mkwolf1877 Posted March 14, 2012 Share Posted March 14, 2012 I'm looking to purchase a sound chip for the new Bachmann 350. Dc Kits are doing them and there's a couple of You Tube videos of them which look quite good. Olivia's are also doing them and wondered if anyone has tried one and which would be recommended? I've heard good and bad about Olivia's but not much about DC Kits. Many thanks in advance, Mark Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevpeo Posted March 14, 2012 Share Posted March 14, 2012 Hi Mark. The DC kits ones are by Legomanbiffo. Only good reports so far! hth.kev. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mkwolf1877 Posted March 14, 2012 Author Share Posted March 14, 2012 Hi Mark. The DC kits ones are by Legomanbiffo. Only good reports so far! hth.kev. Thanks Kev. I'm very tempted with the Legomanbiffo! Decisions decisions lol Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
legomanbiffo Posted March 14, 2012 Share Posted March 14, 2012 Mark, As far as I know I'm the only one who's done sound for the 350 so far so it's Hobson's choice I'm afraid. All the You Tube vids I can see are my sounds. I recently upgraded the 350 sound project for the v4 chip. it's substantially the same sounds as in the v3.5 version but with a few enhancements made possible by the v4 chip (variable speed flange squeal, correct timing on the compressor changeover and so on). It also features a full length on-board announcement for a train from Northampton to Euston which was too big to fit onto a v3.5 chip. I finally got my hands on the London Midland liveried one I've been waiting for and this has enabled me to get the motor control settings just right. It also gave me a chance to fit a chip and speaker in the way that Bachmann intend to see what it sounded like (up to now I've been using a Bratchell 320 as a test bed for the sounds. This has a bass speaker in the underframe facing down and uses the entire body as an enclosure and I'm very pleased with the resulting sound). To say the sound was disappointing in comparison is something of an understatement but it's not hard to see why. The speaker enclosure Bachmann have provided has almost no room as it also houses the chip. It is also open to the air which is a complete no-no for good sound. I really would welcome the opportunity to let Bachmann hear the two side by side to see the opportunity they missed at the design stage. Over the next few weeks I will experiment with different speaker fits and report back. My plan is to fit a chip and speaker at both ends but the same speaker principles will apply if you fit just one. Meantime anyone that wants to try the sound for themselves can send a chip to me for reblow or buy one with my sounds on from Charlie at DC Kits. It's probably worth waiting a couple of weeks until I've finished the tweaks though, now I've got a real one to play with. Bif Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
steven156 Posted March 15, 2012 Share Posted March 15, 2012 At work on the real railway I spend a lot of my shifts working on the class 380s which are very much decendants to the class 350s. Having seen the clip on youtube I have to say that the Legomanbiffo sounds of the Desiro when its pulling away and making all those weird and wonderful noises are absolutely spot on for a class 380! Seem so alien compared to the old school class 314's I also work with! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mkwolf1877 Posted March 15, 2012 Author Share Posted March 15, 2012 Mark, As far as I know I'm the only one who's done sound for the 350 so far so it's Hobson's choice I'm afraid. All the You Tube vids I can see are my sounds. I recently upgraded the 350 sound project for the v4 chip. it's substantially the same sounds as in the v3.5 version but with a few enhancements made possible by the v4 chip (variable speed flange squeal, correct timing on the compressor changeover and so on). It also features a full length on-board announcement for a train from Northampton to Euston which was too big to fit onto a v3.5 chip. I finally got my hands on the London Midland liveried one I've been waiting for and this has enabled me to get the motor control settings just right. It also gave me a chance to fit a chip and speaker in the way that Bachmann intend to see what it sounded like (up to now I've been using a Bratchell 320 as a test bed for the sounds. This has a bass speaker in the underframe facing down and uses the entire body as an enclosure and I'm very pleased with the resulting sound). To say the sound was disappointing in comparison is something of an understatement but it's not hard to see why. The speaker enclosure Bachmann have provided has almost no room as it also houses the chip. It is also open to the air which is a complete no-no for good sound. I really would welcome the opportunity to let Bachmann hear the two side by side to see the opportunity they missed at the design stage. Over the next few weeks I will experiment with different speaker fits and report back. My plan is to fit a chip and speaker at both ends but the same speaker principles will apply if you fit just one. Meantime anyone that wants to try the sound for themselves can send a chip to me for reblow or buy one with my sounds on from Charlie at DC Kits. It's probably worth waiting a couple of weeks until I've finished the tweaks though, now I've got a real one to play with. Bif Thanks for your reply Biff. I've pretty much decided to go for your sounds, I just wondered if anyone had heard Olivia's. They are selling it with a bigger speaker, as you say, this is probably gonna be needed. I really don't like the though of hacking my 350 to bits so I'd be interested to know how you find it to do! Could you let me know when the tweaks are done, Cheers, Mark Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mkwolf1877 Posted March 15, 2012 Author Share Posted March 15, 2012 At work on the real railway I spend a lot of my shifts working on the class 380s which are very much decendants to the class 350s. Having seen the clip on youtube I have to say that the Legomanbiffo sounds of the Desiro when its pulling away and making all those weird and wonderful noises are absolutely spot on for a class 380! Seem so alien compared to the old school class 314's I also work with! Biffs sounds are very good. I drive 350's so that distinctive sound is pretty much engraved in my head lol. In any case, they should be good, as far as I know they came from thenSiemens depot at Northampton! I really just wondered if anyone had tried the Olivia's one, Cheers, Mark Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
charliepetty Posted March 19, 2012 Share Posted March 19, 2012 Biffs sounds are very good. I drive 350's so that distinctive sound is pretty much engraved in my head lol. In any case, they should be good, as far as I know they came from thenSiemens depot at Northampton! I really just wondered if anyone had tried the Olivia's one, Cheers, Mark Hi there, Charlie at DC Kits, the 350s are currently in stock, where do you live? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mkwolf1877 Posted March 19, 2012 Author Share Posted March 19, 2012 Hi there, Charlie at DC Kits, the 350s are currently in stock, where do you live? Hi Charlie, Milton Keynes! Regards, Mark Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
legomanbiffo Posted March 19, 2012 Share Posted March 19, 2012 My 350 sounds were indeed recorded at Kings Heath. Over the last couple of years London Midland have been brilliant, allowing me to record 321's & 350's at King's Heath plus a 323 at Soho (Birmingham) and a 150, 153 & 170 on the dyno at Tyseley. I take my hat off to them, if only all the operators were as receptive. I've heard the Olivia's 350; I did it for them before we parted company. Their latest version may have been adulterated since then but I suspect the basic sounds will be unchanged. Bif Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
charliepetty Posted March 19, 2012 Share Posted March 19, 2012 My 350 sounds were indeed recorded at Kings Heath. Over the last couple of years London Midland have been brilliant, allowing me to record 321's & 350's at King's Heath plus a 323 at Soho (Birmingham) and a 150, 153 & 170 on the dyno at Tyseley. I take my hat off to them, if only all the operators were as receptive. I've heard the Olivia's 350; I did it for them before we parted company. Their latest version may have been adulterated since then but I suspect the basic sounds will be unchanged. Bif We will be at Ali Pali this weekend with a comprehensive range of 'Legomanbiffo's' projects, just waiting for the 21 Pins to arrive from ESU. Typical, there late!!! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mkwolf1877 Posted March 19, 2012 Author Share Posted March 19, 2012 My 350 sounds were indeed recorded at Kings Heath. Over the last couple of years London Midland have been brilliant, allowing me to record 321's & 350's at King's Heath plus a 323 at Soho (Birmingham) and a 150, 153 & 170 on the dyno at Tyseley. I take my hat off to them, if only all the operators were as receptive. I've heard the Olivia's 350; I did it for them before we parted company. Their latest version may have been adulterated since then but I suspect the basic sounds will be unchanged. Bif Cheers for that Bif. I think I'll be giving it a go. Do you reckon the speaker will be no good in the space provided by Bachmann? Regards Mark Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
brittannia Posted March 20, 2012 Share Posted March 20, 2012 Definitely no room in the space provided by Bachmann as the decoder takes most of the space.The body need s to come off,a bit fiddly to do bit like the lima 156 you need good finger nails.Also at first it is a little dificult to spot where the chassis finishes and the body starts.About 2mm of the body representation is on the chassis.Once the body is off you can take the seating out and modify it for the speaker.I have fitted Olivias sound and sounds great Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mkwolf1877 Posted March 20, 2012 Author Share Posted March 20, 2012 Definitely no room in the space provided by Bachmann as the decoder takes most of the space.The body need s to come off,a bit fiddly to do bit like the lima 156 you need good finger nails.Also at first it is a little dificult to spot where the chassis finishes and the body starts.About 2mm of the body representation is on the chassis.Once the body is off you can take the seating out and modify it for the speaker.I have fitted Olivias sound and sounds great Cheers for that. Don't suppose you could post any pics of where you put the speaker? What speaker did you use & did you have to drill holes in the bottom of the unit? I really don't like the thought of taking the unit to bits but it's a lot of money to fork out if you're not gonna be able to hear it if you put it in the manufacturers place! Gonna put sound in my 350/1, 350/2 should land on my doorstep tomorrow! 12 car formation lol. It'll be just like being at work ) Thanks for your help, Mark Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
brittannia Posted March 27, 2012 Share Posted March 27, 2012 Hi Mark Sorry for the delay in replying to your request,unfortunately I do not have any pics however I can explain how..I fitted a 20mmx40mm rectanhular speaker,.There is enough space to thread the speaker wires through a gap in the decoder enclosure to the base of the saloon.I ,took out some seating, soldered the speaker wires and the job was done in about 5 minutes,the sound is great as it reverberates through the body and through the small gap to decoder enclosure Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mkwolf1877 Posted May 21, 2012 Author Share Posted May 21, 2012 Mark, As far as I know I'm the only one who's done sound for the 350 so far so it's Hobson's choice I'm afraid. All the You Tube vids I can see are my sounds. I recently upgraded the 350 sound project for the v4 chip. it's substantially the same sounds as in the v3.5 version but with a few enhancements made possible by the v4 chip (variable speed flange squeal, correct timing on the compressor changeover and so on). It also features a full length on-board announcement for a train from Northampton to Euston which was too big to fit onto a v3.5 chip. I finally got my hands on the London Midland liveried one I've been waiting for and this has enabled me to get the motor control settings just right. It also gave me a chance to fit a chip and speaker in the way that Bachmann intend to see what it sounded like (up to now I've been using a Bratchell 320 as a test bed for the sounds. This has a bass speaker in the underframe facing down and uses the entire body as an enclosure and I'm very pleased with the resulting sound). To say the sound was disappointing in comparison is something of an understatement but it's not hard to see why. The speaker enclosure Bachmann have provided has almost no room as it also houses the chip. It is also open to the air which is a complete no-no for good sound. I really would welcome the opportunity to let Bachmann hear the two side by side to see the opportunity they missed at the design stage. Over the next few weeks I will experiment with different speaker fits and report back. My plan is to fit a chip and speaker at both ends but the same speaker principles will apply if you fit just one. Meantime anyone that wants to try the sound for themselves can send a chip to me for reblow or buy one with my sounds on from Charlie at DC Kits. It's probably worth waiting a couple of weeks until I've finished the tweaks though, now I've got a real one to play with. Bif Biff, Did you get the tweaks done? What do you recommend to do re speaker types & fitting? Many thanks, Mark Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
charliepetty Posted July 2, 2012 Share Posted July 2, 2012 Biff, Did you get the tweaks done? What do you recommend to do re speaker types & fitting? Many thanks, Mark The Class 350 Decoder is now ready and on sale via Charlie at DC Kits or re-Blows via Biff. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
legomanbiffo Posted July 3, 2012 Share Posted July 3, 2012 Mark, Yes, I've finished tweaking the project to suit the mechanism. The speaker fit is a bit of an issue though, and I can't see any easy way to do it. The provision Bacmann have made is completely unsuitable and sounds awful. I've ended up putting a 23mm round in the battery box of the adjacent car and whilst this sounds much better it's a lot of work for Bachmann to expect anyone to do. My ultimate plan is to fit the same at the other end but..... I'd like to try a sugar cube speaker (or two) in the underframe to see what they sound like but I suspect the horns might be a bit thin with those. Bif Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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