PIKO digital sound

[ebay mike]

Hello peoples. This is (I hope) a simple question with a straighforward answer. I don't really want to get into reprogramming loads of CV's as I think it would be too involved for my limited understanding of such things. My PIKO BR50 has sat in it's box since purchase apart from a quick examination and photo call. It has not yet been run. I have one of the recommended decoders which don't look too difficult to fit. The appropriate sound unit (36230) appears to have a large selection of sounds available.
As I run LGB MTS2 my question is how many (and which) sound functions can I access 'straight from the box)?

Having perused the instructions I get the impression most of them will be beyond the scope of my equipment. If that is the case I will plump for a standard LGB decoder and a 65000 series sound unit. Thanking you in anticipation.

 

[idlemarvel]

Hi Mike,
Looking at the manual for PIKO 36230, it looks like it is one of their rebadged Uhlenbrock sound modules that just plugs into the SUSI socket of the motor decoder.
https://www.piko-shop.de/is.php?id=24868
As you say there are many sounds from F9-F25 which you may not be able to access (not sure of the limitations of MTS2) but F1-8 gives you whistle, bell, loco sounds, coal shovelling and mute, which may be enough for you. I assume the motor decoder will include a SUSI socket and will have that set as on by default. Do you have a part number for the decoder?
I have used PIKO (Uhlenbrock) SUSI sound modules and they work well but they are a PITA to configure. If you are more familiar with LGB decoders and sound units you may be better sticking to what you know, although the sounds won't be authentic if that matters to you.

 

[ebay mike]

Thanks Dave, you've confirmed my suspicions. I think i'll try a normal LGB approach. I assume I will just need to wire the sound unit to the track feed of the decoder and figure out the on/off for the lights. All I really want is backwards, forwards and noise plus some lights when it's dark. Even smoke is not critical.

 

[idlemarvel]

Yes, the LGB sound unit works out of the box when you connect it to track power. You can tweak it in various ways but in general you don't need to. Lights on LGB decoders should be F0 unless you change it. The only thing you need to be careful of is what voltage the lights need, you may have to wind it down if they're LEDs.

 

[dunnyrail]

Having fitted a few if the LGB Sound Boxes they are well worth doing a little programming prior to installation to try to get 4 beats to the wheel resolution, forget what you do now. Also as you are likely to be hard wiring the lights back to the LGB Decoder to get them working from F0 you will need to consider voltage chucked out by the Decoder compared to what the LED’s on the Loco like otherwise they are likely to pop. A warning given by Massoth with their Decoders.

Just thinking out loud what is the cost comparison between the LGB Sound Box plus Decoder compared to the all in one recommended Piko one? If modest or even less I would still suggest the Piko recomendation, you never know one day you may change your DCC setup and all the additional stuff could be available one day.

 

[ebay mike]

Having fitted a few if the LGB Sound Boxes they are well worth doing a little programming prior to installation to try to get 4 beats to the wheel resolution, forget what you do now. Also as you are likely to be hard wiring the lights back to the LGB Decoder to get them working from F0 you will need to consider voltage chucked out by the Decoder compared to what the LED’s on the Loco like otherwise they are likely to pop. A warning given by Massoth with their Decoders.

Just thinking out loud what is the cost comparison between the LGB Sound Box plus Decoder compared to the all in one recommended Piko one? If modest or even less I would still suggest the Piko recomendation, you never know one day you may change your DCC setup and all the additional stuff could be available one day.

Thanks Jon. I can get a PIKO 36230 sound unit for a touch over £140, the standard 36122 decoder is around £85. Together they are about the same cost as the unit Muns suggested when I first got the loco. As I already have a couple of the necessary decoders (plus a selection of alternatives) and a spare LGB 65000 soundbox, in the interests of economy I will plump for that. I think I have reached the limit of how far I want to go, technology wise - I sometimes have difficulty remembering how all the LGB stuff functions. A complete change of procedures would flummox me.

 

[Tanker man]

I found, recently, that when I changed the LGB decoders for a Massoth one, in my Meyer, with an LGB sound unit, function 8 on the sound unit turns the sound on and off but function 8 on the Massoth decoder puts the loco into half speed for shunting! It was easy to change the shunting facility function via CV's ( in my case , function 16) ..
I had to change the new Massoth decoder to the same address as the sound decoder as reprogramming does not change both decoder addresses ( I think this has been mentioned before?)
Hope this helps
Dave

 

[PhilP]

I had to change the new Massoth decoder to the same address as the sound decoder as reprogramming does not change both decoder addresses ( I think this has been mentioned before?)

Always a good idea to have a way of isolating each decoder.. That way you know what you are changing, and on which decoder you are changing it..

 

[dunnyrail]

Thanks Jon. I can get a PIKO 36230 sound unit for a touch over £140, the standard 36122 decoder is around £85. Together they are about the same cost as the unit Muns suggested when I first got the loco. As I already have a couple of the necessary decoders (plus a selection of alternatives) and a spare LGB 65000 soundbox, in the interests of economy I will plump for that. I think I have reached the limit of how far I want to go, technology wise - I sometimes have difficulty remembering how all the LGB stuff functions. A complete change of procedures would flummox me.

That makes complete sense as you already have the sound box. These days it appears that you can nearly pay as much for the LGB Sound Box as that £140 for the Piko 36230. Thus you would be looking around £200 for an LGB Decoder and a Sound Box, ouch!

 

[idlemarvel]

The LGB sound box is basically a Massoth S sound decoder with a speaker and potentiometer nicely packaged, thus the price is not surprising. I think it still remains the case that the cheapest way to get motor and sound decoder is to buy a motor decoder that supports SUSI and then get a Dietz/Uhlenbrock SUSI sound module. But you need to know what you are doing as it's not the easiest combo to configure.

 

[Dan]

For a single motor LGB engine look at the MX645 (HO decoder). This decoder is half the price of the LGB 6000x series and has everything you need. I use it in the Stainz and it is small enough to fit in the water or coal bin. 3 watt audio, 5 volt low current source for servos (can control 2) and even has the SUSI bus, controls ditch lights. 1.2 amp average current, 2.5 amp surge and 30 volt input.
For a little extra $$ get the P22 version and have a better 5 volt source, and 1.8 amps.