K Hatton

After swapping the TXS decoder with a Loksound v4 (from a Hornby 'digital sound' Sparrow Hawk) which ran faultlessly it appears the capacitor has little to no effect on the digital side of things. Quick call to Hornby and the chip is going back to be looked at under warranty.

Next question that's come to my mind on that basis - how many devices can be linked to one dongle? This could also bring a different way of thinking to club/exhibition layouts where the 'driver' of a certain train has to move with said train instead of passing it on to another operator. Could also mean people being allocated certain jobs (driver/signaller etc)? Again, just my brain running away with things but it would certainly make for a more "prototypical" operation

I'm guessing if they are TXS decoders and you are swapping them between devices (phones/tablets etc) it will involve resetting and re-linking. To hand over to a conventional DCC controller (e.g elite/select etc) you set the decoder to run on DCC in the app, then select the loco address on the controller and go (same as its always been) For non TXS decoders I'd imagine it's the same as normal (select decoder address and off you go) as they will still be responding to said DCC system commands (not directly via Bluetooth). I'm thinking along similar lines to the Dynamis system but with Bluetooth instead of infra-red connection. I'm not involved in testing any of this so purely guesswork based on the information I've read previously but I'm sure someone else will come along and either confirm or put me right shortly 😅

Similar idea here but I'm hoping to use my phone/the app as a walkabout controller (instead of fighting to get a select and an elite to talk to each other!) On that train of thought, will the elite need a software update for the dongle or just be plug and play?

Your decoders don't need to Bluetooth for the dongle to work. The phone/tablet sends the Bluetooth signal to the dongle (plugged in to the elite) The elite takes the commands and sends them to the loco via the track as normal.

No worse than most technical help services I've used before then. So the situation now is capacitor is refitted and loco has gone back to the previous issue (cut out then ran on it's own until powered off, then won't respond when powered back up). Next time I'm with the railway I'm going to try a different decoder in place of the txs decoder with the capacitor fitted to try and pin down if this is a fault with the decoder or the loco itself.

I've done a continuity test to try and confirm this for everyone: Capacitor is connected to pin 16 (12v positive) and pin 20 (ground). So yes, it seems Bachmann technical support were correct and this is indeed fitted to protect from and 'spiking'. To top it all off the C1 has now decided to stop running again (managed a total distance of about 12ft before stopping in a tunnel 🤬)

Resolved

Nothing else is fitted to the PCB (aside from the speaker wiring tabs). To add to the clear as mud scenario both are now running again (on both Hornby and Bachmann controllers) - D11 with capacitor still fitted, C1 with it removed. 🤷‍♂️ All I did was the usual cv8 - 8 reset and renumber. I've also attached images of the writing on said capacitor (both are exactly the same).

According to Bachmann themselves no. That's what I was thinking at first but as the loco came with a blanking plug I wasn't sure. Just opened up my factory sound fitted D11 and found the exact same capacitor fitted exactly the same way. A browse of the spares pages on Bachmanns website also confirms most of the DCC ready boards have the same capacitor fitted as standard.

I've found this approach also works on pipes/gauges inside older locomotive cabs (with moulded blackheads)

Update to the above. I contacted Bachmann technical support directly and asked them what the capacitor was for. They advised it is fitted to protect the decoder/pcb from power spikes from certain controllers but shouldn't affect DCC running. I'm starting to wonder if this could also be part of the issue I've got with my D11 - I will do some testing and update with results.

Hi all, Another day, another DCC issue with a Bachmann locomotive. I've recently fitted the above with a Hornby TXS decoder (all firmware etc updated). Set to run on DCC, address changed on programming track and app, tested on DCC concepts rollers and all was working fine. Put it on the layout, it stalled twice at different spots then shot off at full speed and wouldn't respond to the controller (didn't stop until I'd powered down the entire layout!) So after some reading/looking at various installs etc I came to the conclusion the factory fit capacitor(?) may be causing the issue (all the comments I've seen about this say to just take it off) Removed capacitor, ends of wires covered with heat shrink. Now the loco won't respond on the main line (sound or movement) but decoder will still read back on programming track. So the main questions: 1. What is the capacitor for and do I need to refit it/bypass it by joining the wires etc? (nowhere in the instructions/guides I've seen seems to have a solid answer) 2. What else could have caused such erratic behaviour? Image of tender pre-decoder fitting to show how capacitor was fitted:

Loco address is 11 so no issues there

Pretty much as title says. I have a Bachmann sound fitted D11 which the instructions state has a loksound v5 decoder fitted. This reads/responds fine and has been programmed/addressed etc using my Hornby Elite and runs with no issues. However when I try to to add the same locomotive to the roster on the Dynamis I get literally no response at all. Swap it back to the elite and immediate response/flawless performance. I have tested the Dynamis with 2 other loksound v5 fitted locomotives, both work perfectly on both controllers. Any ideas/suggestions of things to check?

I've found the back end of mine can be tight at times when taking the body off/putting it back on (glad to know it isn't just me). Some gentle wiggling is usually enough to get past the tight spots.

Yes. After I stuffed the first decoder I rang Rails directly to ask the question and subsequently ordered the decoder on its own. The replacement decoder is exactly the same Loksound 5 micro as the first (except it works!) I've posted mine off to Roads&Rails as they have agreed to fit the ESU stay alive and the replacement speaker for a very reasonable price so will update on performance when I have it back. Also question: is it possible to upload video clips as well as images? If so I can provide a video when it comes back (if anyone wants to hear it?)

Good news: Rails now sell the sound decoders for this separately to the actual model! New chip fitted and tested, sound and performance still the same. Trialled with a 20x14x4 "bass enhanced" speaker (from Roads&Rails) sound is much better to my ears. I was debating fitting a 26x14x7 however without lifting the DCC board the speaker would only fit facing upwards and would be touching the bottom of the processor board (not sure if this would affect the speaker/board long-term as there seemed to be a slight magnetic attraction?)

🫣🤬 Lesson learned, leave the soldering to other people.

Powerpack fitted and soldered to chip (fair warning my soldering is not pretty!) and wires routed and secured using blacktac. Body trial fitted and all seems ok so far. Next challenge is to change cvs etc to activate the powerpack and test to make sure I haven't killed the decoder (I'm following a guide on how to do this - see link http://www.sbs4dcc.com/tutorialstipstricks/esuloksound5keepalive.html I know most people would find this child's play but I don't normally solder things this small/mess with delicate electrics so I'm taking one step at a time.

Thanks for the offer of the speakers @charliepetty - may be of use to other people. The stock speaker looks to be fully sealed but either way I've got a couple of megabass speakers on the way to test so will see what difference they make. Hopefully one of them should sound much better. @No Decorum sounds like mine and yours may have the same symptoms? It can be sat idling with sound on fine but go to pull away and it moves 2-3mm then cuts out dead? Given a poke/prod the whole procedure repeats. It's usually fine when the wheels are turning but just stalls when setting off.

Following on from the above I've found the ESU power pack will *just* fit underneath the drive shaft by placing it on its side - see picture below. Also found and ordered some speakers that will fit the gap beneath the circuit board so will have a play when they arrive and see what sounds best.

Has anyone with a sound fitted one of these attempted either of the following yet: Changing/upgrading the speaker? The standard speaker sounds really tinny to me but upon measuring the available space I appreciate there really isn't much room under the circuit board (allowing for mounting points and electrics it's around 14x14x6mm) Fitting a stay alive/power pack? Im struggling to find enough space to fit the genuine ESU small power pack (the gaps beneath the circuit board or the drive shaft from motor to gearbox not being tall enough). Any suggestions/tips would be welcome.

Thank you for the response, I may give this a try before resorting to a complete strip and respray.

Useful to know, did you just spray over the affected areas or did you manage to get the white off somehow? I've used IPA to remove some weathering from a loco recently and can't seem to clean the white marks off.