Hey, Ed, those words can’t be the latest…even this old goat has heard of them. Sugar cube speakers are about the size of their namesake, and are, I think, the ones used in cell 'phones. In any case, they’re really small, but offer very good sound quality, especially considering their size.
And, just to prove that I truly am an old goat, personally, I’m not a fan of sound in models.
Wayne (not ba-a-a-d, eh?)
You overestimate the amount of free space in this tender. After plugging in the lenz decoder, I could barely reattach the tender shell. The later versions of the Bachmann 4-6-0 came with larger (or maybe smaller drivers) and a tender with a bit more height to it and a well for the speaker in the bottom.
I suppose I can tear the circuit board out and put in a loksound micro and sugar cube. I’ve got a couple DCC convesions under my belt, but it’s not the fun part of the hobby for me.
Just clear things up, the Spectrum 4-6-0 came with three different tenders dependjng on roadname and driver size. Two of the three are very small.
I will try to remenber to post a photo of my vsbdy tender conversion, but it is the large driver loco.
Sheldon
Luckily, I’m running DC, and don’t need to worry about decoders or the equipment needed for sound. I found the tenders for Bachmann’s large-driver 4-6-0s…
…too big, and not only shortened it, but also took a piece out of it lengthwise, as it was wider than the locomotive…
As you can see, with lots of lead in the cistern portion, I was able to create an open coal bunker, useful if you use loose “coal” loads.
Wayne
You can also buy the long haul tender separately. They are low cost and are DCC ready.
Simon
Then you need to be careful because some engines in the same class had standard tenders.