I have a Digitrax Zephyr. The program track seems to be ignoring any input or output. No matter what locomotive I place on it, pressing CV read or trying to write a new address, for example, I get the D nD message.
New address written is ignored, old address still operates loco.
My Zephyr feels warm to the touch after experimenting with this for a while. Is the program track output fried?? If so, any work around?
Thanks!
Have you tried checking the connections between the Zep and the track? My Zep has no perceptable heat at any time so you may indeed have a problem there as well.
The first thing I would do is get your multimeter out and see if there is any power on the program track. Then I would work my way back to the source. My guess is you have a problem with the supply of power to the track.
I have run new leads directly from program outputs to a spare piece of track. What kind of voltage should I see on a multimeter when reading program track?
Jack are you sure you have the program track leads wired to the correct posts on the Zephyr ?
If you look closely The connections on the Zephyr It is
Programming Track-GROUND-Programming Track
{} {} {}
^ ^
They should be connected to the post the arrows point to
Make sure one of your wires isn’t connected to the ground post
Yes they are definitely connected correctly. But won’t program anything.
IT is not true AC, but what I would do is to set your meter to AC and see if you get any kind of reading. If you do, you can assume you are getting current. If not, check the end of the wires. Then jump across the terminals on the Zephyr.
Yes, I do get a reading with the multimeter… set to Ac or to DC 60V…
What reading are you getting on AC. The DC reading isn’t very useful. The AC reading should be something like 12-16V.
Obviously, although I have one, I really don’t know much about my multimeter. It appears that my AC scale is not marked… but maybe I can figure it out. Will run another reading and get back.
Another question: short of using the program track, can I change loco address on the main line some other way (Phys, Direct? I don’t understand those yet).
Thanks, everyone, for working this through with me.
Look at page 21 in the Zephyr manual for Ops mode programming.
You haven’t told us which type of loco you are trying to program
If it is a QSI or other Sound Equip Loco You may want to buy a booster or try
Blast Mode Programming
These locos take more power and are difficult to program using a Zephyr
Boosters can be purchased here or at other online suppliers likr Tony’s trains
http://www.litchfieldstation.com/xcart/product.php?productid=110012&cat=165&page=1
If I’m reading it right, I appear to be seeing 30 V AC! THat doesn’t seem possible, does it? I have the multi-meter set at AC 60V, and with one probe on each track it reads straight up (half way across the scale).
The Zephyr puts out 14 volts AC to the rails and about half that to the programming track…so, yes, you are reading your meter wrong.
David B
Whoa there, lets not forget what kind of multimeter we have here. It is obviously an older analog unit. They were always subject to going out of calibration with the shightest overload or physical jarring. Half scale on a 60V range would be about 30V if it were a linear scale which most were not. Also it may only have limited sensitivity and load down the delicate programming output. I would suggest borrowing a digital meter or catch up with a person with an ocilloscope to really check that output.
A friend of mine has a digital meter. I’ll see if I can borrow it. Thanks.
A couple of questions:
Have you ever been able to program anything on this prgram track? in other words, was it working once but now is not?
What brand of locos/decoders are you having issues with?
What happens when you try and CV read a loco address?
DnD means you have an open circuit on the programming track. I would bet that the problem is with the loco you are trying to program, not the Zephyr. I’ve had the same error message come up once while I was trying to program a Proto GP38-2. Everything worked fine before but once I tried the GP it couldn’t read the CV’s and I couldn’t program. How long did you leave the loco on the track with the dnd code flashing?
I have tried several locomotives all with the same result:
Athearn SD50 with Digitrax 163P
Atlas H15-44 & Atlas 8-40B with Atlas factory dual mode decoders
Intermountain F7A With DSD-100LC 820002 decoder installed by Tony’s
I know at least the Atlases did read before. (Pretty sure they all read OK once).
All now give dnd error regardless of CV I try to read.
I can program some CVs in OPS mode (like acceleration), but cannot change the locomotive address.
My Zephyr is warm to the touch (not hot, but warm) right over the Digitrax logo after it’s been on for awhile.
Trains RUN fine.
I only left the dnd code up a few seconds.
Is/was your program track part of the layout? If so, you might have run a loco or something with metal wheels across the gaps and damaged the program track output. You generally won’t see any voltage on the program track unless you are actively programming.
You CAN program the address in Ops mode, but only to change the long address if the current address is a short address, and vice-versa. Say you ahev a new decoder at address 03, and want to set a long address. There are several CV17/18 calculators online, where you put int he desired address and it tells you what to put for CV17 and CV18. Program those CVs in Ops Mode like any other CV. Then program CV29 to activate the long address. Exit programming and select the new long address and off you go.
–Randy