help with analog and emotion decoder

stevedenver

stevedenver

Registered
Country flag
I purchased a Saxon K1 from a forum member, fitted with an emotion decoder.
it works great.
the loco has installed an emotion decoder and caps for standing sounds.

I run analog.

At purchase and until very recently, it had normal, directional lighting.
Now, only the forward (front) lights operate when running forward, none when running in reverse, or bunker first.

HOWEVER, if I run forward, and switch polarity to reverse, the reverse lights will briefly light, and then, go off.

What could I have done that "disabled" the reverse running light function in analog operation?

(and, ...... while I do have MTS 3, with a series handheld......is there a button I can push to turn the lights on?
Keep responses to this on the mental level of a gerbil please, as I am completely unversed and inept with digital ....
 
Pressing 9 should turn the lights on. That's the only contribution that I can make. I'm sure you'll get your other problem sorted by one of the regulars.
Trevor
 
Sorry. Just noted your handheld is series. Mine is parallel. That might change my answer above. I'm new too.
 
Can't think what would cause the rear lighting to stop working, unless it's a loose connection?
If you run it on DCC the lights should come on with the "light" button which is either F0 or F9 depending on your controller. I can't remember the DCC address I used, but it will either be 1 (for 1K), 3 (default) or 5.
For the benefit of other readers, I fitted the Massoth eMotion LS motor and sound decoder in this loco. It was configured to run under DCC and analog, and the directional lights, sound and firebox flicker were configured to come on under analog. The power cap is also Massoth and was connected and configured to disable itself in programming mode.
 
Anglian said:
Pressing 9 should turn the lights on. That's the only contribution that I can make. I'm sure you'll get your other problem sorted by one of the regulars.
Trevor
Click to expand...
thank you Dave and Trevor
ill hook up the mts and try 9, as well as the light button, while its running in reverse..

im pretty sure nothing is loose, as the reverse lamps will consistently come on when I reverse track polarity....

you know, I believe I DID run it on MTS at some point and pushed some buttons to see if I could access other sounds...that series handheld is useless.....

and damn that single malt.....all is a fog.......yet, its a pleasant, deep fog......

stay tuned....ill hook it up in the next day or so.....
 
Last edited:
follow up
got the mts out, got the lights to turn on and off, per F9, left them "on" in both directions of travel, so now, on digital, they operate in the proper direction....no sounds.....
Soooooo,
I switch back to analogue DC (track power) , no lights in reverse, but sound, ie no change from status when I asked for help in post 1 above.....

so, is there something I need to do to get the digital "on" for the reversing lights to stay in analogue mode?
did I somehow, unknowingly, affect programming? (as I have no idea how to do the latter).
can programming like the lights somehow be affected otherwise, ie rapid reverse of polarity on analogue track operation????

obviously , its not huge, but I love lights.......,
 
To get sounds in digital mode press F6. It was/is set up so that in analog mode F6 is set on by default, as are the lights. I can't think of any setting which would mean no reverse lights in analog mode.
 
thanks.

as an aside, for those who know, should I buy a dimax navigator to replace my series handheld 55015?
I have seen the great read out on the dimax, but, would I be getting into something that is more complex to operate with MTS3 instead of a Parallel 55015??? also, it seems massoth is not readily available in the US. I thinks there is one seller.
 
Unless everything you own is LGB / Massoth chipped, I do not think I could recommend Massoth in the USA.

I am sure those, your side of the pond, will chip-in with their thoughts, but Zimo or ESU may well be a better bet? :wondering:


If there is a local club / group, it is worth seeing what they use, and most will be more than happy to demonstrate the kit. - A bit of local knowledge is worth all the online support you could ever get! :nerd::nod:

PhilP.
 
Agree with Phil, support is poor here in the US, and Massoth can be tricky, evidenced by the almost required template files, with settings that seem to interact with each other.

If you are trying to save your old MTS3... well... I'd get something overall more modern. There's many options available.

Greg
 
thanks you all

not trying to save the MTS, just trying not spend a lot of money to get the damn lights back on, LOL


Greg
I know you like Zimo, and ive looked at it, and its amazing, but, with so many unchipped locos (97 vs 7 chipped) im thinking , its a lot of money for me to completely switch to digital. but whats worse, I might well do it if it were not so .....difficult for me to understand the most basic things. Having not immediately adopted digital, when it was simple, I now face, I think, a much more complex subject, with no basic language to build upon.

I love to tinker and to learn, but
....I wanted to try to invest/throw away a smaller amount for a parallel handheld that would allow me to mess with the 7 digital locos I have and to see if I can learn....but, they are all LGB /Massoth/mfx chips....tis a ponderence....
 
You have many options for DCC, you can put a 5 amp MODERN system together cheaply, but it won't have the serial functions of your older locos if they are serial only.

I put a 5 amp DCC system together with a nice handheld for about $200 that will program anything.

Portable DCC System

Greg Elmassian web site on large scale trains and garden railroads, cigars, and computers
elmassian.com elmassian.com

Lots of options...
 
Going back to your original problem, unless you are keen to get more into DCC for other reasons, ditching your MTS system and switching 90 locos to digital is a big price to pay just to get one loco's reverse lights working, as you have noted.

The loco in question is factory shipped as DC with a 10 pin DCC interface. If you don't mind taking it apart you could go back to factory shipped status, make sure the lights work, then refit the sounds, or an alternative DC sound card. You will need the 10 pin interface blanking plug when you remove the sound decoder. If that is beyond your skill set / experience see if you can get someone to do it for you. Even if that costs shipping time and materials it will be way cheaper than the alternative.

Another alternative is you could always run it double-headed with another Saxon 1K as a pretend Saxon 2K so you only need the front lights! :)
 
It seems that he will still need DCC to program the decoder.

I agree, you could put the DC "blanking plug" back in and verify/fix any lighting issues (bulbs/wires).

But if that is not the issue, he needs a working DCC system to program the decoder when he puts it back in.

So when he brought up in post #6 issues that may need to be solved with DCC, it seems to be part of the solution.

Greg
 
well I figured it out.
cab switch was in “off” pos.
apparently with the decoder added, while all else functioned, the rear lights were off.
fascinating, huh?lol
 
I'm amazed it ran at all with the switch in "off" (0) position. I thought if you used the 10 pin interface it would still act as an on/off switch. Normally when I do an analog to DCC upgrade I try and remove that switch as it is more or less redundant and cosmetically does not improve the appearance.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom