irishthump

Sorry I forgot to answer the second question! Most decoders wont need you to adjust the start voltage but the idea is to have the loco moving smoothly at it's slowest possible speed. This will vary from loco to loco as some have better motors and mechanisms that others, the MM stuff is top notch so you don't really have to do anything with them. When you're programming with the Prodigy it cycles through the most commonly used CV's like start voltage, top voltage, acceleration, etc. just for convenience but you don't have to enter a value for them.

The volume is controlled by the loco's decoder so you can adjust each one individually. This is done by programming the relevant CV for the decoder, can't think offhand which CV it is on Modelsshopbelfast decoders. You should have a sheet with the decoder that will tell you which CV to adjust. Then you need to refer to your DCC controller manual for how to reprogramme decoder CV's. Don't worry, it's very simple with Prodigy controllers!

As for myself, the Missus got me a voucher for Marks Models which will be spent at the first available opportunity!

You won't be disappointed with it! I looked at your Youtube vid, it sounds great.

Very nice! You'll like the Prodigy, so simple to use. What 201 chip did you get?

Compliments of the season to all!

You need to remove the middle section of the body. There are 4 screws on the bottom, 2 at each end underneath the bogies. You'll see the screw holes when you turn the bogies to the side. Just unscrew them and the body will slide upwards. You'll see the blanking plate for the DCC socket around the centre of the circuit board. Carefully remove it and fit your chip in it's place. Give it a quick test before refitting the body.

Well I gave the loco a go on a length of DC track using a normal Bachmann control. The sound started up after turning the power up about half way but I couldn't get the loco to move even at full power. Maybe the controller didn't provide enough juice? I'll double check later to see if DC running is activated.

Yeah the Baby GMs use an 8 cylinder while the F7s had a 12 cylinder engine. But I don't think there is much difference sound wise. Digitrains in the UK sell a Tsunami with the 567 sound on it but since it's US outline the other sounds won't be prototypical. But you can choose from 16 different horn sounds so you may well find one that is close to an Irish sound. ESU have downloadable sound files on their website, they have several generic US files including a couple of 567 prime movers as well as the 071 and 201. You can listen to samples on the website and they sound pretty close to a Baby GM. These can be loaded onto any Loksound decoder if you have a Lokprogrammer which can be got for around €150. I was also onto Olivia's Trains in the UK and they can load any of those sound files to a decoder for you. Furthermore, they can mix and match sounds from other files. I was asking them could they take the 071 or 201 sound file and replace the prime mover with the 567 and they said it was no problem. But as I said, if you buy a Lokprogrammer you can do all this yourself!

Those ones are set up for DC running out of the box. When I get a chance I'll try them on DC and let you know how they are.

Many happy returns, sir!

Wow, £70 for a sound fitted class 40!

These were a present from the kids for my birthday last month, just got around to doing a video of them. F7 A+B units in Norfolk and Southern livery. They are from the Bachmann Soundvalue range and I know that Baccy stuff doesn't have a great rep with modellers but I find these really good. The quality of the sound is impressive even though it has limited functions and the motor control is very smooth once you are willing to play around with the CVs of the factory installed Tsunami decoder. Have a look (and listen) and see what you think....

There are only 2. Murphy's one and ModelShop Belfast. I would say contact Gareth directly if you want one of his decoders. He can be easily reached through the Facebook page for the Model Shop. He can at least tell you if he can supply one this side of Christmas.

Wow! Not a steam fan myself but that is an impressive beast! And the sound is phenomenal....

Mixing Metalcote gunmetal with a little ordinary talcum powder gives a lovely caked-on grease effect, looks great on axel boxes and buffers too.

I think it looks nice and dirty!

I was just curious as to which decoder he was using. The headlights are directional, you shouldn't be able to turn on both ends at once!

Then you must be using the Murphy Models decoder.

The headlights should only be on in the direction of travel. I have a 201 with a Hornby Sapphire decoder and the lights behave the same way. You need a decoder with 6 functions to be able to control all the lights independently.

But you shouldn't have headlights on at both ends of the loco. What decoder do you have in the loco?

This is down to the decoder being used. Using a four function decoder results in the headlights staying on one end of the loco.

Man, that's just wrong... Best of luck Richie!

Always admired this layout but those signals raise it to a new level!

Well my DCC system can control points but I opted for the analogue panel. I don't fancy trying to switch points while driving a loco... As for the Select, it's perfectly adequate if you just want to drive trains. But I would recommend sticking to Hornby decoders when using it, it can be finicky with other brands. I had one myself for about a year, but upgraded when I got into DCC sound.