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[quote]QUOTE: Originally posted by Virginian The point is the BLI 2-6-6-4 whistle sounds exactly like an N&W Class A. I have heard it in person, and I have several videos/DVDs, and they got it dead on. N&W afficianodos call them a 'hooter' whistle for a reason. That's also why I am so looking forward to their Class J. I have never heard a Challenger whistle in person, but I do have several DVDs, and the whistle on the Athearn unit I heard did not sound anything like those... at least to me. If you like what you have, great, you don't have an issue, and I am happy for you. I will add that the Athearn Challenger I saw at a show was an extremely nice looking model, and it ran well the little bit I saw. The Lionel unit I saw, I thought sounded a bit better than the Athearn one, but the whistle still wasn't great, and the Lionel unit did not look nearly as nice as the Athearn one. These are just my opinions, so feel free to differ. [/quote] You are correct in your evaluation of the Challenger whistle, the Athearn unit does not sound anything like the real one. Ths whistle is close to a duplication of a NYC hudson that I have recording of in Illinois. The whistle also has some reverb sound in it. I purchased two of the Athearn Challengers because of their detail and running qualities, but a Soundtraxx unit will replace the sound unit in the one I will use. The DCC decoder also has limitations and that will be replaced also. I also have the Lionel Challenger and its whistle is closer to the steamboat whistle that the UP used. The Lionel sound can be improved with a replacement speaker and the Lionel Challenger puffs in and out of sync like the real engine puffs. Both are very good examples of the engines you can buy today with little or no other modifications and still have fun with them. The Trix Big Boy has a good sounding whistle, but when you blow the whistle, it does a preprogammed sequence that is not correct for operations. It is good however in tone quality. A few years ago, all we had was brass engines if you wanted detail and the new generation of engines that are available now are a great improvement to us model railroad fans. I wlelcome all of the new engines coming to the market even is if the sound is incorrect, since that can be changed. Sorry about the Z6 notice, I might be premature on that notice. I cannot locate where I saw this, but will update the information when I get it.
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