atticombe Posted May 20, 2014 Share Posted May 20, 2014 I have a Bachmann A1 Sea Eagle steam loco with manufacturers sound, on initial start up the engine will respond, after about a minute the controller (Prodigy DCC03) will not connect with the A1 leaving it running free, the only way I can stop it is by turning off the power. all my other locos behave as they should so I believe its not to be the controller or the track. Both the track and the wheels have been very carefully cleaned to eradicate those as a source of the problem. When placed on the programming track I am only able on occasions to read the cv's the majority of the time readings cannot be obtained. I am reluctant to do a cv8 reset as I don't know for certain that this will resolve the situation or indeed upset the sound programme. Can anyone please offer a solution I might try? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Super D Posted May 20, 2014 Share Posted May 20, 2014 Contact Bachmann! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
34theletterbetweenB&D Posted May 20, 2014 Share Posted May 20, 2014 Turn sound off, and run the loco. Is control lost after a minute or so's running? Do you hear any change in sounds from the loco when the DCC system loses control? You'll need to be close to the loco to hear this as it is very low volume, (and would be masked by the programmed sound) a faint ringing or whistling sound, or a chirping tone. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
atticombe Posted May 21, 2014 Author Share Posted May 21, 2014 Turn sound off, and run the loco. Is control lost after a minute or so's running? Do you hear any change in sounds from the loco when the DCC system loses control? You'll need to be close to the loco to hear this as it is very low volume, (and would be masked by the programmed sound) a faint ringing or whistling sound, or a chirping tone. Thank you for your reply, I have carried out the test that you suggested. In a 40 minute session the engine behaved perfectly without sound after which the sound was switched on, the loss of control within a minute again occurred, unfortuanately due to the sound of the chuffs no other audible sound could be heard and if the sound is very faint my hearing would not necessarily pick this up. Where do I go from here? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
34theletterbetweenB&D Posted May 21, 2014 Share Posted May 21, 2014 My guess would be that the problem is that decoder is overheating due to power draw and going unresponsive as a result. Here's something to try, turn the sound output down to half the current level. (Sound is very power hungry.) And test to see whether the loco runs for longer or even indefinitely without loss of control. Also, look at the decoder location, and see if airflow around the decoder can be improved so that it has a chance to shed heat. Ultimately though, since this is a factory installed decoder, it should keep going even at full sound output and whatever motor current draw it needs to run; that's a reasonable expectation to have of its operation. If it won't, return to retailer on 'unfit for purpose' grounds. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
atticombe Posted May 21, 2014 Author Share Posted May 21, 2014 My guess would be that the problem is that decoder is overheating due to power draw and going unresponsive as a result. Here's something to try, turn the sound output down to half the current level. (Sound is very power hungry.) And test to see whether the loco runs for longer or even indefinitely without loss of control. Also, look at the decoder location, and see if airflow around the decoder can be improved so that it has a chance to shed heat. Ultimately though, since this is a factory installed decoder, it should keep going even at full sound output and whatever motor current draw it needs to run; that's a reasonable expectation to have of its operation. If it won't, return to retailer on 'unfit for purpose' grounds. Thank you again I will try that but how does one do so, there are no instruction details with the loco (surely a Bachmann omission for a new loco), presumably it is the adjustment of a cv, having looked at the esu loksound manual is it CV63 which would be appropriate assuming that the chip is version 4 and not 3.5 ( how does one check which chip it is) One thought when you refer to overheating could the chip be affected by the layout being in the loft where the temperature has been in the order of 85? You will no doubt note I am a relative novice with DCC technicalities so bear with me Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
34theletterbetweenB&D Posted May 21, 2014 Share Posted May 21, 2014 The ambient temperature is a factor. Is this a problem which has only emerged since the weather suddenly decided to be summer, having been fine through the winter? If so that is a further pointer toward heating. However 85F is within what I would regard as within the expected temperature range in the UK, it is not that hot. I think it was CV63 for volume on the v3.0 or 3.5, whichever manual it was I looked at on the one occasion tinkering with a sound decoder equipped loco. Try CV63, you cannot do any harm by changing the value, all are resettable. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
smokebox Posted May 21, 2014 Share Posted May 21, 2014 Thank you again ( how does one check which chip it is) V4 decoders will accept a maximum value for CV63 of 192 while 64 is the maximum for a V3.5 chip Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
atticombe Posted May 21, 2014 Author Share Posted May 21, 2014 The ambient temperature is a factor. Is this a problem which has only emerged since the weather suddenly decided to be summer, having been fine through the winter? If so that is a further pointer toward heating. However 85F is within what I would regard as within the expected temperature range in the UK, it is not that hot. I think it was CV63 for volume on the v3.0 or 3.5, whichever manual it was I looked at on the one occasion tinkering with a sound decoder equipped loco. Try CV63, you cannot do any harm by changing the value, all are resettable. It is only a recent problem over the last 7 or 8 days so as you suggest it could be the temperature for today (14.00hrs) in the loft it is 91 degrees, I've brought the engine down and will try again tomorrow when the expected rain will lower the temperature, I will report my findings accordingly. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
atticombe Posted May 21, 2014 Author Share Posted May 21, 2014 V4 decoders will accept a maximum value for CV63 of 192 while 64 is the maximum for a V3.5 chip Thank you for your reply, will try and read the CV63 and determine which chip is fitted by Bachmann, have to say it is a pretty poor show of Bachmann not supplying basic information perhaps they are more interested in the commercial side rather than their customers Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
atticombe Posted May 22, 2014 Author Share Posted May 22, 2014 My guess would be that the problem is that decoder is overheating due to power draw and going unresponsive as a result. Here's something to try, turn the sound output down to half the current level. (Sound is very power hungry.) And test to see whether the loco runs for longer or even indefinitely without loss of control. Also, look at the decoder location, and see if airflow around the decoder can be improved so that it has a chance to shed heat. Ultimately though, since this is a factory installed decoder, it should keep going even at full sound output and whatever motor current draw it needs to run; that's a reasonable expectation to have of its operation. If it won't, return to retailer on 'unfit for purpose' grounds. Thanks to your reply my investigations have revealed that today with the loft temperature at 68 deg Fahrenheit I have been able to run Sea Eagle for in excess of one hour without any problems, response to instructions from the controller have been instant and positive confirming that heat was indeed the problem. many thanks for pointing me in the right direction your help has been invaluable Michael Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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