Smooth DC Output

Chris,
The output of a basic controller is probably unsmoothed. All you need to do is to get a 1000 to 4700 microfarad condenser (capacitor) - an electrolytic rated at 25 volt will do. Connect this across the controller output (observe the correct polarity +ve to +ve, -ve to -ve) and this will considerably smooth the output for the flickering fire effect.
Using the unsmoothed output probably will not harm the flicker effect unit, but may stop it from working properly. In the long-term a small stabilised power supply working off the 16 Volt AC auxilary supply of a controller may be better. Look out for books such as 'Model Railway Electronics' by Roger Amos or 'Wiring the Layout' by Jeff Geary; both of these give circuits for small power supplies.
Regards,
John Webb

Cheers for the reply John - I shall have to take a trip to my local Maplins and see what I can find.

Am I right in thinking that the larger the number the smoother the output will be?

Yes, the higher the value (number) the smoother. But as your flicker effect probably does not take much power, you do not need to have an enormous capacitor.

I'm fairly certain Maplin do small smoothed power supplies or kits to make them. The latter are good practice if you are relatively new to electronics, so it might be worth having a look round while you're at your local Maplins.

Regards,
John Webb

Cheers for that John - yes I am new to electronics so maybe a kit will be a worthwhile exercise.

I'll pop along next weekend and see what I can find.

If you haven't got a multimeter at all, I would strongly recommend getting one. These are extremely useful for checking polarity, connections, resistors etc. For model railway work one with a current (amps) range of an amp or two is quite adequate. Multimeters are also useful round the home for checking batteries in radios and the like if you are having problems.

Regards,
John Webb

I do have a multimeter - find it very useful for finding dead sections of track.

The module I have is from Modelex (MDX 7 & 8) and from the instructions it says - Connect to 12volt D.C. Smoothed supply as shown in the diagram the lamps should now begin to flicker.

Originally I was going to connect it to the DC output on my HM2000 controller, but someone told me that this wasn't a smooth output. When I saw a fire effect on another layout, it was connected to a Graham Farish controller on the variable supply, which seemed like a good idea as the intensity of the fire can be adjusted.

Hope that clarifies, and thanks for all the help so far.

Chris