Now that I have started wiring up my system… here we go…
as told I got the Powerhouse pro booster for my NCE Procab and also go the PS4 along with the other face plate…
today I started to wire it up… I got only one district done and want to give it a try…
Granted now it might be my fault with wiring… etc…
but I get a blinking light on from the Powerhouse (meaning no signal from DCC controller, etc)
I checked the Procab on the test track and it came on…but didn’t through the powerhouse…
To me, it looks like the the cable that came with the Powerhouse has a smaller end on it… but at the moment figure I would try to figure this out, before I go any further…
I am fishing here, since I don’t know this system at all, but were you meant to plug in a hand controller that might provide this missing signal? The Digitrax DT 400 throttle is what provides the language and code, while the DB 150 is merely the smart booster/amplifier. Maybe your system needs an actual input source?
The cable with the small ends needs to connect from one side of the Powerhouse to the other. The right side is the command station (the one with the outputs labelled for the program track) and the left side is the booster. You also need to supply input power to both sides - a pair of jumpers from one to the other works fine. The small plug phone cable plugs into the sockets labelled Control Bus. The cable with the bigger connector plugs intot he Cab Bus socket and connect to the panel. The one with the small plugs should be short, about a foot long.
Wait a second, just what equipment do you have here? A ProCab and a PB105 do not a DCC system make, there is no command station. A PowerCab and a PB105 also do not work together directly. If you have a PowerCab starter system and want more you need to add the SmartBooster before anything else.
Who was the “someone”? It does sound indeed like you are lacking the command station. You need the Power Pro Command station to operate the Power Pro throttle. It should look like the box on the left in the picture below:
I just read your last response. The ONLY booster that you can use with the Power Cab is the Smart Booster. If you want to retain the PB105(?) booster and still use the Power Cab, you can purchase a Power Pro command station and the Power Cab will revert to a Pro Cab throttle. And you also retain the benefits of the Power Cab’s programming ability.
Ignore the PB105 for now and hook up the PowerCab with the included panel and transformer and you can at least start running trains on DCC. The PB105 cannot be used directly with the PowerCab. I’m thinking that if you add the SmartBooster to the PowerCab, you can use a PB105 for extra power, since you can plug additional DB3’s into the SmartBooster to add power, and as far as I can tell the DB3’s just a 3 amp booster with no special features, but I could be wrong.
Whoever told you to get these components steered you wrong, unfortunately.
was a friend who runs a hobby shop out of his house…
now before Ispend more money… sounds like for now I can use the PowerCab for now without the PB105 and getting the smart booster… but can hook those two up later on…
Yes. If you have the Power Cab and the PCP panel that came with it, you can run your layout. The PB105 booster is only usable with the PH Pro command station. (Can your friend give you a refund for that booster?) Only the DB3 boosters can be added to the Smart Booster (SB3). Let us know how it turns out.
Ok, things are cool, he is going to take back the PB 105 and get me what I need… kind of knew he would come through… so that’s cool… and also cool that for now I ca run my layout with the Powercab,
ok so here is my first official question… the light on the NCE panel was flashing & nothing from the engine…
Granted I only have wire one section of the PSFour ( not that I know what I am talking about!!)and what too see if it worked…
Given the fasle start you have endured, I would be tempted to just use the Power Cab and not have the PS4 in the equation untill you are up and running. That will elimiate a variable and ensure that the PowerCab is installed and working correctly.
Agreed - out of the box the PS4 probably won’t work well with the PowerCab, since the default trip current settting is greater than the PowerCab’s output.This is probbaly why NCE came out witht he new 6-section light bulb unit, each section of that default to 1 amp so a short in one section won’t trip the PowerCab.
Can you be a little more specific. Does it “flash” on and off when you first plug the Power Cab in? Does it “flash” on and off while you operate a locomotive? Does it do it at a certain or specific place on your layout? When you use the word “flashing”, are you meaning that the Power Cab is shutting down and trying to power back up?
Mike, these will help to clarify things a little better so that we can figure out what is really going on.
Make sure you have the components seperated out so you aren’t mixing any of the other stuff in with what comes with the PowerCab. And start on page 1 of the PowerCab manual. It’s pretty descriptive in how to connect everything together and make it work. Once the basic system is working then you can start adding in more.
