After a 50 year abscence from HO trains, I recently got back into them by building a few structures. My wife then gave me a Bachman Climax engine as an anniversary gift. It is ‘DCC ready’ and there is a small circuit board in the tender. I doubt I’ll ever run more than one locomotive on my still unbuilt layout, should I even consider DCC? I was all set to ignore that option until I heard a steam engine at a local hobby shop that was DCC and sound onboard equipped and I’m hooked on that sound capability. The shopkeeper’s jargon went way over my head but he indicated the sound capability was tied to the DCC operation. He also didn’t think there would be room in the small Climax for all the needed components for sound. Obviously I’ve got a lot to learn- can someone here tell me what can be done to get my new Climax chuffing with bells & whistles? The few articles I’ve read have only confused me more on this issue- any help would be appreciated.
DCC is not mandatory for sound (pun intended) operation. Read a lot more before plopping down your bucks.
I would imagine that there are parts small enough to fit in your locomotive. You can get speakers that are less than 3/4" diameter and that should be small enough to fit in the tender. The speaker is the largest part of the sound unit any way. Also you can get sound out of higher end decoders on DC. QSI makes some that does both DC and DCC there are also decoders that use a small remote control for sound on DC. You prolly have more options than you think you do. As stated above research and read and ask questions here before you spend money and you cant go wrong.
Email or call http://www.tonystrains.com/index.html. They can quote the price of a do-it-yourself installation or they can do it for you. No need to understand all the technostuff.[:D]
This Bachman locomotive would be limited to the LokSound micro as there is no room for a Soundtraxx LC, Tsunami, Digitrax SFX or anything else for that matter.
SMassey, in most sound applications, the biggest coponent in a sound installation is the chipset, NOT the speaker. There are many times with I substitute a smaller speaker because of size implications.
You post seam to imply that QSI is currently selling decoders seperately…they DO NOT. Currently there are only 2 options for his type of locomotive…the Soundtraxx Tsunami and the Loksound Micro. Because the Tsunami is WAY TOO BIG for this tiny loco (ask me how I know) I would have to recomment the Tsunami.
David
Welcome to the forum. I have a Bachman Spectrum Shay with sound and I love it.
As Dave was saying the Loc sound is the only chip I’ve seen that is small enough. The good news is that it it programable so you can get the sounds you want.
Did you get a Tsunami in your Shay, or just the plane-Jane LC? I installed a Tsuanami with a 1/2" (IIRC) speaker all installed neatly in the tender of the 3rd truck. A bit of a step up from the LC. A tight, tight fit (with soldering DIRECTLY to the tsunami board)
David
It was pre-Tsunami. But to be honest, I don’t know for sure if it was an LC. I got it already installed.
Actually the hobby is still very basic only some of the options has change.These options is a matter of personal choice.
50 years???!!! WOW!!! That is a long hiatus. It predates my earliest HO layout from the early 1960s. I’m trying to think of what was on that little 4x8 that is no longer part of modern HO railroading. Just off the top of my head:
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Horn hook couplers. Still around but no longer the standard. KD style knuckle couplers are the new standard.
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Brass track. Don’t think anyone makes it any more. Thank God.
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Code 100 track. Still widely available but I don’t think it is the standard. I’m taking an educated guess as saying code 83 is more popular. Don’t flame me if I’m wrong.
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Turnout motors. Much smaller than they used to be. That is true of almost all the electrical components.
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Power packs. Big and bulky back then. Small and sleak now with many more features.
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Scenery. Our mountain was made from a window screen base. We bought the layout used so I’m not sure what was put over it. I do remember it eventually crumbled away. Screen wire is still used for a base but there are a lot more options now. Foam board is a relatively new choice. The flat parts of the layout were just painted plywood. Today, lots of choices for ready made ground cover.
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Rolling stock. A lot more quality RTR available now. Not sure what if any RTR was available in the early 1960s. Shake-the-box kits were the norm back then.
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Electronics. Already mentioned but miniaturization has made so much more possible today, both in locos and accessories. Obviously DCC is a whole new world that few could have imagined back then.
While much has changed, the basics haven’t. A good layout still needs a good track plan, solid benchwork, well laid track, sound wiring, and convincing scenery. That will never change.
That is one of the few reasons I tell people they don’t need DCC. If only one locomotive is ever going to be run, and there is no intention of computer control - DCC is not needed.
It could be that some of the control fo the sound capability is tied to DCC but not the sound itself. I’ve been running sound since 1983, long before DCC. I’ve even got sound installed in Railcommand Units which everyone said was impossible. DCC provides a nice control platform for sound but certainly not a necessity.
The hardest part is always the speaker. The bigger the speaker & enclosure the better the sound. But I’ve put sound into HOn3 locomotives, and we can get sound into N-scale locomotives so I should think it is possible.
Is this the Bachmann Spectrum Climax? As here:http://www.trains.com/mrr/default.aspx?c=a&id=69
Back in 1988, I bought an MRC sound system for my DC layout. It came with two speakers, one for mounting under the layout and one that you put in a stock car. I would run the stock car with the sound directly behind the engine. The system had choices on the sound controller (looked similiar to an MRC Tech series power pack), for different diesel, steam, conductor, etc sounds. Something like this may work for you if you don’t mind generic sounds, as compared to the more modern accurate sounds per engine.
Thanks for the reply, and yes it is the Bachmann Spectrum Climax
<> [#welcome] back to the hobby and [#welcome] to the forum.
<>You are sure to get lots of help here with anything related to Model Railroading. A good place to start is by clicking on the link to Space Mouse’s Guide in his reply. It will give you lots of good info when you start building your layout.
<>Good luck and again, [#welcome] back.
Blue Flamer.<>
Unfortunately, I’ve never had access to that particular locomotive, so I cannot give a really good plan for putting sound into it.
I’ve got one of the new Athearn Challengers that has sound. I was just curious as to what all the fuss was about, so I went out and bought me one recently so I could see for myself. And though I really like it, I won’t be buying anymore like it for a LONG time…
Tracklayer