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This Dynamis is dead!


Ruston

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I last used my Dynamis around three weeks ago and when I switched it on today all I got was a blank screen on the controller.

 

I assumed that either the batteries had gone flat naturally, or I'd left it switched on and they'd drained, so I removed them and charged them up (yes they are rechargeables). Once charged I refitted them (yes, the right way around), switched it on but still nothing.

 

The last time I used it everything was working fine and the batteries were almost new, having had only two charge cycles before (so I am assuming there's nothing wrong with the batteries).

 

An ideas what could be wrong and is there a fix or has it run down the curtain and joined the choir invisble? Or will I have have to buy another handset (assuming they are available seperately) or replace it with a slug?

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Have you tried regular batteries (non rechargeable)? I have heard that rechargable batteries may not work correctly as the voltage is lower than non rechargables.

 

You could also try to reset the system which should be in the manual. It may reset the decoders though so not 100% sure on this.

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All was well with my Damn Dynamis pro until tonight when all the Loco descriptions laboriously type in disappeared from the pro box and of course didn't appear on the handsets

Then ,having go two trains running, and 4 locos stationary without sound g the system has begun to completely shut down every few minutes for no apparent reason i.e. no indication of a short or overload.

To say I am hacked of is an understatement

I think I will have to find a replacement Warley may be the place to look

 

Grumpy Geogg

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Have you tried regular batteries (non rechargeable)? I have heard that rechargable batteries may not work correctly as the voltage is lower than non rechargables.

 

You could also try to reset the system which should be in the manual. It may reset the decoders though so not 100% sure on this.

 

I haven't got any other batteries so I haven't tried that but then it was working fine with the rechargables before so why not now? There's just no signs of life in the thing at all - just a completely blank screen.

 

I don't have the manual to hand but if nothing's working at all I can't imagine how I can reset it. I guess it is an ex Dynamis. Well there's a hundred quid going to landfill!

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............... Well there's a hundred quid going to landfill!

 

Send it back to Bachmann I'm sure as a responsible company they will comply with the WEEE directive - wherein, I understand, that they have an obligation to take back life expired goods and dispose of them appropriately

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Send it back to Bachmann I'm sure as a responsible company they will comply with the WEEE directive - wherein, I understand, that they have an obligation to take back life expired goods and dispose of them appropriately

Doesn't the local council tip take electrical goods?

 

My local one has a separate area for computers, which is the nearest thing a Dynamis could be classed as.

 

Keith

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That's the next thing I'll try.

 

I'm just wondering about its replacement, if it does indeed need one. If I buy another Dynamis can I use both the new and old base station things connected to the same layout? I'm thinking that if its possible I would have two base stations, one at one end and one at t'other so I'd never have a case of the handset not pointing toward the base station.

 

Has anyone ever done this or is it just a pipe dream?

 

P.S. I have now tried it with some new non-rechargable batteries and it's still the same.

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There was a topic on RMWeb all about some of the Dynamis issues should be locatable with a search? I have one - it gets very occasional use and I take the batteries out after every use. Otherwise have not had any problems with it. (My other DCC is a Prodigy Express which I find easier to use.) ISTR from that thread that remedies were either drastic (take apart and clean) or return to Bachmann for a fix.

 

Personally I think like all gadgets there is a gremlin built in that is programmed to self destruct when there is a new and more expensive version available :jester:

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There was a topic on RMWeb all about some of the Dynamis issues should be locatable with a search?

 

Not sure exactly which one you're referring to, Kenton, but I stuck "Dynamis issues" into the search and the search window opened with 10 pages of topics! I couldn't be bothered to trawl through that lot but It would appear that I'm not alone in having one of these devices that is only useful as a doorstop. No, in fact it's not even any use as a doorstop - far too light and poorly constructed!

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Not sure exactly which one you're referring to, Kenton, but I stuck "Dynamis issues" into the search and the search window opened with 10 pages of topics! I couldn't be bothered to trawl through that lot but It would appear that I'm not alone in having one of these devices

 

That is the problem with everyone opening a new topic on an old subject rather than reopening an old one! ;) I think I have it bookmarked I'll have a trawl through and see if I can find it tomorrow, off to work now, someone else who posted some of the useful replies might see this and remember it. Someone even went to all the trouble showing pictures of how to dismantle the box - with pitfalls - and how to put it back together working. Very useful and helpful - it would be a shame to have lost it among other non-specifics about this product.

 

A product that probably has more units sold than any of the other more expensive and over featured boxes (with the exception of perhaps the Hornby entry level DCC) There must be thousands out there working perfectly.

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I don't have the manual to hand

 

Well I CAN help with that one hopefully - online PDF here

 

As for that bookmark I seem to have lost it. I'm certain it was saved, but simply can't find it now, sorry.

 

I think the best option is to contact Bachmann and they will likely ask for it to be returned, from what I have heard they turn them round in about a week at no or minimal cost. So it should be the cheapest option - anything is cheaper that buying something different and new. I also remember reading somewhere that one of the issues is with the studs underneath not being suitably insulated and if put down on a metal surface the unit can short out.

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......If I buy another Dynamis, can I use both the new and old base station things connected to the same layout?

I'm thinking that if its possible I would have two base stations, one at one end and one at t'other so I'd never have a case of the handset not pointing toward the base station.

 

Has anyone ever done this or is it just a pipe dream?

 

 

Ruston (Dave), no you cannot do this with any DCC system. You cannot connect two systems to the same layout, because it'll end up in tears (and probably smoke and flames too).

 

If you want to extend the range of coverage of the IR signals, than you will need to add additional IR receiver/transmitter units (that's the thing on the top of the Dynamis base unit).

To do this, you need to buy and fit a Dynamis Pro Box, which comes with a module that allows anything up to a maximum of 5 IR rx/tx units to be used with the system.

The problem is that the Pro Box is currently very expensive to buy, although if you shop around or wait for special promotions or sales, it can be had for much less (e.g. sold at £99 about 6 months ago with one well know box-shifter).

 

Something else to bear in mind, if you don't already know; is that the Dynamis IR signals are not like a TV remote, in that they are 2-way.

The base unit also sends signals back to the handset.

Therefore, not only do you need to have a line of sight from the handset to the IR rx/tx unit when you are making inputs and issuing commands on the handset, you also need line of sight when not making any inputs, because the base unit transmits its own signals back to the handset all the time.

This constant 2-way communication is required for reliable operation and a failure to understand or recognise this is why some users find they have difficulty with signals getting through.

 

 

.

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I had a Dynamis a while back and never had an issue with signal loss, however, I did have the same problem as per OP, cleaning the battery terminals in the handset seemed to cure the problem but I lost faith in it after that so I changed over to the Lenz 100 and I've never looked back.

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I haven't got any other batteries so I haven't tried that but then it was working fine with the rechargables before so why not now? There's just no signs of life in the thing at all - just a completely blank screen.

 

I don't have the manual to hand but if nothing's working at all I can't imagine how I can reset it. I guess it is an ex Dynamis. Well there's a hundred quid going to landfill!

 

Why not send it back to Bachmann for a check over. It may just need a good clean

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That is the problem with everyone opening a new topic on an old subject rather than reopening an old one! ;) I think I have it bookmarked I'll have a trawl through and see if I can find it tomorrow, off to work now, someone else who posted some of the useful replies might see this and remember it. Someone even went to all the trouble showing pictures of how to dismantle the box - with pitfalls - and how to put it back together working. Very useful and helpful - it would be a shame to have lost it among other non-specifics about this product.

 

A product that probably has more units sold than any of the other more expensive and over featured boxes (with the exception of perhaps the Hornby entry level DCC) There must be thousands out there working perfectly.

 

Yes, andt here is thousands that don't work perfectly. Unlike most other systems with the exception of Hornby select.

 

Cheers

 

Ian

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Yes, and there is thousands that don't work perfectly.

 

Me thinks that is a wildly overestimated accusation. I am sure that if there were really thousands of malfunctioning units Bachmann would have removed the product from the market.

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Me thinks that is a wildly overestimated accusation. I am sure that if there were really thousands of malfunctioning units Bachmann would have removed the product from the market.

 

I think it;s the same old story, the only ones you hear about are the ones with a problem....

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My reply #19 was said with a little tounge in cheek but there is a general conception among the more knowledgeable DCC users that DCC systems made by manufacturers of toy train sets are to be avoided. With the possible exception of Roco

 

Draconusde is right, generally you only hear about the problamatic DCC systems.

 

Having said that, there seems to be more falure problems with Dynamis than most other systems.

 

Yes, there are often problems with other systems but most of those are proven to be operator error not system failure..

 

Cheers

 

Ian

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Having said that, there seems to be more failure problems with Dynamis than most other systems.

 

But this presumption does require the caveat that it is just conjecture. Real failure rates should be viewed as a percentage of units sold, and I doubt if all (or indeed any) of the manufacturers are going to release that sort of information for the likes of us.

 

We are simply inventing a statistic (that Dynamis units fail) and perhaps we should be a little more cautious in potentially spreading malicious rumours on RMWeb that could affect a company's sales?

 

Announcing the failure of a single unit in isolation (or even several) and then taking reasonable steps to return the unit(s) to the manufacturer for remedial action, and reporting on the outcome is all well and good, but speculating on the rest of the units and viability of future sales of those units is dangerous territory.

 

As said above, after first asking on RMWeb for a simple end-user fix and finding none, the next action is to contact and return to retailer/manufacturer.

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I had it reported that the following arcane procedure will solve all Dynamis problems completley:

 

Find a clear floor space around six feet in diameter, paint a pentagle on the clear space, then on the next full moon strip naked, hold the Dynamis in your hand (make sure it is not still plugged into the mains, (we take health and safety very seriously)), skip in and out of the pentagle three times then place the Dynamis on the floor in the centre of the pentagle and, on the stroke of midnight, smash it with a mallet.

 

The system can now be replaced with another makers' DCC system and all Dynamis problems will have gone away. :stinker:

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