When consisting two or three locos at a time should I have only one engine with sound and the others without or is it just preference?? I am have recently purchased a single GP30 with DCC/sound and am trying to decide if I should buy the next with sound or without. I plan on using the two GP30’s as a pretty much permanent consist. Thank you, Mike Pedri, Mullens, WV
It is totally up to you. However, even though you say you will use them only in a consist, sometimes people change their minds.
I’ve run one sound diesel with one non-sound one much of the time, for me it works. For example for yard work I have a BLI NW-2 with sound that runs back to back with a LL SW-7 without sound. Yes if you’re really up close you can tell only one has sound, but from more than a foot or two away you can’t - at least I can’t. I did the same with a pair of Stewart AS-616’s, and a LL E8A-E7B set. I also have a Kato SD-38 with sound with a non-sound Athearn SD-38 that work together.
I can tell if you have a silent loco in the consist. It is a very distict sound, 2 prime movers working together…
David B
Get another sound engine. Sound is way too addictive to do otherwise. After my first sound engine, I was hooked and haven’t bought a “silent” engine since. The only way I would do that is if I planned to install sound myself.
Having installed sound in one engine and purchased 3 with it, I would personally prefer the factory-installed sound. Squeezing the speaker in is quite a job, and you will probably need to compromise your pulling-power a bit because you’ll have to cut weight out of the engine to make room.
Most of my non-sound engines sit idle most of the time. I do consist them with a sound engine occasionally, just to give them some “track time.” Sooner or later I’ll pony up for sound decoders and speakers and upgrade the engines.
I’ve run as many as three sound locos in a consist and the sound(noise [:D]) is impressive. When running multiple sound units, it is important to syncronize their functions. I.E. you don’t want to activate the dynamic brakes on a downgrade and have one of the units come on and then hit the function button a second time to shut off the dynamics and have the other unit’s dynamic’s come on.
The only real problem is horns. Usually only one loco in a set sounds its horn. Depending on the sound decoder and how many CV’s you want to adjust when setting up the consist, you can mute the horns in the other locos.
Get another sound unit and ENJOY!
Tilden
Which locomotive did you do this to? I suspect it is your choice of decoder/speaker. I install professionally, and there is always a way to install a sound decoder so that you dont have to do any cutting.
David
It was a P1K Alco RS-3. I didn’t have to remove too much weight, but some had to come out to put in a speaker-in-a-box over the front (long-hood) truck.
You might want to find a friend or a local club that runs sound units and see how they do it and see how it sounds to you with one unit with sound as opposed to several together in a consist.
BTW David Popp in a recent MR editorial said he thought one sound unit in a consist was usually enough, easy to get overwhelmed when two or three trains are running at the same time, all with multi-unit sound consists…and don’t forget the cost factor in equipping engines with sound!!
But if you decide it just doesn’t work for you to run sound and non-sound together, then you should go the “all sound” route.
You can get away with only the one engine sounding in a consist, but you will be able to tell. Also, if you were to use a pusher at the rear, and would naturally treat it as part of a consist, then the spatial separation of the locomotives would make having one silent quite problematic.
Personally, with steamers, you have to have them both indicating that their cylinders are working…no ifs, ands, or buts. Doesn’t make any difference where they are in the consist. But, if I were a diesel fella, I would want the node sounds of the prime movers going in and out of synch a bit as they worked up a grade.
No offense to everyone that has already posted, but you’ve all missed the most important and most basic question - Are you running the locos on DC or DCC?
Th OP only states that the unit is DCC/sound equipped. He doesn’t state what type of control system, DC or DCC, he is using. Any responses without knowing this are proned to error.
The reason this is important is because on DC and sound equipped and a non-sound loco will not consist well because of the different voltage required to start the loco to move. The owner’s manual on every sound unit I’ve seen says not to consist with non-sound locos on DC control.
So, first question - Are you using DC or DCC?
THE CAVEAT here is
‘Sound’ equipped engines run at different speeds due to the ‘sound’ system’s electronics are generally in series with the powering motor.
Even on DCC each has to be ‘set’ (calibrated?) to correct this.
Well in DCC (sound or not) you still have to tweak the CV’s a little to get two engines to run perfectly together. Running sound and non-sound in DC is where the big problem lies. [:)]
You CANNOT run a DC and a DCC engine together. The voltage load that feeds the Opera singer lady on board teh DCC will cause the analog engine to be LONG GONE down the track.
I prefer all of my engines work together with sound that way if one should act up or drop out I will be all over the problem. Visit my photobucket you will see and hear 4 of them together as a consist.
With DCC Advanced Consisting, I turn the horn or whistle and bell off on the second and subsequent consisted locomotives, but leave all the other sounds turned on.
We have a club member that runs a BLI ABA consist with sound in all three units. It is very impressive. When it is on the layout with single sound units the single units sound weak, as they should with only 1/3 the speakers.