loksound v4.0 micro kato steam D51 and/or C55

[hepkat63]

Hi All,
only new to the forum, so be gentle with me !!

I am just getting into Japanese steam - figured it was a nice place to start.  However, all my layout is DCC and i have absolutely no interest in DC stuff at all.  So, from the research that I have done, it appears that DCC is starting to become more popular in Kato Japanese Steam as well.  I see from this forum a few guys have attempted DCC installs to locos.  I can't however, find if anyone has done one of the new LokSound Micro Sound decoders into a D51 or C55 loco?

I am awaiting my order of these locos and have some loksound chips here and want to have a go at it.   Any suggestions please?

regards
steve

[Webskipper]

I converted a D51 SL. Basic 2 functions because there are no lights.  Ground the boiler weight to make room for the TCS M1 decoder. Pretty Easy.

For the D51 498 I plan to add sound. Speaker is obviously going into the tender.

Each chassis half is separated with isolators. Look at the motor wires.

Recommend the little decoder connectors from TCS so that you can disconnect the wiring between the loco and tender.

Knowing the polarities of the stock board and motor, you can figure out the rest.

Take a look at sound installs on the Kato Mikado.

[Martijn Meerts]

Installing DCC in Japanese trains is no different from installing it in (older) non-Japanese trains. Some are a bit of a puzzle because of the way the frame is built up :)

As for sound decoders, the biggest problem will be finding room for a decent speaker and speaker box, while at the same time keeping the train heavy enough to keep the good running characteristics. Although, I guess it also depends on how picky you are about the quality of the sound. Personally, I'm no fan of N-scale sound.

[hepkat63]

thanks Guys for the replies.

[westfalen]

I put an MRC sound decoder into the new Kato D51 498, the tender weight was designed to fit it and the speaker, but it's more of a novelty than anything because the sound is not the best.

[hepkat63]

I put an MRC sound decoder into the new Kato D51 498, the tender weight was designed to fit it and the speaker, but it's more of a novelty than anything because the sound is not the best.

do you have a video so I can see that install?  I have a few locos with MRC decoders and whilst not at good as loksound, they are acceptable?  What model MRC one did you use please?

[westfalen]

I put an MRC sound decoder into the new Kato D51 498, the tender weight was designed to fit it and the speaker, but it's more of a novelty than anything because the sound is not the best.

do you have a video so I can see that install?  I have a few locos with MRC decoders and whilst not at good as loksound, they are acceptable?  What model MRC one did you use please?

I used the MRC 1637 decoder and followed the instructions on this website except that I didn't use the mini connector between the loco and tender. http://www5a.biglobe.ne.jp/~toyoyasu/m101212.htm

The sound is ok but not a match to a Soundtrax Tsunami which, to my ears at least, beat Loksound as well. A friend has Loksound decoders in several On30 locos and I wasn't real impressed by them compared to Soundtrax.