ESU Announces V5 73199 Kato "K1" style, and new Nano Sound Decoders

[Mark5]

Very interested in these, looking forward to more info! 

[reinhardtjh]

I'm interested in the Nano as well, although I'm a bit confused as to what they mean by it's "designed to connect to new version of the LokSound 5 Direct the has an integrated Power Pack". It's designed to connect to another sound decoder? Huh?  Is this the no-motor one they mentioned in the video? May have to go back to watch again.

The "direct" is like a "Decoder Buddy" for the HO world (or the new WVD board for certain Kato locos).  There was a similar board in the V4 world, where a Micro plugged into the board which fit into HO locos.  Sounds like they figured out how to add the Power Pack  to the Direct board once they reduced the decoder from Micro to Nano

If you look very closely at the photo I posted you can see the actual decoder mounted on another board underneath.  The decoder is physically pretty small.  I'd estimate maybe around 7 - 8mm or so wide.  The carrier or "Decoder Buddy" is huge for N-Scale. It'd the standard size if you look at the LokSound 5 Direct (http://www.esu.eu/en/products/loksound/loksound-5-dcc-direct/).  In that picture you can also see the decoder mounted on a larger carrier which is 17mm x 69mm.  The new Nano will mount on a similar carrier of about the same size.  In N-Scale we could take the decoder off and hopefully ESU will provide a connector and wires like they do with the current Next18  But it is smaller and thinner. 

[jdcolombo]

The Nano is going to be a big deal.  Not only will we get relief from the 10.6mm width (which makes using a wired Micro a bit of a pain), but also relief from the 4mm thickness of the current 5 DCC Micro and smaller dimensions overall.  For me, this will be the preferred route for after-market diesel installs (rather than the Kato board) in non-Kato engines, and the nano might well fit in very small switchers and tiny tenders for smaller steam with room to spare for a larger speaker and a commercial keep alive.

I just installed a 5 DCC Micro in a Bachmann "small" tender (not the slopeback, but one size smaller than the "medium" tender that comes on a consolidation and the Ten Wheeler).  There was plenty of room for the decoder and an 11x15mm speaker in a proper enclosure, but no way to fit a commercial keep alive like a TCS KA-1.  The problem was the width of the Micro; if it were 2mm less wide, I'd have had room to put a TCS KA-1 along side it on the tender floor.  The Nano might be the key. Really excited about this one.

John C.

[peteski]

The rather low-res photo of the new Nano confuses me as it looks like a rather large circuit board (for H0 models?).

[reinhardtjh]

The rather low-res photo of the new Nano confuses me as it looks like a rather large circuit board (for H0 models?).

Yes.  It's a two part thing.  The actual decoder is a detachable board. If you look closely you can see the outline.  It also helps if you look at the picture of the LokSound 5 Direct at the link I posted above.  It's the same idea but the decoder is a little smaller and the connection isn't the Next18 plug/socket that we dislike because it's so thick. It's supposed to be a thinner plug/socket set and smaller in width as well.  The actual decoder is also pictured to the left in the screen shot.

The photos I posted were screen shots I took of the Youtube video as Matt was talking.  They are not photos provided by ESU.

[peteski]

Thanks John. Then the tiny picture of a decoder to the left of the larger photo is the new Nano?  I sort of see it where it might be plugged into the larger board in the large photo.  So, it still has a connector on it (no direct wire option)?  That sucks!  It will then still need a wire adapter which will add thickness. 
I guess we'll have to wait and see just how thick the entire assembly is. Not holding my breath (especially if the adapter ends up using that uwieldly flexible circuit board instead of individual wires).

I took your advice and looked at it on the ESU site.  That makes things clearer.  There seem to be solder pads (and a connector)on the Nano!  Hurray!

[reinhardtjh]

Thanks John. Then the tiny picture of a decoder to the left of the larger photo is the new Nano?

Yes.  At least that's what I gather.  As you look at the bigger board on the right you can see the smaller board on the left is attached on top.

I sort of see it where it might be plugged into the larger board in the large photo.  So, it still has a connector on it (no direct wire option)?  That sucks!  It will then still need a wire adapter which will add thickness. 
I guess we'll have to wait and see just how thick the entire assembly is. Not holding my breath (especially if the adapter ends up using that uwieldly flexible circuit board instead of individual wires).

I know.  Matt didn't say what kind of connector it was, only that it wasn't a Next18 and it was smaller (width) and thinner (thickness).  So hopefully it's better than what's on the current Micro Decoder.  It won't be the same and is supposed to be smaller.

I took your advice and looked at it on the ESU site.  That makes things clearer.  There seem to be solder pads (and a connector)on the Nano!  Hurray!

Note that the board on the picture on the ESU site is NOT the new Nano and carrier, that's the currently available LokSound 5 Direct.  But Matt said the new Nano carrier would be about the same size as that.  But with the configuration seen in the screenshot photo I posted.

[Jbub]

Zooming in on that image, it does appear to not have any solder points. Although it is a low res image so it might be hard to see.

[tehachapifan]

OK, I think I understand the Nano and "carrier" arrangement now, though I'm still not entirely clear if it can be (easily) utilized without a carrier.

Regarding this new LS5 Nano....is there any solid info that it is going to be narrower (width-wise) and/or thinner (height-wise) than the currently-available V5 Micro?

[reinhardtjh]

OK, I think I understand the Nano and "carrier" arrangement now, though I'm still not entirely clear if it can be (easily) utilized without a carrier.

What Matt implied was that there is a connector on the underside like the current Micro decoder (there has to be for it to mate with the larger carrier board).  If so, then it's possible ESU could provide the mating connector and attached wires also like they do for the Next18 on the Micro decoder.  Nothing was said specifically, but again Matt implied something like that was in the works.

Regarding this new LS5 Nano....is there any solid info that it is going to be narrower (width-wise) and/or thinner (height-wise) than the currently-available V5 Micro?

No.  No specific information was stated, but if you look at the picture, the actual decoder looks to be about 1/2 the width of the carrier board.  Matt said the total size was the same as the current LokSound 5 Direct which has a dimension of 17mm x 69mm.  This implies that the width of the decoder is in the 7.5-8.5mm range.  This is narrow enough to fit in just about any N-Scale hood unit.  Length is hard to guess but it looks about the same as current which is around 25mm. 

[RBrodzinsky]

If one measures the blue decoder vs the green Direct board, and assumes the Direct is the same 17mmx69mm size, then it appears the Nano is 9mmx20mm.  But all based on fuzzy picture.  No info, yet, on depth, other than comments in video. Or on how decoder will be wired (please, oh please, have a ground wire pre-installed if the solder pads are like on the LokPilot 5 Micro DCC )

[tehachapifan]

Thanks, guys! Anything up to 9mm in width would be awesome! Let's hope that is indeed the case.

[Ed Kapuscinski]

I'm a bit confused.

What does this announcement mean?

Is there now a "drop in solution" for stuff like?
Atlas GP38/40 series
Atlas SD50/60s

Or something else?

[reinhardtjh]

I'm a bit confused.

What does this announcement mean?

Is there now a "drop in solution" for stuff like?
Atlas GP38/40 series
Atlas SD50/60s

Or something else?

Ed,

  It mostly means that ESU has finally exhausted their inventory of the Select 73100 and 73199 decoders.  These decoders were based on the older V4 Select technology and were limited by being "Select" types and therefor limited to sound files created by ESU.  These new versions will be the same as the current LokSound 5 technology and will be able to accept both ESU and user created sound files. 

  The 73199 is the OEM decoder that Atlas and IM have been using in their sound ready and sound installed locomotive models.  So there is now a LokSound 5 version which has been shipped to the MFG for OEM use and a batch has been shipped to ESU LLC in the US for the retail market.  It is a drop in replacement for the IM SD40-2 sound capable models and for the Atlas Silver and Gold ESU sound re-designed models.

  The 73100 which was an earlier design that happened to work well in many Atlas and Kato locomotive models has also run out, but there will be no direct replacement.  Instead there will be a new unit which is designed to fit most Kato hood models like the SD70's, GEVO's, SD40-2's, etc.  According to Kelley Duford (nightmare0331) they should also work in many Atlas hood models as well.  It probably won't be a "drop in" but hopefully it will be as with the 73100 was and only slight modifications will be required.

  Further on is the Nano which is basically a smaller version of the LokSound 5 Micro DCC decoder.  While designed to fit on a carrier board which is supposed to be the same size as the current LokSound 5 Direct board, Matt at ESU implied that they will make it available somehow for N-Scale use.  Hopefully this means availability without the carrier board, but with some sort of mating connector and wires for a wired installation.  This remains to be seen but since the decoder's apparent width is 9mm or under, it would be great for wired installations in N-Scale hood units or smaller locomotives such as switchers and even small tender installations for steam locomotive use.

I hope this helps.

[conrad]

Ed,

  The 73100 which was an earlier design that happened to work well in many Atlas and Kato locomotive models has also run out, but there will be no direct replacement.  Instead there will be a new unit which is designed to fit most Kato hood models like the SD70's, GEVO's, SD40-2's, etc.  According to Kelley Duford (nightmare0331) they should also work in many Atlas hood models as well.  It probably won't be a "drop in" but hopefully it will be as with the 73100 was and only slight modifications will be required.

I hope this helps.

Thank you John.  I too am confused.  I just missed out on the getting the last of the 73100's.  The loss of them has stopped my sound decoder installs dead in its tracks.  I hope the new design is as versitile.

Conrad