7mm Well, here's a funny (DCC) thing

[oldravendale]

Rob - I'm right there with you!! I love the electronics, but it doesn't like me.

Hi Steph.

Oooooohno. I'm using the Multimaus, 'cause it says you can.

B

 

[Steph Dale]

No you can't - the Multimaus is a little bit of a pain to programme with (it can't tell you what values you've programmed unless you use with a Lenz command station) so yours has been put into a driving-only mode as you've got the SPROG for programming (horses, water, etc. notwithstanding). You shouldn't even be able to access the programming menu on the Multimaus without doing a full reset on the handset. If you can access the menus it's unlikely to have any meaningful effect. Thinking about it, I'm not sure the handset with the Roco command station can access CVs as high as that anyway, the old one used to cut off at CV29.

So, let's see if you can get a tune out of the SPROG. Page 48 of the current ESU LS4 manual; I'll hum it, you play it. From the top and 1, 2, 1,2,3,4...

Steph

 

[Yorkshire Dave]

Page 48 of the current ESU LS4 manual

If in doubt about CV settings for the Escap motor then start with the ESU recommended settings for a Faulhaber motor - manual page above:

Start with CV29= 2 (digital operation only) then CV2 = 4; CV51 = 0; CV52 = 32; CV53 = 140; CV54 = 80; CV55 = 50; CV56 = 255

 

[oldravendale]

I didn't understand the question. Can anyone help me with the answer?



B

However. I truly value the advice. The Sprogg is not out of it's box yet. I can see a new project on tomorrow's horizon. I won't understand the instructions, but I'll be able to nod sagely.

 

[Yorkshire Dave]

I'll be able to nod sagely.

Make sure you're not on the parcel shelf of the car....

 

[oldravendale]

Right.

I have re-read all the words of advice and slept on them (on the parcels shelf of the car where I nodded off before realising that the recommendation was not to do that).

I see what Steph did there. He's disabled my Multimaus, and I either didn't know or had forgotten. I hope I'll be able to add some new addresses or there are now three locos all with address 3. However, I'll get to that later. In any event I feel better in one way knowing that I'm not quite a complete numpty in being unable to programme anything with the Multimaus. I then feel bad again when I realise that I spent all afternoon trying to do something which was impossible.

My task this morning is to break out the Sprog and see whether I can make head or tail of it.

I'll report back.

Brian

 

[InvernessTMD]

The sprog is a great piece of kit, and decoder pro is excellent for programming, there is even a throttle option so you can test it straight away, it ven manages to run my HJ 60 with the sound on...

 

[oldravendale]

Tried to load it yesterday and failed.

Will re-try today if time allows.

 

[oldravendale]

No doubt this thread has caused a degree of merriment in some quarters - mainly those who know what they are talking about.

However, just a quick update. I couldn't load the b****y thing on my lap top, equipped with Win7, but fortunately daughter came to stay....... I am actually in need of a new lap top, but dread Win10 and trying to load the thing on there, but that will, no doubt, be another story.

She followed instructions and everything, eventually getting the thing to load after a few diversions along the way - one of my problems had been that at an early stage the laptop had recognised the SPROG as a V3 but the casing showed it to be a V2 which is what it was bought as, so I'd given up at that point. It is that sort of thing which makes life so difficult for a bear of little brain. If it did what it said on the box........

I'll now be taking it to club on Thursday - I hope - and we'll have a play with it there. Fortunately we have a couple of really bright sparks (see what I did there?) who are well in to this electronics stuff. I'll report back later.

B

 

[JimG]

I am actually in need of a new lap top, but dread Win10 and trying to load the thing on there, but that will, no doubt, be another story.

Brian,

I run Win 10 on my main PC and my laptop, but I use Classic Shell software to present the familiar Win7 desktop.

Classic Shell - Start menu and other Windows enhancements

I've been using it since Win 10 came out and it has worked well. I even run Gadgets which Microsoft don't want us to do on Win 10. Some of the early Win 10 updates upset it and it had to be re-installed but recent updates have had no adverse effects on it. I also lose the occasional Gadget after an update but I just re-instal and all seems to work.

Jim.

 

[oldravendale]

Very useful to know that, Jim. Thank you.

Brian

 

[SimonT]

Jim,
how is Classic Shell on printers, the area where Win !0 is completley useless?
Simon

 

[JimG]

Jim,
how is Classic Shell on printers, the area where Win !0 is completley useless?

Simon,

I don't know since my big printer is tied to my PC upstairs which had Vista and now Win7 so no need for Classic Shell. But I would expect it to work fine since I am assuming that all it is doing is providing the desktop graphics interface with the OS.

On the occasions I have printed to PDF on the Win10 machines, they seem to have worked OK. I've just tried Adrian's new "Print Thread" thingy on this thread and it has worked fine. However I would hesitate to give my printer experiences in any case since my Canon iX7000's interface is one of the most obtuse I have worked with over the years (try doing a custom paper size for CAD work!!!) so it might not do justice to Classic Shell on Win 10 if I hooked it up to this, my main PC, which runs Win 10 64 bit.

Jim.

 

[oldravendale]

In the continuing saga of Brian and DCC......

I'm fitting a Zimo sound decoder to the infamous Brighton K. The loco is equipped with a Portescap motor/gearbox which runs sweetly on analogue. In the knowledge that coreless motors tend to have a dislike of DCC can someone advise the proper set up procedure for Zimo decoders and coreless motors? When I test it may be OK, of course, but I'd like to be prepared. Is there an auto set up as with the ESU decoder and discussed above?

(BTW, the A3 now runs perfectly well, but the sound is awful - the problem is that I can't remember who the supplier was, or the sound profile they provided. I'll be sending it to Howes in short order to have one of their sound profiles installed.)

Brian

 

[Nigel Cliffe]

It probably "just works" out of the box, though some small tweaks might improve it further.
There is a manual for Zimo decoders, from Zimo's website.
http://www.zimo.at/web2010/documents/MX-KleineDecoder_E.pdf
Pages 18 and 19.

In there, perhaps change CV56 from the default to a "low hundreds" number and see where that takes you (eg. 133 or 122). Though there is a setting for 40kHz in CV112, I've not used that when setting Portescap motors for people.


The acute problem of coreless motors and DCC is, now, ancient history. There was a time, 20-odd years ago, when common decoders operated at a very low frequency for motor control. And, just like crude low-frequency BEMF analogue controls, those low frequency decoders could result in heat damage to coreless motors. The vast majority of DCC decoders on sale (you'd have to try really hard to find one which isn't) now operate at reasonably high frequencies (10khz and above) out of the box, so are safe on coreless motors. That said, there is still a difference between the indifferent (but won't burn your motor out) and the really superb control offered by a few makers.

 

[oldravendale]

Thank you Nigel.

The Zimo decoder I'm using is new so I'll hope that it'll be good with the Portescap. I'll let you know how I get on.

Strangely in view of your comments the ESU decoder I fitted in the A3 was bought about 2 years ago and without the auto set up was very reminiscent of a kangaroo. All OK now, though, apart from the awful sound.

Brian