Atlas S2 sound effect driving me crazy

[OldEastRR]

I've been toning down the sound effects on all my locos (now that I can with a decent DCC system) but there's this one on the S2 I can't control. It starts with a blast of air, then a pump running fast, and then another blast of air and ends. Random occurrence. I have no idea what it is or what CV controls it. But it's set at factory full-blast level and drowns out all the other sound locos on my layout. What the hell is it? I've gone through the whole LokSound table trying all the sound effects. No effect.

[tehachapifan]

That's the random air compressor and it can be turned down, be made less frequent and even turned off. I turned mine down and made is less frequent. I'll need to do some research to remind myself what I did, but someone will likely beat me to it anyway.

....Ok, here's what it says in the LokSound User's Manual for Steam & Diesel Decoders, 3rd Edition, may 2012 for the LokSound Select, Select Micro & Select Direct regarding the random compressor:

5.2.7.10. Random sounds

"The LokSound Select offers some random sounds, such as air compressor. This sound will be played-back in random intervals. You can adjust the 'rate' for these sounds. In CV 61, you need to set the minimum delay between two random sounds. The unit is 0.25 seconds. The default value of 75 results in 18.75 seconds. In CV 62, you can set the maximum delay between two random sounds. The unit is 0.25 seconds. The default value of 200 results in 50 seconds. If you don’t like random sounds, simply set CV 61=0 and CV62=0 to disable this feature."

Also, the random sound volume is controlled by CV 451 with a range of 0 – 128 and a default value of 128. CV32 must first be set to 1 before changing this volume CV. Also, I believe CV31 also needs to be set to 16 prior to changing the volume CV.


 
 

[tehachapifan]

Did you get it adjusted?

[Joetrain59]

Really? Who needs this crap to deal with? And if you miss a step, back to square one! Yes DCC has given us better control, and sound, but at what frustration level??  I know I'll get flack for this post, but that stuff just doesn't sound like fun, more like a job.  Give me my old American Flyer "billboard" sound units. LOL.
 Joe D

[AKNscale]

Not if you have the proper programmer it isn't. Besides, JMRI will do a lot of that stuff too. The complicated part is trying to program things by CV manually.

[Joetrain59]

I know I'm not informed enough about this stuff. JMRI? Now what?
 Thank you,
    Joe D

[Lemosteam]

@Joetrain59 , I do not have JMRI, but I believe it is a computer interface that can look at all of the CV's for a loco at one time in a spreadsheet style and allow you to change one or all in one fell swoop.  Been wanting this for a long time, as your point is well taken, I am fairly new to DCC as well.

[AKNscale]

Well put, it simplifies it A LOT. It also tells you what everything does instead of you having to look up what the CV numbers are.

[jdcolombo]

So the simple fact is that modern sound decoders are extremely complex miniature computers.  DCC manufacturers, could, if they wanted to, develop simple interfaces for these miniature computers using touch screens and Windows or OSX-like "point and click" systems to make changes, but most have not, and doing so would raise the prices of DCC hardware.  Compare, for example, the cost of the ESU ECOS command station (which does have such a touch screen and simplified interface) to a Digitrax Chief or NCE Power Pro (which doesn't).

If you want to play in the sound sandbox, that means getting a separate piece of hardware and the accompanying software to simplify the programming or struggling with individual CV programming, which is calculus-level complex and dangerous, since it is VERY easy to screw up.  For ESU, this means either a LokProgrammer and its associated software or interfacing your computer with your command station (which usually requires some kind of interface box connected to your computer via USB and to your command station via the same kind of cable you use for throttle connections) and downloading JMRI (the Java Model Railroad Interface) which has as one of it's components a nifty program called Decoder Pro.  Unlike ESU's Lok Programmer, which is essentially limited to programming ESU's products, the advantage of JMRI's Decoder Pro is that it can program just about any decoder manufactured on Earth, and it does so with a "point and click" graphical interface.  But even Decoder Pro requires some initial learning curve, especially for programming complex sound decoders.  And it involves a computer, a box to connect your computer to your DCC system, and some level of frustration in configuring your computer to "talk" correctly to your command station.  A lot of model railroaders have adopted JMRI, not just for Decoder Pro but for all sorts of other things it can do.  But it's certainly not "plug & play."  You have to be at least somewhat of a tech geek to do it all.  Think Linux on a desktop.  Nice system once you get it working and extremely robust and flexible, but along the way you'll have to learn the basics of Unix command-line stuff to actually make it work.

I realize it is frustrating for "first-timers" to buy a sound decoder, and then realize that they are pretty much impossible to program without investing another couple of hundred dollars and and/or significant time in a dedicated programming interface.  But that's just the way it is.  Programming sound decoders from ANY manufacturer just isn't, and probably never will be, "easy."  You have to put in the effort to learn a lot of new stuff.  Whether that effort is worth it or not, only you can decide.

John C.

[woodone]

Really? Who needs this crap to deal with? And if you miss a step, back to square one! Yes DCC has given us better control, and sound, but at what frustration level??  I know I'll get flack for this post, but that stuff just doesn't sound like fun, more like a job.  Give me my old American Flyer "billboard" sound units. LOL.
 Joe D

Maybe you can go back to the wind up models- NO wiring needed there!  LOL

[peteski]

Just to add to what John explained so well, if you look at any sound decoder manual, it is usually over 100 pages. The QSI decoder manual is over 400 pages long. When printed and bound it looks like a miniature phone book (remember those?) 

Why you ask things are so complicated? Because the manufacturers put so many bells and whistles in those decoders (yes, pun intended). Good quality sound decoders are extremely complex and highly programmable.   But most users will never even use 90% of their customizable settings, so it is not all that complicated (until you start wanting to change things).    If you want simple sound decoder, they do exist (like Digitrax), but they arent' the best when it comes to sound and operational qualities).

To simplify things, as it has been said, sound decoder manufacturers sell special hardware and software which makes programming them much easier and less daunting.  JMRI is basically a generic version of this type of programming aid.

[Lemosteam]

How much does JMRI cost?

[Jbub]

Free.99! Unless you want to donate to the cause, it's a community open source effort.

[John]

jmri.org



What is JMRI?
fireman on the NYC

The JMRI project is building tools for model railroad computer control. We want it to be usable to as many people as possible, so we're building it in Java to run anywhere, and we're trying to make it independent of specific hardware systems.

JMRI is intended as a jumping-off point for hobbyists who want to control their layouts with a computer without having to create an entire system from scratch.

You can manage your locomotive rosters and easily program your decoders using DecoderPro®. You can build control panels and control your layout using PanelPro™ to set up signaling. OperationsPro™ lets you create manifests that route cars across your railroad from shipper to receiver, and provide train crews with operating instructions.

Going beyond the basics, you can use Logix to automate your layout's behavior, interface with X10 and Insteon systems to control your layout room's lights and write scripts to extend the capabilities of the system.

Donate to JMRI As an open source project, JMRI is evolving in many directions at once. You can get involved at many levels:

    Learn about JMRI (check out the online help, DecoderPro manual, FAQs and Clinics)
    Kick the tires (download JMRI, install it on Windows, Mac OS X or Linux, connect it to your layout)
    Share your experiences with others (join or browse the JMRI Users Yahoo Group)
    Help extend and develop it (look under the hood, get the source code, join or browse the JMRI-Developers mailing list)
    Or make a small donation to help defray the costs of keeping this going.

Whatever it is that you choose to do with JMRI, and however you get involved, welcome to our community!   


http://jmri.org/help/en/html/apps/DecoderPro/Tour.shtml

[Joetrain59]

JMRI does sound like a good way to go. Have to read their site to see if it plays with Mac OSX. BTW, I have an S2 with sound, that I have not run on DCC yet. But when I had DCC running, just getting into it 2 years ago, I was holding manual in one hand, trying to keep it open flat, DCC throttle in the other, and going to computer to various websites. Oh, crap, put the book down, Where was that page?, etc........   After moving into house, computer is not near layout area now.
 Thanks,
 Joe D