BINGO!!! Worked like a charm. Thank you.
I wish I understood electronics better. I don’t know why I needed PowerPax to begin with and why I needed to remove it for this installation. I guess the results is what matters.
Now that I have the loco running under DCC, the next step is to add the sound kit. I several single and double sugar cube speakers and I wanted to use those but I need to plug them into the lightboard. I was hoping it would take standard two pin JST plugs but it needs a smaller plug than that. Bowser sells just the plug which can be used to solder to a speaker of your choice. The part sells for $2.50 but shipping is $9.95. It rubs me the wrong way to pay 4 times more for shipping than the part itself so I think I’ll buy their entire sound kit. At least the part will cost more than the shipping. I think it’s going to be around $20 for part and shipping if I go that route.
UPDATE: I found the speaker kit on ebay for just under $17 with free shipping. With tax it came to $18.18.
Keepalives absorb power as the locomotive is powered up. This reduces the power available for programming. Since the programming signal is quite brief the keepalive can essentially just swallow it up. Some decoders need to be programmed on the main for similar reasons. Programming tracks limit power output to protect the decoder while programming.
This doesn’t have a Keep Alive but that’s good to know if I ever do install one.
A question for Lee.
Years ago, I installed a Power Pax so that I could program sound decoders, but I returned it since it wouldn’t program them.
Instead, I installed the Soundtraxx PTB-100, and I still use it to this day.
So, my question is, why would removing the Power Pax without installing a replacement programming track booster work?
Rich
Since you’re just starting with DCC sound now, you may find you won’t ever need the power booster - unless you buy an old decoder or a used engine with sound or something. It seems like the need for a power booster was more of a necessity with the early sound decoders. Programming tracks are set up to use less power than regular DCC, and with some sound decoders it wasn’t enough power to read the CVs and such. Seems like it’s not an issue as often nowadays.
A year or two back when I first installed my PR4 (connecting programming track to computer) I had some problems getting decoders to read on my programming track, I disconnected my PowerPax gizmo, and have been able to read and program with DecoderPro fine ever since.
I’m not new to DCC sound. I’ve had it for about 15 years. What I am new to is 21 pin decoders. A week ago, I didn’t even know there was such a thing. It seems these decoders rely more on plug ins and less on soldered connections. To me, that is a positive.
Rich,
This is a problem that a lot of people have had to deal with. The original Tsunami and some other decoders could not be programmed with some DCC systems (Digitrax) so programming boosters appeared. First the PowerPax and then the PTB-100. The PTB-100 worked best with Soundtraxx. Soundtraxx made a change to their newer decoders so they don’t need a booster. With this change the Powerpax had problems. Digitrax also made a change to their newer DCC systems so no booster is required. If you have a PTB-100 installed you can keep using it no worries.
Thanks, Lee, for that additional information. I should have mentioned that I own an NCE PH-Pro system. The PTB-100 works fine as a programming track booster.
Rich
I misunderstood what a PowerPax is. Apparently, it can supply the extra current required by a keepalive and still keep programming current low to safeguard a decoder.
John.
Can you post a picture of the plug for the speaker? On the Bowser website it appears to be a micro JST. I recently received a five pack of micro JST wired plugs off eBay for $3. I’m going to use them for speaker and light connections to easily remove shells for maintenance.
The 21 pin decoders have been around for years in Europe and elsewhere. I wish more companies would adopt the next 18 plugs. Way smaller than the 21.
Pete.
I’ll try to post a picture next week when I receive the Bowser speaker kit that I bought on ebay. The seller charged a dollar less than Bowser and offered free shipping as opposed to $9.95 that Bowser charges.
I’ve already reassembled the loco and am running it without sound. I don’t want to handle it more than is necessary. It has a lot of fragile fine detail and the less I handle it with my ham hands, the longer that fine detail will hold up.
I’m really impressed with how this loco looks and operates. I got a bargain on the DC version from Trainworld and with the Econami decoder and Bowser speaker kit, I’ll have around $240 in it. That’s a bargain by today’s standards. Bowser is taking pre-orders for their next run and the MSRP for the DCC version is $310. I think even at that price it’s worth the money although none of the roadnames I currently have on my layout are offered in the next run.
As far as I know the PowerPax is an accessory for the programming track only. I’m pretty sure it predates Keep Alives so that wasn’t the purpose for it. I found I needed it to program new locos that had sound decoders. Apparently, my base system didn’t have enough juice for those decoders.
I’m able to program on the main with no help from the PowerPax with all of my decoders. Until yesterday, it had been wired to the programming track. I’ll keep it on stand by if I need it for any other decoders that require it.