Now that I have the Centipede traction issue resolved................
Does anyone have any suggestion for better horn sound? These have the most cheesy horn sound I've ever heard from a modern DCC loco. Certainly the real Centipede horns did not sound like this. The horn sounds like 1950's Lionel.
Single note honker, those are what they had. Yes, it's that cheesy 'stereotypical' diesel horn. Many early diesels has the same sort of horns.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
Hi Arto and Rrinker.
Rinker, I don't think Arto's complaining about the horn note iteself. I've heard the BLI Centipede before and while the twin primer movers, bell, and brake scheme sounds are decent, the "Honker Horn" (either an Leslie A-200 or WABCO E2) does sound "thin" and "tinny".
Go to time index 1:03 on this clip with a BLI Centipede and you can hear it:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fkL_mLeOhDI
Compare it to this TCS clip at time index 0:10:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oq4kdjQF5Js
Much smoother, more robust single chimer.
LokSound's honkers also sound nice. LokSound does offer sound schemes for Baldwins but, unfortunately, not the twin 608SC series.
But to be fair to BLI, perhaps the Centipede's speaker needs better baffling, I don't know. Perhaps a DCC expert can chime in with suggestions as to how to improve the sound's low frequency response.
"I like my Pullman Standards & Budds in Stainless Steel flavors, thank you!"
This discussion got me a little curious.
Yes, the BLI sounds leave a little to be desired. There are a few tweaks available for the horn and they do make a slight improvement but the individual will have to decide what sounds best for their tastes.
JMRI_PRR-5828 by Edmund, on Flickr
I just picked some random settings in the above JMRI pane and I noticed an improvement in the overall sound of the horn. The Pitch Rate seems to have the most effect. I increased it considerably and to me it sounds better but still has the throaty Leslie A200 sound. While I was there I increased the bell rate a little, too.
Some BLI locos have alternate horns but I don't see one for the Centipede.
A big improvement can be made by lowering the overall volume, then lower the horn a bit more.
[edit] That screen capture is off my RR shop computer and seems blurry. I'll try to clean it up when I have Photoshop running. Click image and zoom in at Flickr.
Good Luck, Ed
Sounds like a completely different loco in this guy's videao (at 0:20 - and come on people, if you are going to demo the sounds then do more than one short blast - which is the wrong signal to start moving forward anyway)/ He hits the horn again at1:21 - one short little blast. How can you tell anything, really? The BLI one you linked though - that's got to be either after adjusting the volumes, or else a factor of the guy mixing in the swing music - both the beginning and end of the video have the same thing, even the prime mover is washed out. And the horn on that Geep sounds too quiet as well. This one doesn't even sound like the same model loco, yet they are both BLI, PRR.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NZL4CheVqXc
This one sounds like it's right out of the box, everything on max. Needs to be turned down a bit.
Hi Randy,
Thanks for pointing that out. I heard the better video. Interestingly, although a little louder, that honker horn does sound like an A-200 that's worn out (which is also prototypical). The TCS and LokSound honkers (Wabco and Leslie versions) do sound throatier. I'm assuming that BLI's decoders are not "uploadable". If so, a better sounding honker would be a nice feature.
I have one of the first runs of these in HO which I love. One of the issues I have is the two units diesel sounds tend to drown the horn out. I have found if you turn the Prime mover sounds down a bit with the CV the single honker sounds a bit better. I think some of the issue are the speakers. Been meaning to replace them with Railmaster bass reflex speakers.
Steve B
I find that normally sound decoders come from the factory with the horn and diesel motor sounds being the same volume, which is incorrect. The horn should be quite a bit louder. I generally set the horn to the max volume, then reduce all the other volumes (via Decoder Pro) to around 50-60%, then on the layout adjust the master volume until it all sounds right.
Perhaps the OP has lost interest, as often happens.
Centipede by Edmund, on Flickr
I made these changes and believe the horn sound improved just a bit. There are alternatives. Playing with the pitch shift will yield the most noticable results.
Cheers, Ed
Hi Ed, you've stirred my curiousity. Please explain "Playing with the pitch shift".
gmpullmanThere are alternatives. Playing with the pitch shift will yield the most noticable results.
AntonioFP45Hi Ed, you've stirred my curiousity. Please explain "Playing with the pitch shift".
Hi Antonio,
When this discussion came up I was curious to see if BLI had provided an "alternate horn" which they do on some decoders. Alas, I didn't find an alternate horn but while I had Decoder Pro open I found that on the "sound pane" there were four settings, Fade In/Out; Fade Level and Pitch Shift available.
The defaults for these are:
1
40
69
128 respectively.
By trying several variations I noticed that the Pitch Shift had the most overall effect on the sound of the horn. In my screen capture above I show the relative settings I finally settled on.
Again, sound being subjective, it is up to the individual to decide if these changes are worth keeping or going back to the default settings.
Regards, Ed
Ed, is 220Hz the "64" setting of the 128-step slider in the horn pitch-shift control? And how far in cps/Hz does the control actually 'pull' the fundamental?
I had thought the purpose was not so much to fine-tune the horn as to simulate Doppler effect when viewing. Has anyone written code that shifts the horn relative to some reference position close to a layout? It should be possible to poke rapid sequential changing values into the corresponding register position or whatever, right?