TCS WOW 101-KA Steam Question

[PiperguyUMD]

Hello All,

I've been working to instal a TCS WOW 101-KA steam decoder in my N scale WM Potomac project. To my knowledge I have everything wired correctly but I'm having some issues. The instal is in the most recent run of the Bachmann Northern (which runs great btw!) I have not added tender pickup yet - I was curious to see if it would be needed with a decoder that has a keep alive function.

I have sporadic control of the motor though the loco continues running and does not stall, but the sound cuts in and out. If I understand the premise of the KA, this should prevent loss of sound and power (I understand that if the loco was on a large dead spot, it should continue to run, but I wouldn't have control of it) Do I have a wiring problem or is there a problem with my decoder?

The decoder gets quite warm, almost too hot to touch in places. Is this normal or do I have a wiring issue?

I'll try to post a video later. Thanks for any suggestions!

[peteski]

I have zero experience with those decoders.  You are the first person I know who crammed one in N scale model.  All decoders (especially sound decoders) do get warm while operating, but whether yours get too hot (and what is normal for it) is hard to say.  You might ask TCS directly.  If the loco runs ok (when it picks up track power properly) then I don't think the warming of your decoder is caused by improper install. Are you using a speaker with a correct impedance?

As far as sound cutting out while it is still running the motor, I don't know how sensitive TCS decoders are to short power dropouts and whether the sound normally drops out first. . But I highly recommend maximizing power pickup (that is the best thing you can do to improve the running reliability).  The Keep-alive module (if you can cram one in there would also e highly recommended.

EDIT:  does the KA in the decoder's model number indicate that it has the keep-alive  built-in? If that is the case then it should stay running for at least a second or two after the power is interrupted (but you won't be able to control the model since it is not receiving any DCC packets from the track - it is running like a battery-powered toy).  Maybe something is not wired correctly. Again, zero experience with that decoder.

[PiperguyUMD]

I have zero experience with those decoders.  You are the first person I know who crammed one in N scale model.  All decoders (especially sound decoders) do get warm while operating, but whether yours get too hot (and what is normal for it) is hard to say.  You might ask TCS directly.  If the loco runs ok (when it picks up track power properly) then I don't think the warming of your decoder is caused by improper install. Are you using a speaker with a correct impedance?

As far as sound cutting out while it is still running the motor, I don't know how sensitive TCS decoders are to short power dropouts and whether the sound normally drops out first. . But I highly recommend maximizing power pickup (that is the best thing you can do to improve the running reliability).  The Keep-alive module (if you can cram one in there would also e highly recommended.

EDIT:  does the KA in the decoder's model number indicate that it has the keep-alive  built-in? If that is the case then it should stay running for at least a second or two after the power is interrupted (but you won't be able to control the model since it is not receiving any DCC packets from the track - it is running like a battery-powered toy).  Maybe something is not wired correctly. Again, zero experience with that decoder.

This thing has a huge tender! I've actually got room to spare! The decoder does have a KA capacitor, though it is not intigrated into a single board, instead it is a separate board that plugs into the sound decoder. I would say it isn't working based on the performance of the sound, the loco never stops running, so I'm not really sure what's going on.

[peteski]

This thing has a huge tender! I've actually got room to spare! The decoder does have a KA capacitor, though it is not intigrated into a single board, instead it is a separate board that plugs into the sound decoder. I would say it isn't working based on the performance of the sound, the loco never stops running, so I'm not really sure what's going on.

Unless someone else here has some additional ideas I would contact TCS tech support. They are pretty responsive.  Or see if you can find any FAQs about that decoder's functionality and then, if there is no solution, contact TCS.