08 Sounds

[badgerV8]

Hi folks, after opinions on who does the best sounds for an 08 shunter please.

 

I see some advertised on ebay but there never seems to be any stock when I'm looking for 8-pin micro V4...…  and some I've found on the internet are considerably more expensive than others and I'm not convinced there's that big a difference to justify the extra cost?

 

It's a Hornby shunter, so if anyone has personal experience of speakers and location as well, that would be appreciated, many thanks.

 

Feel free to message me if you don't want to publicly recommend one persons product over another's, cheers.

 

 

[SRman]

Legomanbiffo is very good, thats what I used last time I fitted one. I believe his 08 file was re done recently.

 

This is a Bachmann one I fitted sound to using a full size decoder which had to go in the cab as well as a sugarcube speaker

 

...

 

If fitting sound to a Hornby 08 though my preferred method is to put 2 sugarcubes behind the grills and lay a full size decoder across the top of the motor. It's also possible to fit a stay alive capacitor either where the 8 pin socket is and hard wire it, or in the cab

 

Richard

 

 

Yes, I have done much the same with a couple of my installations, with slightly adapted double sugar cube speakers. I removed the spigots at the front of the chassis/motor block and sit the speaker base flush, but with a hole in the middle to clear the bearing. Once it is all sealed with black-tack (or equivalent), it works very well.

Edited September 16, 2018 by SRman

[pauliebanger]

There are alternatives to Loksound decoders.

 

Here's one on a ZIMO decoder:

 

and Hornby's own TTS is pretty good for around £40:

 

Best regards,

 

Paul

[badgerV8]

There are alternatives to Loksound decoders.

 

Here's one on a ZIMO decoder:

 

and Hornby's own TTS is pretty good for around £40:

 

Best regards,

 

Paul

Cheers for that Paul - one issue with the Zimo one, the engine revs on an 08 don't rise like that before it moves off, and that spoils that particular sound project for me.

[charliepetty]

There are alternatives to Loksound decoders.

 

Here's one on a ZIMO decoder:

 

and Hornby's own TTS is pretty good for around £40:

 

Best regards,

 

Paul

Its a shame you cannot get Legomanbiffo sounds on Zimo decoders, As Zimo are a high quality decoder as is ESU.

 

Charlie

[badgerV8]

Yes Charlie, I'm thinking possibly MX645 and stay-alive for this one, instead of my usual choice of ESU.....  Allegedly simpler to connect the stay-alive, not sure I trust myself to try soldering 3 little wires onto a V4...

[Albie the plumber]

Hi folks, after opinions on who does the best sounds for an 08 shunter please.

 

I see some advertised on ebay but there never seems to be any stock when I'm looking for 8-pin micro V4...…  and some I've found on the internet are considerably more expensive than others and I'm not convinced there's that big a difference to justify the extra cost?

 

It's a Hornby shunter, so if anyone has personal experience of speakers and location as well, that would be appreciated, many thanks.

 

Feel free to message me if you don't want to publicly recommend one persons product over another's, cheers.

 

We're spoilt with 08 sounds these days .

I have biffs and Jamie Goodman's sounds on V4 and Paul Chetter's digidrive and active drive on ZIMO .

All of them are great !

[charliepetty]

Yes Charlie, I'm thinking possibly MX645 and stay-alive for this one, instead of my usual choice of ESU.....  Allegedly simpler to connect the stay-alive, not sure I trust myself to try soldering 3 little wires onto a V4...

I agree, saying that we have an ESU on the Layout at shows and we never clean it on the Peco track, amazingly it has no stay alive in it. I think alot depend on how uneven your track is.

 

Charlie

Edited September 18, 2018 by charliepetty

[pauliebanger]

Cheers for that Paul - one issue with the Zimo one, the engine revs on an 08 don't rise like that before it moves off, and that spoils that particular sound project for me.

 

Yes agreed. My fault for linking to an old video which is not representative of the range of possibilities with these projects. That's the difficulty with short videos, especially if their prime purpose is to advertise magazine contents rather than give a full review of what's on offer with the sound project.

 

There are a number of different departure styles built in to these ZIMO Class 08 projects and will change as heavy train or light engine mode are selected or indeed with the way in which you open the throttle. Open throttle gently - full CV3 inertia applies, open throttle fully in one go, loco accelerates up to 3 times more quickly than when opened gently.  (As well as automatically changing the momentum to suit the differing driving characteristics).

 

In this video I posted in January 2017, two different departures are shown. The first part of the video is using the Heavy mode (default setting), as if wagons are attached (difficult to fit on a small rolling road, so you'll need to visualise it). On initial movement, there is no change in engine revs as the 08 can move in low notches without increase in engine power, but the traction motors begin to whine and change pitch with road speed. Then as the loco is notched up, the engine and exhaust grunt begins.

 

There is next a radio assisted propelling shunt. All the sounds and voices heard are from the decoder as the remote shunter with a radio guides the train in reverse. ( I know this was not prototypical in early livery BR days, but it is quite common now. The voices were recorded during an actual mega shunt at Eastleigh yard so are completely authentic for contempory operations).

 

When the shunt is over, the wagons are uncoupled and the loco pulls away. It is now in light engine mode (F5) since there is no train on the hook. CVs 3 and 4 are automatically reduced so the loco moves more swiftly, but the engine does not rev up since with no weighty train the loco can move more quickly at low notches. Not sure if other decoders are able to toggle (F5) between several different inertia/momentum settings without using CV reprogramming. It's a ZIMO speciality.

 

Of course, it has working brake feature.

 

 

 

Best regards,

 

Paul

[badgerV8]

Well, I've bitten the bullet and after some careful measuring I've opted for the YouChoos MX648, supercap SC68 and two 8-ohm bare sugarcube flat speakers that will fit onto an ESU double speaker backing panel. The supercap and speakers will go in cab and behind radiator (either could fit in either location, as yet undecided what one will go where) and the decoder.... well, it'll fit somewhere, lol.

Edited September 27, 2018 by badgerV8

[Albie the plumber]

You don't need to put anything in the cab with that setup if you hard wire it. Put the speakers behind the grill, the decoder on top of the motor and the sc68 where the 8 pin socket is. Plenty of room!

 

Just a thought, you do know the capacitor wires aren't usually connected to a zimo MX648 don't you? It's something you mentioned earlier as a reason for going for Zimo, but on the 648 theres solder pads at the front of the decoder, you have to solder onto those so you will need a fine soldering iron. You will need to use a diode and a resistor too when wiring the SC68,

 

Richard

 

This is true !

I asked Paul Chetter to supply me with the decoder , two extra wires from said decoder for the stay alive and its diode .

I plonked this above the worm drive after first removing the small weight that enshrouds it ,

The decoder itself is stuck onto the underside of the loco between the front wheels .

The wires then go forwards and up through a hole drilled at an angle emerging just in front of the Motor cradle which are then hard wired to the various points

The reason for having the decoder underneath is because I used an Express Models lighting kit fixed to the underside of the roof leaving no room for the chip.

 

.Would hate to spoil that lovely cab interior by placing a decoder in there 

 

Works just fine  with no fouling point blades or uncoupling ramps .

Edited September 29, 2018 by Albie the plumber

[badgerV8]

Richard, sorry, my mistake - it's a 645 for exactly that reason, typo on my behalf! 

I don't think I'm going to get a chance to do a trial-fit today as I'm busy getting things sorted for a very early start tomorrow morning for work, . I'll certainly look into installation as you suggest though, cheers.

[pauliebanger]

T

 

This is true !

I asked Paul Chetter to supply me with the decoder , two extra wires from said decoder for the stay alive and its diode .

I plonked this above the worm drive after first removing the small weight that enshrouds it ,

The decoder itself is stuck onto the underside of the loco between the front wheels .

The wires then go forwards and up through a hole drilled at an angle emerging just in front of the Motor cradle which are then hard wired to the various points .

 

Works just fine  with no fouling point blades or uncoupling ramps .

 

Time for a reblow now, Albie.

 

My shunter sound projects now have wagon buffering sounds which are triggered by the way you drive. No rattling sounds at standing (obviously), none if you are in 'light engine' mode (since there should be no wagon's to make any sound), none if you drive smoothly but plenty if you accelerate and brake roughly. This feature can be switched off with an F key.

 

New speed related flange sounds, too. Stops when the model is stationary, different sound at different speeds. This feature can be switched off with an F key.

 

Shunting's never been so immersive.

 

Here's an example (it's a steamer, but the Class 08 works just the same). You can be sure the latest ZIMO features are included in my sound projects since I create and develop most of them. LOL.

 

Best regards,

 

Paul

 

http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/132448-minerva-announce-manning-wardle-k-class-0-6-0st/?p=3312067

Edited September 29, 2018 by pauliebanger

[Albie the plumber]

 

 

 

Time for a reblow now, Albie.

 

My shunter sound projects now have wagon buffering sounds which are triggered by the way you drive. No rattling sounds at standing (obviously), none if you are in 'light engine' mode (since there should be no wagon's to make any sound), none if you drive smoothly but plenty if you accelerate and brake roughly. This feature can be switched off with an F key.

 

New speed related flange sounds, too. Stops when the model is stationary, different sound at different speeds. This feature can be switched off with an F key.

 

Shunting's never been so immersive.

 

Here's an example (it's a steamer, but the Class 08 works just the same). You can be sure the latest ZIMO features are included in my sound projects since I create and develop most of them. LOL.

 

Best regards,

 

Paul

 

http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/132448-minerva-announce-manning-wardle-k-class-0-6-0st/?p=3312067

 Hi Paul

 

Yes, saw the video clip ………...very impressive !

Another good  excuse to buy another 08  sound project , not that I need an excuse !.

[badgerV8]

Installation is going reasonably well, but I've opted to put the supercap in the cab just for the time being, purely to avoid hardwiring the decoder at present. It fits in without any modifications and there's a big enough gap for the wires so no damage done. I may look into moving it in the future at some point though.

One question - how does the radiator grille detach from the Hornby 08? I was led to believe it can be "pinged" off with a small blade, but mine does NOT want to give up its grip on the body and I don't want to damage anything.....  I need to make holes behind it to let the sound out.

[badgerV8]

Ah, thanks for that info Richard. In that case, I won't go cutting holes in it or risking breaking the grille!  It's just a little quiet and I've found that most decoders seem to be sent out with the volume pre-programmed to max level, although I've only tested this on the default address, I've not read any CV's yet or checked to see if I can raise the volume a touch.

I did have to dremmel some lumps off the inside of the body to allow it to sit back down correctly over the MX645, it's still touching despite trying it different ways round (one way up then the other, main harness at either end), but the body is down (just!) so it will do for the time being. There are no wires trapped anywhere to raise it up either, I made sure of that. 

[legomanbiffo]

T

 

My shunter sound projects now have wagon buffering sounds which are triggered by the way you drive. No rattling sounds at standing (obviously), none if you are in 'light engine' mode (since there should be no wagon's to make any sound), none if you drive smoothly but plenty if you accelerate and brake roughly. This feature can be switched off with an F key.

 

http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/132448-minerva-announce-manning-wardle-k-class-0-6-0st/?p=3312067

I do like the sound of that Paul, I must have a look at the video when I get a minute. Modern decoders just get better and better and it’s very rewarding as a programmer to visualise and then realise features such as these.

 

Bif

[pauliebanger]

I do like the sound of that Paul, I must have a look at the video when I get a minute. Modern decoders just get better and better and it’s very rewarding as a programmer to visualise and then realise features such as these.

 

Bif

 

Bif,

 

Yes, agreed. The main source of satisfaction for me (we've discussed this many times before) is just that. 'To visualise and to realise' - I could not have put it better myself.

 

But it's the decoder software (firmware) advances which really make the difference in what we may achieve, as we both know. Development of these cutting edge new features is the main reason behind the price of ESU and ZIMO sound decoders.

 

Those who claim that decoders 'only cost pennies to make' (so they should sell cheaply) do not take into account the huge 'backroom' costs in responding to users' growing expectations.

 

The required logic exists in LokProgrammer to create a similar feature for Loksound decoders, so no doubt before long all sound layouts will be alive with rattling wagons. LOL.

 

Best regards, buddy.

 

Paul

[MarkAllen]

Afternoon

I’ve just placed an order for a Zimo mx648 decoder from digitrains with the active drive sl 08 sounds and I’m just wondering which speaker I should fit to my Bachmann 08. I’ve done the usual searches but I’m still non the wiser. Would an iPhone speaker fit without encroaching into the cab or should I go for a sugar cube? Which speaker would sound best please guys?

Thanks

Mark

[MarkAllen]

Thanks for that Richard

 

Mark

[Izzy]

Afternoon

I’ve just placed an order for a Zimo mx648 decoder from digitrains with the active drive sl 08 sounds and I’m just wondering which speaker I should fit to my Bachmann 08. I’ve done the usual searches but I’m still non the wiser. Would an iPhone speaker fit without encroaching into the cab or should I go for a sugar cube? Which speaker would sound best please guys?

Thanks

Mark

I have fitted a Zimo 3D dumbo 26x20x8 behind the radiator in my Bachmann 08. The cab has a 2200uf /16v capacitor fitted upright between the crew (plus diode, resistor etc) for stay-alive.

 

Izzy

[MarkAllen]

Thanks again guys, I’ve gone for a Zimo LS10X15S sugar cube, so will see how it fits and what else I can squeeze in. Would like lights eventually too but that’s for another pay cheque.

Mark