thetrainkid Posted June 19, 2021 Share Posted June 19, 2021 Is it possible to add sound to a RC controlled locomotive in 00 gauge? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SuperD Posted June 19, 2021 Share Posted June 19, 2021 Mmm, one to think about. The "commands" are sent via the track, so you may have to operate a controller via RC servo to achieve that. Best of luck. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
wasdavetheroad Posted June 19, 2021 Share Posted June 19, 2021 (edited) Yes there are systems available. this one from Tam Valley using Bluerail boards can control any DCC decoder apparently including sound ones http://bluerailtrains.com/tam-valley-dcc/ Edited June 19, 2021 by wasdavetheroad 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
StephenF Posted June 20, 2021 Share Posted June 20, 2021 19 hours ago, wasdavetheroad said: Yes there are systems available. this one from Tam Valley using Bluerail boards can control any DCC decoder apparently including sound ones http://bluerailtrains.com/tam-valley-dcc/ Hi there! Not sure I understand. Surely a big part of using RC is to not need to pick up from the track? Do these Bluerail thingies work via Bluetooth alone? That would be interesting... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Regularity Posted June 20, 2021 RMweb Gold Share Posted June 20, 2021 (edited) You can choose to use battery power if you wish. The OP is a bit vague: what is required, and what is meant by “RC’”, precisely. There are sound synthesising modules available which use variations based on “white noise”, which can be used with any form of control. It is possible to control DCC via battery power and remote control and that can have synchronised sound with many effects. Can’t speak for Bluerails, but I am aware of the others. But which size of loco is this for? Where is this to run? Indoors, outdoors, small shunty plank, large oval? Will this be occasional running, maybe 30 minutes, or all day long? Would an extra vehicle be attached to hold the battery, etc? Edited June 20, 2021 by Regularity 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
wasdavetheroad Posted June 20, 2021 Share Posted June 20, 2021 3 hours ago, StephenF said: Hi there! Not sure I understand. Surely a big part of using RC is to not need to pick up from the track? Do these Bluerail thingies work via Bluetooth alone? That would be interesting... All the control signals to the loco are via Bluetooth link. the loco power can be from the rails or a battery or a combination of both. I tested an earlier BlueRail board and it even switched automatically from rail to battery power and vice versa. the battery was in effect a giant stay alive but retaining full control of the loco. ps - as I do not need sound so I use Deltang equipment plus some Lemon receivers for radio controlled uncoupling. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
StephenF Posted June 21, 2021 Share Posted June 21, 2021 12 hours ago, wasdavetheroad said: All the control signals to the loco are via Bluetooth link. the loco power can be from the rails or a battery or a combination of both. I tested an earlier BlueRail board and it even switched automatically from rail to battery power and vice versa. the battery was in effect a giant stay alive but retaining full control of the loco. ps - as I do not need sound so I use Deltang equipment plus some Lemon receivers for radio controlled uncoupling. Thanks. So you could have a simple pickup system that provides most of the power, but no hesitations or flat spots. And no need to wire points up either. Has anyone any ideas about under layout sound? Then you can have a bass subwoofer that wouldn’t just be white noise. I know people have very different opinions about that. But could it be linked to the loco speed? Or would you have to have a separate system like the Soundbyte app? Sorry if this is a hijack trainkid! But very good question.... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Regularity Posted June 21, 2021 RMweb Gold Share Posted June 21, 2021 If you spend a bit of time searching on the web, you will find numerous examples of all that you have mentioned. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
otherplanet Posted June 25, 2021 Share Posted June 25, 2021 There is a German company called Benedini that make sound modules for RC. They use the signal from the speed channel to control the engine noise and have options to add extra sounds including startup and horns. 3 problems, 1) they are targeted at military RC, so there are no railway sound files. But there is a very sophisticated software for the PC so you can make your own. 2) cost, 119euros! 3) size. The smallest unit is the TBS mini. Which is quite chunky for a OO loco. They used to do a TBS micro but discontinued it after it got cloned and ripped off by Chinese copies. Search for TBS micro. Same applies to making your own sound files. Caveat. I have not used either of these products. I have no direct experience, this is just the output of my research for a future project. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PenrithBeacon Posted June 25, 2021 Share Posted June 25, 2021 http://www.micronradiocontrol.co.uk/sound.html Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
thetrainkid Posted June 25, 2021 Author Share Posted June 25, 2021 On 20/06/2021 at 21:45, Regularity said: You can choose to use battery power if you wish. The OP is a bit vague: what is required, and what is meant by “RC’”, precisely. There are sound synthesising modules available which use variations based on “white noise”, which can be used with any form of control. It is possible to control DCC via battery power and remote control and that can have synchronised sound with many effects. Can’t speak for Bluerails, but I am aware of the others. But which size of loco is this for? Where is this to run? Indoors, outdoors, small shunty plank, large oval? Will this be occasional running, maybe 30 minutes, or all day long? Would an extra vehicle be attached to hold the battery, etc? The loco is a Fowler 3F-size loco (a LBSC E2 Class to be precise) and it will be run for maybe an hour or two at a time. The battery and sound should preferably be on board an I will run it if everything goes to plan on an inglenook shunting puzzle. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Regularity Posted June 28, 2021 RMweb Gold Share Posted June 28, 2021 On 25/06/2021 at 10:04, PenrithBeacon said: http://www.micronradiocontrol.co.uk/sound.html I looked at that manual, and felt it was worse than DCC! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PenrithBeacon Posted June 28, 2021 Share Posted June 28, 2021 Dunno, don't do sound myself, the link was offered as a suggestion. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris M Posted June 28, 2021 Share Posted June 28, 2021 (edited) Technically not a problem but it all depends on the availability of the right chip. Us G scalers do it all the time but with sound cards that are way too big for 00. It’s a shame there aren’t micro sized sound chips available that are designed to work with DC. These two two are mine running battery powered radio control and with £50 sound cards. The whistles are controlled by a button on the radio control transmitter. Edited June 28, 2021 by Chris M Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnhu Posted July 5, 2021 Share Posted July 5, 2021 There are a few US based radio systems that support DCC decoders (including sound decoders). CVP Airwire and Tam Valley are two such systems. http://www.cvpusa.com/airwire_ss_system.php In effect the throttle is the DCC command station. It sends the dcc signal over the air to the receiver. The receiver then combines this dcc signal with the power from the battery (just like a mini dcc booster) and forwards this on to the dcc decoder. The decoder does what it is designed to do (motor / sounds / lights). It doesn't know if the dcc signal / power has come through the rails or not. The question is then whether the components can fit into the locos you have. I've been using the CVP Airwire (ConvRTR-15 and T5000 throttle) in my Sn3 locos for a number of years. The components fit into the tender, which are a similar size to a OO scale tender. Tank engines may be more difficult due to the size of the components. Space in the side tanks can be used possibly. John Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrisbr Posted December 2, 2021 Share Posted December 2, 2021 I've been experimenting in 7mm scale with a small 0-4-0 tank. Not got it all installed yet, but it all works on the bench. DCC++ controller for £60, Tam valley Tx and Rx (£45 each) powering a sound enabled Zimo DCC chip using a 750mAH 1S LiPo battery and voltage step up board (£10). I'm even using a Smartphone throttle over WiFi to control the DCC. Hope to test battery life in the next week or so, but early indications suggest several hours use Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PenrithBeacon Posted December 3, 2021 Share Posted December 3, 2021 Seems to be very complicated. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Regularity Posted February 4, 2022 RMweb Gold Share Posted February 4, 2022 On 02/12/2021 at 23:28, Chrisbr said: I've been experimenting in 7mm scale with a small 0-4-0 tank. Not got it all installed yet, but it all works on the bench. DCC++ controller for £60, Tam valley Tx and Rx (£45 each) powering a sound enabled Zimo DCC chip using a 750mAH 1S LiPo battery and voltage step up board (£10). I'm even using a Smartphone throttle over WiFi to control the DCC. Hope to test battery life in the next week or so, but early indications suggest several hours use Any update on battery life? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
thetrainkid Posted May 21, 2022 Author Share Posted May 21, 2022 Wow, thanks everyone! It's going to take me ages to get through all these suggestions! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now