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Hi All,
The accounts department authorised the purchase of a Heljan O Gauge 43xx loco which has now arrived.
Absolutely stunning loco is my first observation.
I have a spare 8 pin (non-sound) decoder that I want to fit to it.
The instructions talk about an "ESU decoder interface which is compatible with the Loksound V4". Not sure what an 'ESU decoder interface' is that make it any different to any other decoder interface. Seems like a strange way of saying that they tested it with a Lok4.
Anyway, be that as it may, when I open up the tender (instructions say two screws but there's actually another one behind one of the rear buffers that needs taking out too) I see a motherboard which is plugged into two sockets, one at each end. The board itself is about two inches long and 1 wide. There's a bit of electronics on it, I suspect to make the firebox 'flicker'.
The board has two unused 'sockets' on it. One is what looks like a standard 8 pin decoder socket and the other is very similar, but has 12 pins (IIRC).
Seeing the 8 pin socket, I thought, 'yep, lets stick an 8 pin decoder into it' after removing the jumper that's plugged into it thinking that is in place so the firebox flicker works. So I do and stick it on the programming track. I try to reset the decoder and the loco starts buzzing, the same as when you put a DC loco on DCC track. Command station says it can't contact the decoder. Decoder comes out of another loco where I know it was working.
It seems that this 8 pin socket may not be a DCC socket. Either that or some jumper needs to be used to activate it. Or am I missing something ? There's nothing in the instructions.
Has anyone fitted an 8 pin decoder to this loco and how did you do it ?
Thanks
The accounts department authorised the purchase of a Heljan O Gauge 43xx loco which has now arrived.
Absolutely stunning loco is my first observation.
I have a spare 8 pin (non-sound) decoder that I want to fit to it.
The instructions talk about an "ESU decoder interface which is compatible with the Loksound V4". Not sure what an 'ESU decoder interface' is that make it any different to any other decoder interface. Seems like a strange way of saying that they tested it with a Lok4.
Anyway, be that as it may, when I open up the tender (instructions say two screws but there's actually another one behind one of the rear buffers that needs taking out too) I see a motherboard which is plugged into two sockets, one at each end. The board itself is about two inches long and 1 wide. There's a bit of electronics on it, I suspect to make the firebox 'flicker'.
The board has two unused 'sockets' on it. One is what looks like a standard 8 pin decoder socket and the other is very similar, but has 12 pins (IIRC).
Seeing the 8 pin socket, I thought, 'yep, lets stick an 8 pin decoder into it' after removing the jumper that's plugged into it thinking that is in place so the firebox flicker works. So I do and stick it on the programming track. I try to reset the decoder and the loco starts buzzing, the same as when you put a DC loco on DCC track. Command station says it can't contact the decoder. Decoder comes out of another loco where I know it was working.
It seems that this 8 pin socket may not be a DCC socket. Either that or some jumper needs to be used to activate it. Or am I missing something ? There's nothing in the instructions.
Has anyone fitted an 8 pin decoder to this loco and how did you do it ?
Thanks
