Can Williams by Bachmann Diesels with True Blast Plus be wired in series?

Yes,  the True Blast sound picks up power directly from the rails  without going through the  e-unit.  Something you may have trouble with is the sounds start and idle around 6-7vac and rev up with an increase of voltage.  With the motors in series you will need more throttle ,voltage, to get the loco moving so the diesel motor sounds may ramp up too fast.  You can make the TBll board think there is less voltage by using a diode cascade. Each pair of back to front wired diodes will drop the voltage about 1v.  I would think 3-6v is in the ballpark for the amount of drop you will need. Put two diodes side to side with the positive of one next to the negative of the other and twist the leads on each end. Each of these pairs will lower the track voltage by about one volt.  Experiment with between three and six of these pairs in series with the leads going to the center rail to get the diesel ramp up in sync with your loco starting up.  J

I've never understood - what's the point in wiring motors up in series like this??

What's the joy in having a sluggish, more power-hungry loco?

DdotCdot posted:

I've never understood - what's the point in wiring motors up in series like this??

What's the joy in having a sluggish, more power-hungry loco?

It's basically to keep the loco from starting like a drag racer.  Older transformers don't start at 0 volts, they tend to start voltage at 6-8.  This was fine for pull-mores, but can motors are very efficient.

Fred

Thank you for the information and replies.

DdotCdot posted:

I've never understood - what's the point in wiring motors up in series like this??

What's the joy in having a sluggish, more power-hungry loco?

This does not make the loco more power hungry it actually cuts the current draw at any given voltage in half.  It will cut the top speed in half which for me at least is no problem. On most layouts scale speeds will make the layout seem very small.  I try and limit my freight trains to 45smph and my passenger to 60smph.  This has another benefit If you have some steep grades. If your top speeds are limited in TMCC ,even if you don't have cruise, it will prevent trains from taking off when going down hill.  Some locos do not lend themselves to this strategy but if you have a jack rabbit this will tame the start.  J

JohnActon posted:

DdotCdot posted:

I've never understood - what's the point in wiring motors up in series like this??

What's the joy in having a sluggish, more power-hungry loco?

This does not make the loco more power hungry it actually cuts the current draw at any given voltage in half.  It will cut the top speed in half which for me at least is no problem. On most layouts scale speeds will make the layout seem very small.  I try and limit my freight trains to 45smph and my passenger to 60smph.  This has another benefit If you have some steep grades. If your top speeds are limited in TMCC ,even if you don't have cruise, it will prevent trains from taking off when going down hill.  Some locos do not lend themselves to this strategy but if you have a jack rabbit this will tame the start.  J

It has made EVERY loco I have modified to series run smoother and better....WbB or K-Line.....I don't win the drag races any longer.....but that's another hobby anyway.

JohnActon posted:

Yes,  the True Blast sound picks up power directly from the rails  without going through the  e-unit.  Something you may have trouble with is the sounds start and idle around 6-7vac and rev up with an increase of voltage.  With the motors in series you will need more throttle ,voltage, to get the loco moving so the diesel motor sounds may ramp up too fast.  You can make the TBll board think there is less voltage by using a diode cascade. Each pair of back to front wired diodes will drop the voltage about 1v.  I would think 3-6v is in the ballpark for the amount of drop you will need. Put two diodes side to side with the positive of one next to the negative of the other and twist the leads on each end. Each of these pairs will lower the track voltage by about one volt.  Experiment with between three and six of these pairs in series with the leads going to the center rail to get the diesel ramp up in sync with your loco starting up.  J

I am planning to add the ERR RailSounds Commander to my Williams GP-9 that I have wired in series. Am I correct in thinking that I should use a diode cascade as JohnAction suggests here? I'll probably get the diodes from DigiKey, but can anyone tell me specifically what type of diode I should get?

TIA,

Matt

P.s. Should this thread be moved to the electrical sub-forum?

Love how my WBB GG1 runs with motors wired in series. Top end speed is more than adequate even with throttle all the way up. The starting is MUCH smoother.

R4D,

   If you think the WBB GG1 runs nice in series, you should see how the original Williams stuff does, Stump Pullers extra-ordinary!

Williams built some Great stuff!

PCRR/Dave

Matt_GNo27 posted:

JohnActon posted:

Yes,  the True Blast sound picks up power directly from the rails  without going through the  e-unit.  Something you may have trouble with is the sounds start and idle around 6-7vac and rev up with an increase of voltage.  With the motors in series you will need more throttle ,voltage, to get the loco moving so the diesel motor sounds may ramp up too fast.  You can make the TBll board think there is less voltage by using a diode cascade. Each pair of back to front wired diodes will drop the voltage about 1v.  I would think 3-6v is in the ballpark for the amount of drop you will need. Put two diodes side to side with the positive of one next to the negative of the other and twist the leads on each end. Each of these pairs will lower the track voltage by about one volt.  Experiment with between three and six of these pairs in series with the leads going to the center rail to get the diesel ramp up in sync with your loco starting up.  J

I am planning to add the ERR RailSounds Commander to my Williams GP-9 that I have wired in series. Am I correct in thinking that I should use a diode cascade as JohnAction suggests here? I'll probably get the diodes from DigiKey, but can anyone tell me specifically what type of diode I should get?

 

You would just connect the two Motor Sense (VCO) connections to the two motor wires(one to each motor) still connected to the motors.

If after setting up, the sounds are difficult to coordinate with the engine speed, move one Motor Sense/VCO connection so they are both on one motor.