I'll seperate my answer into "older" and "newer" units. For "older" I'll take a normally aspirated 567 from a F unit or GP-7/9 any day (they sound as if they are "singing a song" to me) and are quite relaxing in a strange sort of way.. For "newer" I will take the prime mover from a SD70MAC all day long (they sound as if they are going to pull the rail up behind them for many miles as they go along). The MAC's are completely different from the "relaxing" sound of the F units in that the MAC's sound menacing in a way.
Bob-Fryml1) A brace of 1920s-built "Cincinnati Heavyweights" accelerating out of a station anywhere directly under the Chicago Loop. When first starting they growled with a commanding authority like a pack of lions that are mightily p.o.'d. At speed they could give a sweet, high pitched harmonic that suggested a rate of movement far in excess of what they were actually making. Although nearly all of this equipment has been retired from revenue service for the better part of three decades, I still get "bent-out-of-shape" whenever I experience the few that are still running at East Troy, Wisc. or Union, Ill. 2) Normally aspirated EMD 567s. Sorry, I can't help it. That's what happens when you misspend too much of your youth hanging around a C.& N.W. suburban station.
1) A brace of 1920s-built "Cincinnati Heavyweights" accelerating out of a station anywhere directly under the Chicago Loop. When first starting they growled with a commanding authority like a pack of lions that are mightily p.o.'d. At speed they could give a sweet, high pitched harmonic that suggested a rate of movement far in excess of what they were actually making. Although nearly all of this equipment has been retired from revenue service for the better part of three decades, I still get "bent-out-of-shape" whenever I experience the few that are still running at East Troy, Wisc. or Union, Ill.
2) Normally aspirated EMD 567s. Sorry, I can't help it. That's what happens when you misspend too much of your youth hanging around a C.& N.W. suburban station.
Ditto. Same reasons. Early childhood impressions are lasting ones. By Cinci Hwywts. I assume you meant CA&E? The reference to "directly under the Chicago Loop" is a bit confusing.
C&NW, CA&E, MILW, CGW and IC fan
-Don (Random stuff, mostly about trains - what else? http://blerfblog.blogspot.com/)
Baldwin 606. Especially when they are starting. You can really feel it shake before you hear it start.
Honorable mention would be a Fairbanks Morse OP engine
In descending order of preference mine are these:
3) A brace of 4-cycle G.E.s on an ascending grade accelerating from a dead stop. The bark of those prime movers and the roar they make really says that they're some "big muscle" moving some of the "big tonnage" that keeps our economy humming.
4) Not really number four on my list, but Union Pacific has a couple of Alco's on the roster that sound great no matter what they're doing. They hiss quietly when idle. One can hear something that sounds like a heart beat each time a reciprocating air compressor kicks in. The chuff-chuff-chuff breaths that come out of their stacks sound almost baby-like as they tip-toe through a freight yard; but, oh-boy, they're king of the high iron as they move a train at speed. And when a hoghead pulls on their whistle cord, they make a mournful sound that could hold its own in any choir of steamships moving through New York Harbor.
For switching I love the EMD 567. Wind em right up while kickin cars they make a hell of a growl. For heavy drags I love a GE FDL or EVO, they make a hell of a sound climbing the 2.2% grades out of the Pemberton Valley on the old BC Rail.
spsFor me it has always been the EMD E8/9
Could not agree more, nothing like the sounds of a working E unit during a calm hot summer night. A close second were the F's then some other 1st generation units. I still hear them working upgrade past the house toward Lilly, then Cresson...slowly echoing into the distance.
Must be a younger set of readers answering this question. For me it has always been the EMD E8/9 with the 567 and single exhaust stack. No other sound is like it through the entire range of the throttle. I worked passenger service on E's in late 1960's. What a thrill at up to 100+ mph.
Basically, any Alco prime mover. Just any.
My vote would be for an Alco 539 engine.
Rick Rowlands
J&L Narrow Gauge Railroad
Youngstown, OH
Anyhting that doesn't sound like a coffee grinder...I like the beat of those old alcos especially..I would catch myself tapping my foot to the beat of the engine. I also like the sound of the EMD 645 engine.. I like them all I guess...
Hands down the 16-645E3C from EMD. Deep and guttural; high and piercing.
One of my most memorable cab rides was in an E-8 down south. I particularly enjoyed it because, since there are 2 prime movers, all my favorite sounds are multiplied by 2. Early Alco's are great, too, Rs series and S series switchers, since they always sounded like they were ready to stall out. But open the throttle and they take off like a rocket and leave a great cloud of smoke behind!
eolafan My favorite is a normally aspirated EMD model 567 such as in a GP7, F7, etc. Why? I guess I am just a traditionalist and just love the exhaust sound when they are cranking up in yard service or accelerating away from a stop.
My favorite is a normally aspirated EMD model 567 such as in a GP7, F7, etc.
Why? I guess I am just a traditionalist and just love the exhaust sound when they are cranking up in yard service or accelerating away from a stop.
I think that I'm going to have to ammend my earlier post about the engines. I do like the 645, I'd have to say that the 710 has really grown on me. I like hearing them coming down the CSX Dothan Sub line here pulling a long mixed freight. Now last night I got to hear a real music treat. Pulling through on a grain train northbound was a GEVO, SD70ACe, a GP40-2, and a -8, boy oh boy, talk about a musical ensemble (sp?) that was!
While I stated earlier that my favorite sounding prime mover was the 16V645E3 of the SD-40, I think I may have to ammend that. That engine is definitely the one I have the most fond memories of from when I was a kid. However I sometimes train chase. I like to pace the engines on freight trains through north Houston and at times I can be doing 60 mph with them at full power moving alongside. It's an awesome sound. Last night I did the same thing. I think my favorite sounding prime mover is the one right outside my window that I'm currently chasing. It doesn't matter which one it is at the time. They all sound powerful and they all put a smile on my face. My favorite is moment specific.
A rebuilt Geep with 645 power assemblies and a four stack manifold. Not much can beat the deafening roar these belt out at run 8.
I also like the Fairbanks Morse OP engines. They have a deep powerful hum.
I would like to hear the Hamilton engine used in the early Lima diesels. I have only heard a recording of one off in the distance.
Yes I really like the -9 but the "chug" of a SD70M is a nice tune too.
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I dont really have a "favorite". For me it just depends on if ther idleing or under power. I think the 710 sounds awsome during start up and idle due to the deep rumble and base that it produce it just sounds "powerful". Now for a high RPM I really like a FDL in notch 8 and pulling hard because it burbles and chugs much like an alco it just sounds great. And for a mid RPM i like the 645 it has the whining turbo sound and it runs and sounds smooth and has a nice rumble to it i think its a prime example of low tech higly enginered american power.
Tugboat Tony For me, far and away the best sounding, running and most reliable has to me the 16V645E3, of SD40-2 fame. With a tight turbo clutch these just sing smoothly along. Very very enjoyable to just listen to them idle. They also sound great when you start them up on a cold morning. FDL/HDL and the C45ac 12 cyl's (and alco's for that matter) just sound like they are going to rattle themselves apart.
For me, far and away the best sounding, running and most reliable has to me the 16V645E3, of SD40-2 fame. With a tight turbo clutch these just sing smoothly along. Very very enjoyable to just listen to them idle. They also sound great when you start them up on a cold morning. FDL/HDL and the C45ac 12 cyl's (and alco's for that matter) just sound like they are going to rattle themselves apart.
I agree 100%! Having been to the famous Tehachapi Loop during the 1990's several times you appreciate the sound of the 16V645E3 with its distinct, powerful rumble especially on a heavily loaded train going uphill (best example was the famous "Oil Can" trains heading south from just north of Bakersfield). The FDL16's on the Santa Fe C40-8W's and C41-8W's had a very distinct "chugging" sound at certain revs, which made them not so pleasant to listen to.
For switching,the ALCo 539 turbo.The ALCO burble plus the turbo whistle was something to behold.For Mainline,the 20 cylinder EMD 645.Especially when starting or runing up a steep grade,the ground would shake with the smooth roar and the sound would give one a real thrill.
I like them all, though I never could see why the Alco is supposedly more wonderful than anything else.
My favorite has not a single example in North America - the Pielstick 16 PA4 V185. It's a high-speed (1500 rpm), twin-turboed 4 stroke rated at 2400 hp. It is rather loud and has a wonderful snarl. When you hear a goods train with a DE24000 pulling and another pushing, coming out of a siding up a 3% grade in a mountain canyon at dawn, that's railroading!
RWM
My favorite is easily the 710s in the SD9043MACs. They sound like jet engines and give the locomotive a high tech powerful sound. Almost as if it's about to sprout rockets and blast forward at mach 2
Coming close in second place is a turbocharged 645. I love the whine sound they make. Especially when they rev up to run 8 and start "throbbing". The sound is more pronounced when they're also under load and it just sounds awesome.
Your friendly neighborhood CNW fan.
Well, I believe the neatest sounding powerplant is the 567 of any type. It has such a raw sound, nothing but shuffling of cylinders and the crank spinning. A non turbo'd 645 that you'd have in a GP38(-2,etc) is also a neat sound. But, since Im a WC fan, I think the best overall sound, musically and for muscle, is no doubt, without a question, the 20-645E's. While I can't hear the difference between the 20's and the 16's in my head right now, I have fond memories of listening to the SD45's my whole life. Definately a sound that is sorely missed.
I do have to say though, the new 8-710 ECO units sounds awfully neat.
Alec
I can be a fan of EMDs (though I tend to prefer the growl from the roots blown engines as opposed to the whine of the turboed units), but after riding behind one of the GE Shovelnose diesels on the White Pass and Yukon this past summer, I realized that I was completely smitten with the charm of the ALCo 6-251A that was the prime mover in the loco on my train.
Listening to the ALCo burble at idle and come to life with a chug was an experience I won't forget!
-ChrisWest Chicago, ILChristopher May Fine Art Photography"In wisdom gathered over time I have found that every experience is a form of exploration." ~Ansel Adams
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