Pete22

Thanks Ian, What are the advantages of the new App ?... I understand what you say about the points - yes I do control them via Z21, a pity the point settings won't transfer over !, that would have saved a bit of work.. I will consider changing to the new version shortly, and will let you know how I get on. Cheers, Pete..

Thanks Nick, I'm using the Android version, but not sure if it's ok to update yet, maybe I'll wait another week.. Pete..

Thanks Phil, So I guess there's no reason not to update my Z21 Android App to latest version, which I hope is now bug free......I previously heard on this forum. there were some issues with it. I didn't manage to do much with my layout tonight, as my Railroad Mallard A4 was derailing, mainly caused by rear bogey (fake) clipping sides of certain points, front bogey needs extra weight, and lastly the swivelling rear wheel on the tender needs additional weight (will be difficult ! ). Many thanks, Pete..

Many thanks all for your help. I am going out to my layout now, to try some of what you have suggested above. Firstly I suppose, would be to finalise / update my (short) list of locos in my Z21. Then replicate it in my Multimaus. (I also recently bought the Wifi Maus -not being able to resist a bargain - so I guess I will also need to add the loco list to it . Thought - maybe I should hold of replicating lists into the 2 x multimaus, until I have updated to the new Z21 App on my Android tablet !? Will be in touch soon .. Pete...

Hi, I hope someone can help.. I connected a new Multimaus (wired) handset to my Z21 tonight for the first time and had a struggle to get a loco to move. I eventually achieved some success by using Locomotive Select Mode to enter a loco address. This allowed me to run the loco in both directions & turn on/off the Loco functions, though I don't think the sounds correspond with the F number settings that I set up in my Z21. However, I rather expected that on connection to Z21, the Multimaus would replicate what is showing on my Z21 App screen - loco name , sound functions etc. Question: 1. Do specific instructions exist anywhere for using & interacting a Z21 & Multimaus together ? 2. Do I need to establish a new list of locos in the Multimaus, i.e in addition to the list already in my Z21, or can the Z21 list be sent to my Multimaus ? 3. Can I drive 1 loco from my Z21 screen , and a second loco independently from my Multimaus ? Your help & advice would be much appreciated.. Thanks, Pete..

Hi, Viken, Hopefully you will be able to take advantage of the information Alan has provided above. However, I promIsed to show you my point set up, which does work with Z21. If you set up your configuration like mine, it absolutely should work !

Hi Viken, I advise that you attach the 2 motors to the point, otherwise you will problems trying to decide which motor momentarily moved which way ! Once you have attached the motors, connect them up to your accessory decoder, give them addresses, and try it out. If you have problems, try swapping the motor wires from one port to the other port, this should give the same result as changing the addresses of the 2 motors. I will try to post a pic of my points tomorrow - showing which motor is which ! Cheers, P.

Hi Viken, here are the correct settings to operate your Peco SL99 3 way points. Motor 1 is nearest to the 3 exit tracks. Motor 2 is nearest to the single track /entry). This set up works, let us know how you get on..

Hi, yes the Z21 app has a 3 way point icon, I use it to control two Peco 3 way points, both are SL-99 insulfrogs, after much trial & error, it now works perfectly. The trick is to understand which motor is 1 or 2. I could post a photo of my app / point configuration setting if you like ? P.

Thanks Paul, I'll look into these decoders, I'm sure they will work well with fresh power available for each firing . I have 5 decoders that I would need to change, so to keep cost down I was thinking of using the MERG DCC 4 output decoders (kit 52 from memory), I like the idea of building them, but don't know how easy they will be to programme / address. I'll let you know how I get on......decisions decisions. Thanks again, Peter

Hi Paul, Bingo ! - the 3 way point icon works when I address & power both motors from seperate decoders !! - what a relief, as thought the icon/software was at fault. So, what to do now....? I am thinking maybe I should consider changing my Hornby decoders for another type to overcome this, and so that I can successfully set up routes in the near future. I assume that the slow recharge time of the Hornby decoders could cause issues with routes involving 3 or 4 points - unless the Z21 software can be made to issue it's decoder commands more slowly, but I don't know if this is possible. Can you suggest any suitable alternative accessory decoders that will work well with my Z21 & Seep points ? Many thanks once again. Pete.

Hi Paul, - thanks for valuable reply..... All my point motors are SEEP's, however I have 2 pairs of points that fire successfully using the same output port on the Hornby decoders. So, once fully charged, the Hornby R8247's do pack enough punch to move 2 motors at once. However, if they are not allowed to fully re-charge, they will not be able to fire another point (or pair of points). The recharge time is about 3 to 4 seconds. Does this "fit" with your thoughts on my issue ? You say :- "I had a look in the configuration and it is sending a pulse to both motors at once due to the overlapping switch rails. This is supported by them working ok independently." are you referring to the photo above that I posted above, as from what I can see the configuration commands are separate and I don't see anything asking for both motors to fire together !!, OR , are you able to look at the software behind the 3 way point icon ?? Presumably the Z21 would be sending a signal from one port to the first point motor, the immediately another signal to the second port / motor ?. The Hornby R8247 decoders can be programmed to allow an output firing time from 0.1 seconds to permanently on, but Hornby say (just phoned them) that the time between firing each port cannot be delayed. Would it be useful if I separate the 2 motors and change the addresses, so that each is powered from a different decoder, - thereby allocating full power state to each motor & command (just to prove things further ) ??

Nigel, All, Does anyone use the three way point icon in the app to control Peco SL99 three way points (or similar) ?? I am having big problems getting this icon to work correctly and I think I have now tried most permutations, so if anyone can tell me what settings/configurations actually do work, I would be most grateful. When using the standard configuration settings as in the photo above, the motor / port number 3 works left & right perfectly, but motor 4 does nothing (but I do hear a slight feint click from motor 3 although motor 4 should have fired - strange. To prove things, I tried controlling a different set of 3 way points which use a different decoder and address's, but I still got the same results i.e the same route (most forward motor) would not work, but the other motor would give a feint click, same as experienced in my first test. ​To prove things further, I deleted the 3 way icon and replaced it with 2 standard points to represent the 3 way point- bingo !!! both motors work as they should !. I tried re-instating the 3 way icon tonight, and played about with various settings, and did manage to get the number 4 port/motor working, but only if I disable the settings for number 3 motor first. I am beginning to think that there is a problem in the software concerning the 3 way point icon - OR there is some kind of conflict in the settings that I am using. N.B. All my layout points were addressed originally using my Hornby Elite & Railmaster. When I changed to using my Z21, I just created some point icons starting at 1 and did not need to make any changes, so the previous addresses do seem to work ... If anyone can help, or post their own 3 way point settings that would be great. Pete... Equipment - Roco Z21 Black, Hornby R8247 Accessory Decoders.

Thanks Dutch & Nigel for very quick replies... I will go out to the shed tonight to view the points (again) and to get my mind round this some more. From memory (with the Peco 3 way), the centre point blades need to be repositioned back to centre route before the point can be made to route in another direction, or the blades will try to move the other set of blades as well - not good for the points ! Thanks again, Pete..

Merry Xmas All, Can anyone please advise what the 1 and 0 numbers (and the other information shown in the photo) means in the Points Configuration settings, as per the attached photo. I hope to set up a Peco 3 way point (insulfrog). This point has 2 SEEP motors attached, and I had it set up & working well previously with my Elite + Hornby R8247 accessory decoders, so as far as I remember the 2 SEEPS were powered from 2 of the decoder output ports. #3 I think must mean = port 3 (therefore motor 3), and #4 must mean port 4 & motor 4. Why are there not 4 possibilities shown for the motors, as each could be in a left or right state ? Totally lost ....... Peter...

Oops, sorry didn't attach correctly....

Hi Dutch, I am grateful for your help, but I can't see a tab called signal box, only the tabs shown here on my main screen (after I exit from the loco control screen). I have tapped on each of these tabs, and don't see anything called signal box, nor anything that will allow me to manipulate the loco driving view or points viewing section. I have looked in the supplied instruction book, but there is no reference there either. This is what I see in the Andriod App - below :-

Here's another showing both screen sections "flipped" to display the point sections --note- I notice both show the number 1 at the bottom of each points screen section ...is that relevant to this problem ?

Here's another photo, this time showing the points section activated on the right hand side..

Hi all Z21 Folks, I said I would update you on progress with installing my Z21. Did it all this afternoon, very easy and straight-forward, I even managed to set cv's for lights, sounds etc. However, I can't see how to make the points diagram (on right of screen ) fill the WHOLE screen, but I have seen this in some videos on the web. Can anyone let me know where the button is for this .......please ...! The versions that are noted in my Z21 app under info are :- APP version = 2.6.7 Hardware version= Z21a Firmware version 1.24 Copyright 2016 Modelleisenbahn GmbH. Photo of my Android screen is below. ​

Hi, Thanks Dutch,,,,, Is it worth performing update , i.e. does it change much ? .....I will consider it an achievement if I can get it all working tomorrow ! Thanks, Pete...

Hi folks, I received a new Z21 (black) recently from Scograil, plus a Multimaus hand held for when I want to turn knobs. I hope to set all up this weekend.....! Let me know if there any pitfalls to avoid, e.g I think I read that I should not allow the Z21 to connect to my normal home router, so I plan to switch the home router off whilst I am setting the Roco router/Z21 up. But what about using it days afterwards, when the home router, my android tablet and the Z21 router are all switched on ?.....my worst nightmare would be to run into IP address problems....... Anyway, I intend just to follow the set-up instructions in the box... Wish me luck, and I will let you know how I get on !!! Pete...

Hi Thanks for quick reply. But - just thinking - If I go the PC / windows route, I guess I will miss out on all the nice graphics for setting up cv's, points , etc (not to mention the drivers cab), everything really ! , as all these are presumably contained in the Android App ?

Hi, sorry to bring this up again - but :- I am keen to buy a Z21 black, I will probably use it with PC software (RocRail) to run my layout fro m my windows computer - i.e. change points/signals on a touch screen monitor & maybe control loco's too. I would also buy 1 or 2 Roco MultiMaus hand held controllers or similar (probably wired) for normal loco running control. The Z21 web site - under FAQ's -says :- Can you connect the Z21 with a normal PC or a notebook ? Yes, that is possible. The connection is established via the LAN interface (network port) on your computer. What operating system is required on a PC, so that Z21 can be connected? To update the firmware and for the advanced settings on the Z21-Maintenance Tool (see download area), Windows is recommended. Z21-Maintenance can also be used with the support of WINE with MacOS and Linux. Alternatively, the firmware update can be carried out via the "Z21 updater" app on Android. If you want to use a PC controller for the automation of your model railway layout, you can use the following programs: TrainController (Windows) iTrain (Windows, MacOS, Linux) Rocrail (Windows, MacOS, Linux) ModellStw (Windows) I take this to mean that I could have my whole layout on large PC touchscreen monitor (showing RocRail), and use it to change points & signals. I also see information supporting this on page 13 of the User Manual (pdf). Can anyone see any issues with what I hope to do above ? Many thanks, Pete..

Hi, I think my tablet just uses standard Windows 10, so from what you say above - I guess it won't work. Thanks, Pete