Programing the Effects Processor

[hawaiiho]

Bach Man:


I have a new 4-8-4 J Class N&W locomotive with sound.

I would like to program the effects processor, but I'm not clear on how.

CV 119 is used. Are there any default settings, as it is shipped. If so, what are they?

It seems to say to set CV 119 to 9, but then what?  How are the individual effects turned on and off?

Or is it just an all or nothing situation?

I am using a Dynamis.

Thanks in advance for any help.

[Jim Banner]

Do you know whether your Dynamis can program CV's above CV128?  I spent some time perusing the Dynamis manual but was unable to locate that information.

If your Dynamis can program CV's up to CV 214, then you do not need to use CV 119 at all.  Just use CV's in the range CV 129 to CV 214 to program the effects.

If your Dynamis cannot program CV's above 127 (and some command stations cannot) then Soundtraxx has another solution for accessing those CV's.  It offsets the CV's downward into the CV 120 to CV 127 region.  The offset is 8*N+9 where N is the number that you program into CV 119. 

You were interested in what happens when you program a 9 into CV 119.  That generates an offset of 8*9+9 = 72+9 = 81.  So CV 201 can now be addressed as CV 120.  To put it another way, in the form of a table:

CV 201 can be addressed as CV120
CV 202 can be addressed as CV121
CV 203 can be addressed as CV122
CV 204 can be addressed as CV123
CV 205 can be addressed as CV124
CV 206 can be addressed as CV125
CV 207 can be addressed as CV126
CV 208 can be addressed as CV127

Normally, if we use a command station that can program all CV's we use CV 201 to CV 208 to set the probability of certain events happening.  If the CV=0, then there is no chance this sound will happen the next time the locomotive stops.  If the CV=255, then it will always happen.  In between, the likelihood of the the sound happening depends on the value entered.

So we can program CV 201 to CV 208 directly for the probability of the following sounds occurring when we stop the locomotive:

CV 201: Event Probability: Fireman Fred Shovels Coal
CV 202: Event Probability: Fireman Fred Fills the Tender
CV 203: Event Probability: Fireman Fred Turns His Wrench
CV 204: Event Probability: Fireman Fred Uses His Grease Gun
CV 205: Event Probability: Fireman Fred Uses His Oil Can
CV 206: Event Probability: Fireman Fred Uses the Injectors
CV 207: Event Probability: Fireman Fred Uses the Firebox Blower
CV 208: Event Probability: Pop Valve Blow Off

But if we programmed a 9 into CV 119, then we use CV 120 to CV 127 to indirectly program the sounds when we stop the locomotive:

CV 120: Event Probability: Fireman Fred Shovels Coal
CV 121: Event Probability: Fireman Fred Fills the Tender
CV 122: Event Probability: Fireman Fred Turns His Wrench
CV 123: Event Probability: Fireman Fred Uses His Grease Gun
CV 124: Event Probability: Fireman Fred Uses His Oil Can
CV 125: Event Probability: Fireman Fred Uses the Injectors
CV 126: Event Probability: Fireman Fred Uses the Firebox Blower
CV 127: Event Probability: Pop Valve Blow Off

I am not sure how many of these are implemented in the Bachmann version of the Tsunami.  One of my winter projects will be to find out.  You can learn more about these and find out what each one of these 86 high order CV's (above CV 128) can do for you by downloading the Tsunami Steam Technical Reference Manual from the Soundtraxx website.  The link below will take you directly to the manual in pdf format:

http://www.soundtraxx.com/manuals/tsutechreference.pdf

Jim

[hawaiiho]

Jim,

According to the CD provided with the Locomotive by Bachmann, CV 119 is used, then the events are programed using

CV's 120 to 127.  Thanks, now I understand how the settings work.   It would sure be nice to know what defaults, if any,  are 

set.

Now, it becomes apparent why the lack of CV reading is a real deficiency for the Dynamis.

[Jim Banner]

The defaults used by Bachmann for their sounds are listed under Product Reference or you can just click on the link below:

http://www.bachmanntrains.com/home-usa/dwg/Sound_Decodesr_CV_DFLT.pdf

Jim

[hawaiiho]

I found that reference earlier; but the default settings for CVs 120 thru 127 or CVs 201 thru 208, which ever are used, are not listed.

The date on the page is 2006. I wonder if the board being used now is a re-design?

[Jim Banner]

I assume the CVs not in Bachmann's list are ones not used in the Bachmann version of the Tsunami.  They are all listed in the Technical Reference Manual previously referred to and they are all used in the full version of the steam Tsunami, which allows you to operate a number of the sounds either manually, automatically, or randomly.

Did your 4-8-4  come with factory sound or did you install after market sound?

Jim

[hawaiiho]

It is a factory installed board.

Since all these CVs are included in the CD manual provided by Bachmann, I assume(golly, I hate doing that) that they are

settings for effects  that are usable.  Bachmann just doesn't provide the default settings for them.

[Jim Banner]

If you look at page 58 of the OEM Steam Sound User's Guide (Software Release 1.00) which Soundtraxx also refers to as the "Tsunami Steam Owner's Manual for Bachmann Spectrum," you will find CV 199 to CV 208 are not listed.  I suspect that means they are not implemented in the OEM Tsunami, unless it has a software release later than 1.00.  To determine if there is a version later than 1.00 would take a phone call to Soundtraxx.

The above manual is on line in pdf format at the following link:

http://www.soundtraxx.com/manuals/OEM%20Steam%20Users%20Guide.pdf

Jim

[hawaiiho]

Thanks Jim.  I'll give them a call.

[hawaiiho]

OK, Jim, for you and any one else that may be interested. The Tech at Soundtrax said that when Bachmann provided the software specs  for their decoder, they(Bachmann) specifically requested that the Effects Processor CV subset not be included.
So CV 119 is set to zero.

The references to the Effects Processor are included in the manual that Bachmann provided because the manual  itself was written by Soundtrax and is a generic manual provided for all similar OEM sound decoders.

[Jim Banner]

Thanks for letting us know.

Jim