, one set to play just ever so slightly slower and another slightly faster. All the same horn, but all sound ever so slightly different...................... Mark.
You can change the speed of how any sound file plays in the Loksound decoders. This is a great option for creating slight variations of the same horn. Have one set to play normal, one set to play just ever so slightly slower and another slightly faster. All the same horn, but all sound ever so slightly different......................
I got an e-mail back from Mike Green at TCS. He said the 567 sound recording was made using a 16 cylinder engine. He didn't say how it was fed.
hon30critter I got an e-mail back from Mike Green at TCS. He said the 567 sound recording was made using a 16 cylinder engine. He didn't say how it was fed. Dave
There's one of each, a roots blown (supercharged) and a turbo-charged - as I indicated above. That is right from their Facebook page ....
Oops!
My bad again! Too slow to put 2 and 2 together.
I hope they do some smaller switcher engines.
Hey guys,
From my understanding the new Diesel Wow has been released. I checked MB Klein's website but so far all I see is the Steam version in stock. Hopefully the diesel versions will be in stock soon.
I searched TCS's website to find out more details about the sound scheme listing on the Diesel Wow. Check the link:
http://www.tcsdcc.com/Customer_Content/Technical_Info/WOWSound/diesel_sounds.php?sortFlag=1&version=4
I'll likely be getting one for one of my HO genesis units. I finally got to hear the EMD 645E3 (turbo) and was impressed.
Here's the link to the video gallery:
http://www.tcsdcc.com/Customer_Content/Web_Tools/Videos/Main.html
I bought four from Tony's Train Xchange maybe six weeks ago. Got one installed so far in a Genesis F-3.
http://tonystrains.com/product/tcs-1530-wow101-diesel-emd-ka-sound-decoder/
Overall, I like it very much.
This thread is related to the WOWsound Diesel:
http://cs.trains.com/mrr/f/88/t/244466.aspx
Enjoy, Ed
Walthers lists 15 Wow decoders including EMD, GE and ALCO/Baldwin. 21 and 9 pin connectors, with and without 'Keep Alive"; otherwise not a lot of prototype detail and no delivery dates yet (as of 3-13-15)
http://www.walthers.com/exec/search?category=CC&scale=H&manu=train+control+systems&item=&keywords=diesel&words=restrict&instock=Q&split=150&Submit=Search
George In Midcoast Maine, 'bout halfway up the Rockland branch