I am brand new to Decoder Pro and DCC as well. I have connected the Decoder PRO to my NEC PowerCab system and have begun to do some speed adjusting to my two Genesis GP9 engines. I am doing this on the Programming Track and I have entered the two engines with their 4 digit addresses. These two engines are currently part of a consist. I am making speed table adjustments to attempt to make the two engines virtually identical in speed at all 28 steps. Probably a tall challenge, but I felt it to be good practice to learn Decoder Pro.
So what I do is put both engines on my double programming track and I am adjusting the speed table in just one of the engines. I seem to notice that whatever I do the two engines retain the same relative characteristic. I even went so far as to put a standard log speed curve in one engine and left the other as a straight line user curve. The two engines ran at the log curve characteristic. I was running the engines separate (side by side) using the consist number.
So what am I missing. I was expecting to be able to change the characteristic on the engines individually.
Help and understanding is appreciated.
Thanks
John…
Speed matching is not done on the programming track. It is best done on the main.
What decoders do you have in those engines?
Can you tell I am new to this. Oddly I have not come across any instructions that stipulate speed programming is limited to the Main. Is there a reason for this?
Decoders are Soundtraxx Tsunamis
A few observations:
- Speed Matching should be done ‘On the Main’ so you can see what is happening. You can set CV’s on the ‘Program Track’ - But how can you run then to check the speed?
- Some decoders do not ‘take’ CV changes until they are powered off and powered on again.
- Trying to speed match every speed step is next to impossible(and it really buys you nothing).
Here is what I do:
- Run the engines for about 15-20 minutes so that they’ ‘warm up’ the gear lube.
- Set the starting speed(CV2) so that the engine starts to move on the 1st throttle position.
- Most decoders default to use CV2(Vstart)/CV6(Vmid)/CV5(Vmax) to build an interpolated speed table. The speed table is usually turned off. Check your Basic and Motor control settings in Decoder Pro. This varies with the brand/model of decoder. Some decoders to not have the Vmid or Vmax settings - You need to use speed tables.
Most of my decoder support the above CV’s and I can get an engine speed matched quite well with just those. If you ever watched the prototype, you will see that the real ones are not speed matched that close either!
Jim
One more thing. Take the locos out of the consist, before programming on the main. Do each loco separately until they speed match.
Make sure you delete each loco from the consist number, before deleting the consist.
Then you can create the consist again.
When you open decoderpro, you cannot access the speed table tab unless you select the “operations mode (main track) programmer”. Operations mode is on the main.
With the Tsunami, there are two CVs that need to get changed to allow the speed tables to be used. These are CV29 and I believe CV25. Making a change to CV29 tells the decoder to use the speed tables, and making a change to CV25 tells the decoder which speed table to use.
On the speed table tab in decoderpro you should see what they call a radio button at the top that you have to select to “use speed table”. This should make the adjustment to CV29. Then below that you should see a box called “speed table selection”. At the right end of that box you’ll see a down arrow. This will give you a dropdown menu. Scroll to the bottom of the menu and you should see a selection called “user defined speed table”. You need to select this. Then you “write changes on sheet” to the loco you are trying to program.
I’m assuming that you were able to get your locos into a roster prior to starting all this. So when you have completed the changes you want to make, be sure to save them to the proper loco file.
What I do initially to make sure that the loco is actually responding to speed changes is to set all the speed tabl
Tsunami decoders do NOT support CVs 5 and 6, so you cannot adjust mid- and max-speed using those CVs.
Tsunamis do not support CVs 5 and 6.
Two locos on the same program track will always get the same settings. Program track programming does not care about the loco address, anything connected gets programmed.
As other have stated, the best way to speed match is use programming on the main, witht he locos NOT in consist so you cna individual send programming commands to a specific address. If you have a loop for continuous running this is much easier - just start each loco running at the same speed step about a foot or so apart and start adjusting so they stay the same (or close - this does NOT have to be absolutely exact!) distance apart, at low speed, at middle speed, and at full throttle. With Tsunamis you’ll have to use 29 step speed tables, so you can basically repeat the programming 28 times, once for each speed step, and adjust each loco to get them running mostly the same speed.
–Randy