21 pin to 8 pin wire harness....is there such a thing?

[tomp]

Hi all

 

My problem is that I have a Locksound 21 pin decoder and I want to fit it in a loco which has an 8 pin socket, I know that there are 21 to 8 pin convertors (boards) but I need a wired harness just like the one Hornby supplies with the Sapphire decoder as the space only allows for an 8 pin plug and there is enough space in housing for the decoder so it has to be wired from plug to decoder.

 

Anybody know if these types of harnesses are available or do Hornby sell them as spares? (can't find any) or any ideas how to get round the problem.

 

Tom

[Temeraire]

Tom

 

I had the same issue a while back when I acquired some 21 pin sound chips, look at the thread linked here it might help you. I have three or four 21pin chips that are quite happy in 8 pin locos with the adaption that I did.

 

http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/22206-21-pin-sound-into-8-pin-loco/?fromsearch=1

[tomp]

Tom

 

I had the same issue a while back when I acquired some 21 pin sound chips, look at the thread linked here it might help you. I have three or four 21pin chips that are quite happy in 8 pin locos with the adaption that I did.

 

http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/22206-21-pin-sound-into-8-pin-loco/?fromsearch=1

 

Thanks Ian, very helpful.

 

It seems my only option unless I want to risk a soldering job is to buy a sapphire decoder and use the wired harness (the decoder might come in handy in the future)

I presume the Hornby harness is compatible and wont fry my expensive Locksound decoder???

[pheaton]

The Hornby sapphire chip comes with a harness to allow the (natively) 21 pin chip to fit an 8 pin socket, it will work fine with a loksound.

[Robert Davies]

I can confirm that I have successfully used the Hornby Sapphire harness to fit a 21pin Loksound 4 to an 8 pin loco - an older Hornby Class 67.

 

I can further confirm that there was no issuance of magic smoke.

 

-Rob

[deltic79]

I can confirm that I have successfully used the Hornby Sapphire harness to fit a 21pin Loksound 4 to an 8 pin loco - an older Hornby Class 67.

 

I can further confirm that there was no issuance of magic smoke.

 

-Rob

 

Can I ask please Rob, did you simply solder the speaker wires onto the Sapphire harness and is it easy to determine which pins these should go to? I've not seen a Sapphire in the flesh to work this out for myself yet.

 

Many thanks

[Robert Davies]

To clarify, and sorry for not having replied sooner, i didn't get a new post notification, I bought the Loksound 'new' so the wires for the speaker were already soldered to the chip - the pads required are on the underside of the chip - the side without the black plastic socket, and if you subsequently hold the chip upright with the pinholes at the top, they are the two pads next to next at the top left, I repeat, on the side without the black plastic socket.

 

If you are attaching wires to those pads, trim and tin the wires first, get the iron warm, hold the wire in place on the solder pad, and just dab the iron on it briefly, and the job, as they say, should be a good 'un.

[deltic79]

Thanks Rob and cheers for your PM. I understand now.

 

For clarity of the other members reading this topic, I was thinking of reusing a 21 pin Loksound from a Bachmann factory fitted loco (where the original speaker is wired into the loco PCB rather than directly onto the chip), hence my query over where to attach the speaker wires.

 

I think I'll go via the ESU 51967 Adapter board route instead because I don't want to risk soldering directly onto the chip.