bluedepot Posted October 19, 2020 Share Posted October 19, 2020 hi who has got a new y8000? any thoughts on it? how is the uncoupling function working? are the handrails metal? tim Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jivebunny Posted October 19, 2020 Share Posted October 19, 2020 Hi, I have one that's due to arrive in the next few days. The railings are fine plastic but it's an entirely new model (and if you haven't yet seen, the Y8000 page on Roco's site has recently been updated with photos of the sample model). The digital coupling looks excellent and is compatible with traditional european "loop" couplings. I'll no doubt post a video and some photos once I have mine. It's also fitted to Roco's Köf locomotives. Alan 2 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluedepot Posted October 20, 2020 Author Share Posted October 20, 2020 hi alan excellent! ive ordered one! looks like it will be good fun shunting with the dcc uncoupling and all the sounds too... next year hopefully they'll make a fret and infra livery one too! tim Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jivebunny Posted October 20, 2020 Share Posted October 20, 2020 Great stuff! These have already more or less sold out, but I'm sure we'll be seeing additional batches and more modern liveries later on. DC fans are a bit disappointed for the moment though, since it's only available in DCC or 3-rail AC. Apparently some have encountered problems with the autocoupler uncoupling a bit too eagerly... Not really that surprising since it's essentially just a hook with a bracked to push up the opposing coupler, but I'm confident it can be extended by a millimetre or two without affecting the uncoupling ability. More news when I receive mine Alan Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jivebunny Posted October 22, 2020 Share Posted October 22, 2020 Received mine, so if I find the time I'll put a little video together this evening. First bit of good news: it's very, very nice, and the digital couplings can be easily removed by taking apart the chassis, no unsoldering required (the functions activate an electromagnet which attracts the circular magnet seen below, causing the hook to drop) First bit of bad news: the replacement NEM pocket that was expected to be included isn't included, so you have to source one, or 3D print one (Roco reference 143790) - but I think I'll be leaving the digital couplings on it anyway, since I paid for them Alan 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Joseph_Pestell Posted October 22, 2020 RMweb Gold Share Posted October 22, 2020 Looks very nice. But the old one was a good model too. It's a pity that while retooling they did not take the opportunity to model a different series. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluedepot Posted October 22, 2020 Author Share Posted October 22, 2020 thats great alan! i bought mine from a german shop a few days ago so it should be arriving soon! i suppose roco will have nem sockets for sale via their spares department soon. i may swap in kadee couplings as i already have some wagons and locos fitted with them. I'll see how the digital coupling looks and works. what do you make of the sound and the stay alive capacitor? tim Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jivebunny Posted October 23, 2020 Share Posted October 23, 2020 Didn't get a chance to make a video yesterday in the end, but tonight on my local club layout seems like a good opportunity. The NEM sockets are already available from Roco (ref 143790) but paying £10 postage for a £1 item is a bit annoying... The sounds are truly excellent. The motor is very convincing and a variety of horn sounds are provided. There are even two functions allowing a number of different radio messages (press once, first message plays, press again, second message plays, etc). The lights have a number of configurations available. Quite a few owners are reporting reliability issues with the digital couplers: random uncoupling, wagons not always uncoupling depending on coupler brand / type, track layout etc. It seems the hook is too short (causing uncoupling) and doesn't move down enough (causing... non-uncoupling). Hopefully in the future Roco will improve these as the current configuration isn't really satisfactory. I tested the stay alive capacitor by lifting the loco off the track though and was astounded, considering the space constraints in the model. With sound and motion in progress you get a couple of seconds of power, more than enough to negociate a bad section of track. With only the lights on it lasts a good 30 seconds! Alan 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluedepot Posted October 23, 2020 Author Share Posted October 23, 2020 hi thats good news about the sounds and the stay alive anyway! i'm going to buy the nem sockets and use kadee couplings i think. i looked in the roco spares shop but part 143790 is not in stock! cheers tim Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jivebunny Posted October 23, 2020 Share Posted October 23, 2020 (edited) As promised, a short clip of my Y8000 in action on the club layout. I didn't have much of a chance to film as 1) there was a lot of drilling and sawing going on for the new layout, and 2) like 46 million other people in France, I had to be home before the curfew started... Alan Edited October 23, 2020 by jivebunny 4 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluedepot Posted October 24, 2020 Author Share Posted October 24, 2020 the uncoupling manoeuvre looked very good! nice collection of vans as well tim Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluedepot Posted October 29, 2020 Author Share Posted October 29, 2020 my locotracteur has arrived! i like it. it looks great and i enjoyed trying all the sounds. it runs well at slow speeds. ive only run it for a short time but mine will not stay coupled to the ree and jouef wagons i tried it with which was annoying. it did stay coupled to a roco wagon sucessfully. i guess there is some coupling height issue. any ideas to fix this? i would prefer stronger metal handrails and normal nem coupling pockets to be honest. that's just my preference though. the fitted stay alive is a good development. in the future i suspect every model train will have one. if roco can get the coupling to be a bit closer coupled and also to be more reliable with other makes of rolling stock then it will be a success in the future. also an easy way to adjust how much the loco moves when performing the uncoupling manoeuvre would be good. anyway i will play with it some more tomorrow. the light functions were good and you can have white at both ends, red / white etc. etc. the handrails are ultra fragile. metal ones are much better! tim Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluedepot Posted October 30, 2020 Author Share Posted October 30, 2020 hi alan any ideas to fix my coupling up problems? i tried a piko wagon and that wouldn't couple up either! i dont have many roco wagons. it seems to only like roco wagons! cheers tim Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jivebunny Posted November 1, 2020 Share Posted November 1, 2020 The "hook" on the digital coupler is only about a millimeter tall, so if the loops of the stock you're trying to couple up to aren't at exactly the right height then it simply won't catch them.... They should really have made the hook longer and given it more downward swing when uncoupling (to ensure it was clear of the loop before moving away) but I'm guessing the space constraints are why it's so unforgiving. I had trouble with some 1990s Jouef stock, especially where over time the loops had been bashed upwards or downwards (in the latter case, it generally stays coupled when uncoupling). Things will improve by adjusting / bending the loops upwards or downwards goldilocks-style (until they're juuuuust right), but with a system allowing so little leeway in terms of coupler height I think we're bound to encounter problems. It may be a case of noting which wagons and coaches uncouple the most reliably and ensuring you have them at the end of the rake... Alan Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluedepot Posted November 3, 2020 Author Share Posted November 3, 2020 thanks alan im just going to remember which wagons it will work with and make sure they are at the front and back of the train! so far one only a jouef remms and a roco tank wagon. i will switch over to kadees eventually when roco have the coupling socket for sale! i really like the light and sound functions on the loco so overall roco did a great job. cheers tim 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kintbury jon Posted January 31, 2021 Share Posted January 31, 2021 Morning all. Any thoughts on how to reduce the volume on the loco? I have a Multimaus so can only access the first 20 functions. With volume control being F27 and F28 this proves a problem. Changing cv63 or cv266 doesn't seem to do anything. Is there a cv setting I can use or is it a case of getting a better controller that has more functions? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jivebunny Posted February 1, 2021 Share Posted February 1, 2021 (edited) Hi Jon, I'll try to have a look tomorrow at which CV sets the volume. The original Multimaus (the red one from Roco or the grey one from Fleischmann) allows you to access F21-F28 via a double-press of the shift key once it's updated to the version 1.05 firmware. I can't remember the exact menu that tells you which version you're running but it's something like settings > info. If you can find someone with a z21 or MultiZentralePro command station then they can plug your Multimaus in and update it for you. I've done it on a bunch of Multimice we have at our club with a z21 I got cheap split from a set... saved us a lot of money that would have been spent replacing all the controllers! They were still using the version 1.00 firmware that only gave access to F0-F12 so not much good for digital sound models... Firmware available here: https://www.roco.cc/en/service/downloads/99-0-0-0-0-0-0-007005-0/index.html (If like me you're in France drop me a message and I'm sure we can sort something out) Alan Edit: the overall sound volume is controlled by CV 266. Mine's set to 27 which is perfectly a pleasant level but I'm not sure if that's the default (0-255). Edited February 1, 2021 by jivebunny Added CV value 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kintbury jon Posted February 1, 2021 Share Posted February 1, 2021 Thanks for this Alan. I'll try cv266 again but it didn't work for me last time. I'm in the UK so sadly can't take you up on your kind offer, but thank you anyway. My controllers are both the red ones and so I suspect are not updated but will check to see if the double press works. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kintbury jon Posted February 1, 2021 Share Posted February 1, 2021 Problem resolved! After a bit of searching I came across this thread: The solution is: Set CV7 = 220 Set CV66 = (new value for sound volume) Set CV7 = 0 I have opted for a value of 20 for now but at least I know I can mess around with it now! 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluedepot Posted March 29, 2021 Author Share Posted March 29, 2021 salut tout le monde! i am having maddening problems with dcc uncouplings. i may give up and switch to kadees. first up the roco y8000 the uncoupling does work on level track and with roco wagons, however the loco stalls and the sound cuts out at the end of the uncoupling 'shuffle' sequences (f8 or f9 front or rear coupling operates, but then it stalls...). other functions dont cause the loco to stall. any ideas? i dont want to post the loco back to a shop in germany really over this... next up roco ns 2435 (sorry, not french, but the same loco type did operate in france... for vfli i think and on lgv construction). the digital coupling employed is different to that used on the y8000. on my loco it only stays raised up for a few seconds when i press the function key. it then slowly lowers itself. if i press to raise the coupling and then change direction to pull away from the wagon the coupling lowers down straight away and so the wagon is recoupled! it is maddening. the coupling operates only in the direction the loco is in (so at the front). i dont really want to just give up on a potentially enjoyable new feature to dcc operation but i am out of ideas now and getting fed up! any advice much appreciated!! btw i am using roco universal couplings on the wagons as i was advised to. many thanks tim Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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