I have 3 sound locomotives and I think that sound adds a exciting dimension to model railroading, but. . .
Sometimes, I can get a headache with the constant “droning” sound.
Has anyone else experianced this?
Yes, after 3-4 locos it just becomes noise. Our club now has a rule concerning the sound output (in decibles) of each locomotive. For BLI this ends up being a setting of about 40%. The noise is another reason I don’t like the metal wheels.
Turn the volume on all of them down and it won’t be so bad. They all come from the factory with the volume set to 100%, which is way too high for even a large club layout. I turn all of mine down to 50 to 55% and find that they’re still loud enough after I tweak the individual sounds.
YES I HAVE ALL SOUND PLUS SOUND CARS WITH PIG AND CATTLE AND IT IS A LOT OF NOISE.THINKING OF HAVEING A NON SOUND TRAIN TO BALANCE THINGS OUT.
On my BLI’s I can use the F-5 button and cut sound in half till I speed them back up, then they go to normal again. Like you, I fine that to stemers can get on the nerves.
Cuda Ken
I’ve found the same thing at work… pity I can’t F5 some managers! [swg]
It must be loud on SD40-2’s layout if he has to shout over it!
Me, I don’t use onboard sound, I just run Athearn locomotives!
This is easy to figure out. Our brains are mindful of a single locomotive, unlike when we are railfanning somewhere and don’t really care about loudness or what we hear so much as what we can see. When we are attentive to a single locomotive, we also want to be able to manage all aspects of its behaviour, it being a model, and that includes the sound outputs. When other sounded locomotives are nearby, they tend to drown out the sound of the subject locomotive.
QSI decoders, if you have them, can have their F8 mute set to anywhere from zero (no sound) to 50% using their CV for that function. I set all my decoders’ master volume control to about 8 or 9 out of the max 15, and then set the mute to 40-40% so that I can enjoy a pleasing, non-competitive, non-intrusive, background of steam yard sounds.
I no longer have any sound equipped units. At first it was really nice especially at the hobby shop when the first BWL Hudson’s arrived, I scooped one up right away. Then the reality hit that the constant sound was driving me crazy so back in the box it went until I sold it. In essence, unless you have a large club sized layout and are not in a relatively confined area, the sound dissipates very little and is more representative of constantly being inside or next to the locomotive rather than hearing the sound fade as your watching your train pass-by. I may eventually still get one or two sound decoders to put in a diesel and steam unit for occasional running and for show but not for regular operations. I much prefer ambient railroad sounds coming from a CD player and surround sound audio system. Just my [2c]
Steff
I have taken much of this conversation to heart. I never was quite as impressed with the sounds coming from the models. It just seemed to me to make them more, rather than less, toylike. Without the sound system I “hear” the noise of the train in my head. Seeing and hearing sound equiped locomotives in various settings just did nothing for me. Reminds me of the old Lionel sets my friends had.
WHAT???[:D] I’ve got a couple of sound ekwipt locos too and just a few minutes is all I can stand. Then I imagine the rest.
I am also finding that now that the novelty has worn off, I find myself running my sound locos in mute (0%) most of the time. I agree with the “makes them more toylike” comment.
I first thought the shutdown sequence on my QSI locomotive of the engine stopping and the door closing was so cooool. Now it’s just dopey. I hear the door close… but the little plastic engineer is still in the cab! [:)]
And so do real train engineers! That means it’s very prototypical! 
Anyone heard the sound equipt UP turbines?
They cost a fortune and drive everyone in the hall NUTS in a few minutes. Great technology - lousy in practice.
It is very difficult to “scale” sound. But all these sound levels are adjustable. Think about what you hear from the prototype at 10 feet, 100 feet, 1,000 feet? Try setting scale distances from yours, then adjust the cv’s accordingly. And remember, what you hear in a sheet-rocked basement or spare room is not the same sound as you would hear in a big auditorium at a meet. Everything is relative. I find the level of just a hint of sound, say 25 to 40% of the volume level is plenty for home use, although for meets I raise it to 50-75%. jc5729