2 different PS/3 Steamers run in DCS mode but not conventional.

Glad to see I was not alone with this same problem. I had two engines do this a couple years ago.

Converted them to TMCC. Problem solved.

jim,

Yes, PS3 engines do most certainly operate in conventional mode, as well as DCS and DCC.

First, make certain that the DCS/DCC switch is set to DCS. If that's not it, read on.

Early on in PS3 production, MTH experienced a run of bad Supercaps that would emulate just what your engine is doing. It's the equivalent of  trying to operate a PS2 engine that has a dead battery, in conventional mode.

When you press the direction button to attempt to move the engines forward, do sounds cut out briefly? If so, it's almost certainly a defective Supercap. If so, it's a simple fix.

Rich,

Glad to see I was not alone with this same problem. I had two engines do this a couple years ago.

No, it's most unlikely that your engines had the same problem. Your engines may have had the same symptoms, however, your engines were PS2 and his are PS3.

There are legitimate reasons why a PS2 engine would exhibit the described behavior, most centering around a dead or weak battery. However, a PS3 engine that behaves this way most likely has a problem that requires a repair.

Barry,

Engine was in DCS mode (I Tried DCC no difference).  The sound does not cut out when pressing the direction button or when turn power off.  Sounds will stay up a full 8-9 seconds after power is removed.  Engine just doesn't run.

Jim, I had a similar problem with my 249e christmas engine. ran fine in DSC and the DSC remote commander. In conventional mode, the sounds came on and the lights came on, but it would not go forward or in reverse. I did a reset to factory defaults with a Z4000, using the 1 horn and 5 bells. that took care of my problem.

Hope that is of some help.

Were these new out of the box?  Some DCS users lock their engines in conventional-neutral so that power cycling a parked engine does not bring up an engine in conventional mode (because it missed the watchdog for whatever reason) which takes off at 18V after the 2nd cycle.  My understanding is the DCS-initiated resets you tried should have cleared this but Ken's suggestion to use the Whistle-Bell initiated reset should be a simple experiment - it can be tricky to get the button timing but eveyr engine I've reset this way gives a quick double-toot if you are successful.

I'm not familiar with your engines but if they have directional lights such as a tender tail-light, I assume pressing the Direction button multiple times never changes the direction.  In other words in addition to not moving in conventional, the engines do not change direction.

In my case I had tried the DCS resets but it didn't make a difference. I assume thats because it worked fine in DCS mode, but wouldn't work in conventional.

Ken,

I did a reset to factory defaults with a Z4000, using the 1 horn and 5 bells. that took care of my problem.

FYI, regardless of what the engine's manual may state, a transformer reset is only a Feature Reset, not a Factory Reset, and does not reset all of the engine's settings to factory defaults. The manual is incorrect.

The engine's DCS ID# and Custom Name are not reset.

This and a whole lot more is all in "The DCS O Gauge Companion 2nd Edition", now available for purchase as an eBook or a printed book from MTH's web store site! Click on the link below to go to MTH's web page for the book!

Ken,

I did a reset to factory defaults with a Z4000, using the 1 horn and 5 bells. that took care of my problem.

FYI, regardless of what the engine's manual may state, a transformer reset is only a Feature Reset, not a Factory Reset, and does not reset all of the engine's settings to factory defaults. The manual is incorrect.

 

The engine's DCS ID# and Custom Name are not reset.

 

This and a whole lot more is all in "The DCS O Gauge Companion 2nd Edition", now available for purchase as an eBook or a printed book from MTH's web store site! Click on the link below to go to MTH's web page for the book!

 

http://www.mthtrains.com/content/60-1279

 

 

 

It took care of my problem and has run fine since in both conventional and DCS.

"The engine's DCS ID# and Custom Name are not reset".  I was aware of that.

I think that somehow mine had gotten locked in to neutral, Maybe not.

I do have your book. It is of great help!

Ken,

I've often wondered if perhaps, at times, "the medium is the message as regards why a transformer reset may correct issues that a DCS reset cannot.

It may be that the more basic bell/whistle combination can be more easily "heard" by an engine in distress than can the more "complex" DCS reset commnad.

Hi guys,

I suspect Ken has the solution to Jim's original post.

There are a hand full of settings in PS2 that are exclusive to the operating mode.  Locking the direction of travel is exclusive to conventional mode.  The DCS ID# is exclusive to DCS mode.  PS3 has added a bunch of new settings that are exclusive to DCC mode.  Far more settings, such as volume and lighting adjustments, are shared between all operating modes.  Resets in the respective modes will effect the shared settings as well as any setting exclusive to that mode.  They have no effect on settings that are exclusive to the other modes.

The direction lock in conventional mode is stored in the locomotive's memory.  In DCS mode the direction lock is actually a setting in the DCS remote.  If you lock an engine's direction with one remote, you will still be able to change the direction from another remote.  The conventional direction lock is stored in a part of memory that is unaffected by a DCS feature reset.

The two PS2 locomotives that did this for me both had good batteries. I made sure of that. When I shut the power off, the sounds would continue for 5 to 7 seconds. When operated in DCS mode, they ran fine and did everything they were supposed to do. I also made sure they were not locked in neutral when I tested them in DCS mode.

If I powered them up on a conventional layout, they simply would not move. The sounds worked fine, cab chatter, whistle, bell, extra sounds etc,  but they would not move. I finally gave up and had them converted to TMCC. For my simple roll-away layout and my grand-kids, TMCC was much simpler and was all I needed anyway. That was about three years ago. No further problems.

Hi Rich,

As I mentioned above, the direction lock in DCS mode has no effect on the direction lock in conventional.  Obviously it's too late to do anything about your engines or test them.  However, it is quite likely that the only thing wrong with them was they were inadvertently locked in neutral in conventional mode with 1 whistle and 3 bell button presses.

The direction lock in DCS mode actually has nothing to do with the locomotive at all.  It simply restricts the command sent by the DCS remote.  You can't see it, but the remote actually sends specific commands for forward and reverse.  When you "lock" an engine in forward with a DCS remote all that means is that particular remote will only send forward commands to that particular engine address.

On the other hand, the conventional direction lock IS stored in the engine's memory.  If an engine is locked in neutral in conventional mode it will stay locked until you repeat the 1 whistle/3 bell sequence or preform a 1 whistle/5 bell conventional reset.  You can put the engine on a DCS powered track and it will behave normally.  Put it back on a conventional track and it will still be locked.

Dave,

If an engine is locked in neutral in conventional mode it will stay locked until you repeat the 1 whistle/3 bell sequence or preform a 1 whistle/5 bell conventional reset.

So DCS Factory Reset won't reset the conventional "locked in one direction" setting, correct?

Correct.  The conventional direction lock is stored in a portion of the engine's memory that is unaffected by a DCS mode reset (feature or factory).

Geez Dave! not so. A DCS factory command  reset will unlock an conventional lock with at least 5 & 3 volt boards.  Battery must be up to par though.

I tried one of the engines with the conventional reset and get the acknowledgment sounds but the problem persists.  The 2nd engine has been loaned out but will try that one as well when I get a chance.

Thanks for all the suggestions, its been educational never the less.  

For kicks I tried programming a different PS/3 sound file "Era II Class 241A Steam Engine w/Proto-Sound 3.0 (Hi-Rail Wheels) - EST French (1936 Black w/red striping)" and the engine still refuses to move in conventional but runs great in DCS mode.  I put the original sound file back in, and am now back to the beginning.  

So are these settings we attempt to clear in different memory than the main program memory for the sound set you load???  If it is the same memory I would have expected a totally different sound set to overwrite them.

Jim 

I agree with Gregg.  Doesn't mean some engine won't perform this way.  I just locked a PS-2 5V engine in neutral.  Shut down and restarted and it remained locked.  I then ran it with DCS fine.  I then did just a feature reset.  Shut down.  Restarted in conventional and the engine moved as normal.  So in this case the DCS feature reset cleared the conventional Lock.   G