Sound Decoder in Hi-cube

Here is different approach to what David L. has already created. His is thethered to an SD75i. Using the same component as David L. has used, with the exception of adding power pick-up to the trucks of the boxcar itself. This is a complete stand alone unit that can be used with an loco. Assign the boxcar its own unique address and consist it with another loco. Still needs a few more tweeks but its coming along.

Ed,

It would be nice to see "under the hood" on this.

Which decoder was used?
What speaker did you decide on and why?

And excuse my ignorance but, David L.??? I searched the DCC area of this forum and didn't see anything on a sound/boxcar by David L (or anyone else for that matter). Did I search for the wrong thing?

Joe

Ed, This is very nice. I agree with Joe, please show us 'under the hood'.

Ed, dont give away any trade secret. Maybe we can get a order from Loren, and get some of his money. I am tired of sending him our money. Its about time we get some of his.

As requested, here are a couple under the hood shots. The decoder used was a Loksoud Micro decoder. The speaker comes with the decoder. The sound enclosure is made from strip styrene. This is the key to good sound, building an enclosure. Although this is not the finished version, you get the idea. I have a few more components to add to make it better





John -- There is no way to get money out of Loren. He has a oneway checking account.

First off, you think I have money? Where in the world did you ever get that mistaken idea? Wow, wish it was true. Every time I make some, someone comes along and either sweet talks me out of it or threatens me until I get scared and hand it over......

Ok, these pictures are very much appreciated, Thank you. I don't see any wires from the other truck. Am I just over looking the obvious? Secondly, is the high cube box car the best choice to enclose the speaker? And how does the sound get 'out' of the boxcar? Is this one speaker just as good as the several that David mentions?

Inquiring minds seeking knowledge.

Loren,

Your not missing anything here. The picture showing the decoder and speaker only has one powered truck. I revised it and made both trucks power pickups. A work in progress on that part.

Any car could be used, its just a matter of what speaker works in what car. If you notice the mid section of the boxcar, I've shaved the plastic to allow the sound to escape.

With Dave's experiment, more speakers more sound and the ability to use in a variety of cars. I'm happy with this set-up currently. You can hear the sound clear in the other room. May be different in a show enviroment though. My next show is in Dec., after that, I may be adding more speakers.

Hope this helps and don't be afraid to ask questions. This is a learning process for me also!

Thank you Ed. Good explanation and I get it now.

Train shows always drown out the sound, but at home your speaker set up should provide all you need. Thanks for sharing.

In the case that some people would search for some Z-scale Wheel wipers .
had not tried them yet.

Ben

First; Ed, thanks for the pics/info; Can you remember which model number the Loksound decoder was? I’ve noticed the Loksound decoders that I’ve come across have been rather expensive compared to others I’ve seen. What made you choose this decoder over another (Size, Sound Quality, Build Quality, Options, Reputation, Price)?

Seconds; Will someone please enlighten me as to who “David L” is, AND where this piece he wrote on sound is located? I'm missing out on something by being in the dark on how this all came about here.

Joe

Joe,
David L is David Lancaster from the ZoCal group in California. David has done some pretty nice work on his AZL Challenger loco and other units. Not sure where his initial info is at so someone else more enlightened will have to jump in and answer the 'where' question.

Question for Ben......I looked at the link you posted and am wondering which of the many options you think would best work for axle pick up on rolling stock?

Interesting thread guys.

Loren, I've ordered one of each (unformed ones) for trials when I have time.
This includes the passenger cars in there, I suspect that the "m" shape have more friction than the simple contact on the wheel shafts. either way I got both for freight and both for passengers.
plus with some warm white Led's ribbons on Ebay to light some of my passengers cars. I still did not received them, ordered them Nov 4.

Joe.
David L. had a thread on Trainboard regarding his original sound setup, but all of his pics links are dead. Link

Ben

Ed, I’ve another question for you. I’m fresh to DCC… in fact I’m doing my first DCC layout right now. You used the LokSound Select Micro by ESU (Electronic Solutions Ulm) which is a mobile sound decoder. You have another mobile (no sound) decoder in the loco itself. How does the sound decoder know when the loco decoder is signaling the loco to start-up/speed-up/brake, etc? How do these two sync up together if they are not physically connected? Is it because you gave the Loksound its own unique address and put it in a consist with the loco.

I’m going to try the same thing except with a less expensive Digitrax SDN144PS mobile sound decoder. It’s close to the LokSound Select Micro in size.

For those that are curious…

LokSound Select Micro by ESU (Electronic Solutions Ulm) eBay $84.95 + 4.98 s/h
Size: 25mm x 10.6mm x 3.8mm (0.984252" x 0.417323 x 0.149606)

Digitraxx SDN144PS (Includes 13 mm round 8 Ohm Speaker & 330uF Capacitor) eBay $40.96 + 0 s/h
Size: 31.0mm x 10.27mm x 4.16mm (1.22047" x 0.404331"' x 0.16378")

Joe

Nice work Ed!!
When David first stated playing around with this sound car idea I told him I would love to remove a motor and try to work a sound system under one of my AZL 70's but after I got to her it in person not sure if that would work the high cube car sounds Great!!

Joe, Ed ask around, and they told him that the Loksound produces better sound.

Thanks John. Maybe I'll have to do a comparison sometime. But tell me, can ANYONE answer the question I asked above?

Zcratchman_Joe wrote: Ed, I’ve another question for you. I’m fresh to DCC… in fact I’m doing my first DCC layout right now. You used the LokSound Select Micro by ESU (Electronic Solutions Ulm) which is a mobile sound decoder. You have another mobile (no sound) decoder in the loco itself. How does the sound decoder know when the loco decoder is signaling the loco to start-up/speed-up/brake, etc? How do these two sync up together if they are not physically connected? Is it because you gave the Loksound its own unique address and put it in a consist with the loco.

Like I said, I'm new to DCC!

Thanks,
Joe

Joe,

You have to assign the boxcar an address, then MU it to the engine. After doing so, it sends throttle command to both of the units.

Let me see if I understand this correctly.........The command is sent to the boxcar first, which is coupled to the loco and if that is the case, then it is the boxcar getting the command and relaying it to the loco If that is so, then it sounds a bit like back seat driving?

If that is the case, then the set up should work pretty good, since we guys are used to back seat driving anyway......right? :o)

Loren,

Somewhat correct!

I'm no expert, but this is somewhat of an easy way for me to explain. The command station sends out various signals to what address you choose. The decoder in turn processes the signal to perform the action. When MU'ing units together, the command station knows to send the same signal to the specified addresses at the same time. Example, lets say you have units z,y&z MU'd, when accellerating, the command station send the exact same signal to each address.

Hope this helps and didn't confuse further.

Thanks Ed, that's what I figured. I had to Google to see exactly what MU was in DCC. Turns out I was right, and it stands for Multi-Unit. Thanks again for all your help.

Joe