I’m finally getting everything wired up on my Allegheny & Cumberland using two Control Master 20’s. With the hand held throttles wired directly to the each power pack, everything runs fine. I want to add a duel jack on the outside facia, but when I wire both jacks, things aren’t so fine. When I wired up jack # 2 first, things ran fine, but when I wired up jack #1, nothing ran. What I did learn while wiring up #2, you can’t match up color for color in order to run anything. Naturaly, I wired up jack #1 the same way & yet no matter what configuration I try ( so far ) nothing helps. I actually have to unplug the #1 control for #2 control to work. I don’t see how either jack is related to one another, so they should be independent, yet I’m befuddled. Any ideas ??
The Control Master 20’s ( from MRC )are for DC. They’re separate from one another,so one jack for one power pack. I just finished messing around with them again & the # 2 jack does work ok & on either pack. It’s the #1 that’s the issue… I was thinking earlier the #2 was acting up as well, but is not the case. This is a regular phone jack that I bought separately. When I mess with the wire configuration, the only thing that WILL happen is that the locos will go in one direction without being able to reverse direction. I just can’t figure out why one jack works ok & the other… being wired identically, will not. I do wonder if I should go with a separate jack for the # 1, but I don’t what the difference would be.
IIRC, these are the type that allow for a walk around (teathered) throttle so you can follow your train, but the main part of the power supply is under the layout. The forward-reverse control simply activates a relay in the main part of the power supply. Don’t assume that the jacks are color coded the same unless you verify it by checking them, visually or with an ohmmeter.
This shouldn’t cause a problem using a commercial telephone jack, but they have one hard-to-spot problem (unless you know where to look). The contacts in the jack are simply four spring wires that stick down into the opening. First, make sure all four come down into the opening to contact the plug when pushed into the jack. Second, make sure the spring wires are straight, so they only contact the proper point of the plug.
I almost forgot to ask, do both of the hand held units work in the #2 jack? If not, the problem may not be the jack.
Both controls work whether hooked directly to the power packs, or to the # 2 jack. Chances are, it’s in the wiring configuration, I just wonder if anyone else has been left screaming & kicking when attempting this hook up…lol.
First, go back and double-check the color coding of the wire connections at both ends to make sure you haven’t gotten something wired wrong on one end or the other.
If everything is right with the wiring, I’d try substituting a different wire between the number 1 jack and power pack.
[?][:(!]I have three MRC Control master 20s. You need to contact MRC to get a wiring diagram for the plugs. Because it is different from what you think it is. I couldn’t figure out what my problem was either, but I believe that in has somethiing to do with the memory that is built in, so that you can unplug the throttle and move to the next plug. I have not been able to get mine to operate properly even with the new diagram, and I hate dicking around with that hair like telephone wire. [banghead]So I just went and bought 25 ft. cords for the throttles. They are in the way at times but far less hastle. I really do like the power packs through, but wish this so called advantage to them would be simpilar to work with. Another thing to note about the throttles, There are two different styles of the controlmaster20. The older model has a fan in it to cool it and the newer one doesn’t. The throttles are not interchangeable. They have to stay with the type of pack they came with. I have two without fans and one with.
Sorry I didn’t have the answer you would like (me too) but do start with getting that diagram from MRC, that is the first step.
I suggest you check out the wiring through the jack using an Ohmeter - if you dont have one, you can get them relatively inexpensively. I think the reality is that you need a basic understanding of circuitry to wire the layout, so if you don’t know how to use one, it would be worth learning. You may have a broken wire in the jack, or maybe the wires have been mis-ordered in the jack.
Another issue may relate to how the jack is wired. Does it use screws or is it a punch-down block? If it is a punch down, and especially if you are not using the proper tool, the wire may not be making proper contact. I don’t do a lot of phone wire connections but I have done my share of CAT-5 (computer wire) jacks. The wire has to be pushed fully into the slot to insure the metal contacts penetrate the insulation. In many cases the wire may look like it’s seated but not be making an electrical connection. In that case go back and re-punch everything using a designed punch-down tool. And remember, on most punch-down tools one side of the tool trims as it punches, so make sure that you have it oriented properly with the blade towards the waste side!
I just want to stress what was already said: There are two versions of Controlmaster 20 and the handhelds are not interchangeable!
After a few hours of frustration one evening, I noticed that one handheld had a label on its back saying version two. The handheld will only work with the correct power supply.
As was also said, the best way to determine which you have is by the fan. The second version does not have the cooling fan.
I had two control master 20’s before I switched to DCC. There are already two good points posted.
definately check the versions. If you have one of each, you should find out real quick, as using a ver2 handheld in a v1 unit causes the throttle to be wide open at the 0 position!
Definately check your wiring with an ohm meter for the jack, and a volt meter for the CM20. Here’s another point…your phone jack could be for a two-line system. That would have slightly different pinouts on each jack. A single line phone only uses two conductors. Most single jacks have four. I think it’s green-red for line one and vlack-yellow for line two. A dual jack set up for dual lines sends one pair to each, and they’re different. The CM20 may use all four, so splitting them up could couse problems.
I used a RJ1 splitter on each CM20 and then a seperate -biscuit- style single jack for each facia location, ie a five way splitter in pack A to five single jacks, and a five way splitter in pack B to five different jacks, placed next to the others in pairs at different locations, all clearly labeled either A or B.
Thanks for all the replys. Due to recent time restraints, I haven’t had much time to mess with this problem, but I did take another swipe at it this morning & I’m befuddled all the more. First of all, both of these units are version two. I kept messing with the wire configuration on #1 jack this morning to no avail, but what I discovered was that… 1st of all, keep in mind that both tethered controls work when directly hooked up to either pack & that the 2nd jack as well. What is odd is that when I unplug #2 cord from #2 jack & plug the cord for #1 control into #2 jack, the locos go in only one direction. Using #1 controller with #2 cord works fine, so there’s something with #1 cord,THOUGH it works fine when plugged directly into either power pack. The #2 cord plugged into #1 jack still gets no response…uuuugh. By all appearances, this duel jack combo appears to be set up for single line use for each since there is no connection between the two. Just by looking at this jack, it would be easy to think that what works for one jack, should work for the other since I see no corelation between the two. If nothing else after all this, I could just drill two holes in the facia & feed the tetherd lines through & just hook 'em up. I only wanted one jack for each as it is. It wouldn’t look pretty but the job will get done.
