Full Engine Info won't load into remote?

Hi Mark,

A missing name is usually an indication of weak track signal.  Do a signal test with the same engine on the same section of track you used to load.  Then do a track signal test with another engine across the same section of track.  If both test show low signal clean the track and/or try a different track section.  If the problem engine shows weak signal (7 or less can cause problem when loading) but the other engine shows good signal, clean the wheels and pickup rollers on the problem engine.  If both show good signal you've probably got a different problem.

Thanks for posting a link to the engine's product page.  That's very helpful.  I see that this is engine is about 10 years old.  Is there any chance the PS2 board has ever been replaced?  If so, the person replacing the board may have failed to program the name.  The name that appears on the screen is independent of the sound file.  It can be programmed with the technicians version of the DCS Loader Program.  If the board was replaced and the name wasn't programmed you would get a blank name when loading but all the appropriate softkeys would show up.

At the club last night, all other engines loaded successfully.  Our resident DCS/PS2.0 guru, Dick Stern, is of the opinion it's caused by a corrupted sound file.  This is a second hand engine (now third), that's been in my possession for many years. Therefore, it's pedigree cannot be vetted. I sent it to an bogus repairman in NJ a few years ago for a poorly functioning smoke unit; it remains that way, but o/w all functions work/worked in DCS and conventional.  Thanx for your thoughful post, Dave.

Do you also have legacy on the same rails? I have found that when adding some but not many MTH engines, legacy does something freaky to the signal that they cannot receive everything. I just disable legacy and try again and it works fine.

Mike

Hi Mark,

It sounds like a descent bet that the board is not original.  Mr. Stern's suggestion of reloading the sound file won't make a difference if that's the case.  A replacement board comes without a name loaded into memory.  The sound file doesn't actually contain the name of the engine.  However, the DCS Loader program is used for entering both the sound file and the name.  If you can't get the engine to load the name with a few more tries I'd suggest finding someone with access to the DCS Dealer Loader program and having them load the engine name.  One of the nice things about using the Dealer Loader is that you can use any character on a qwerty keyboard (upper and lower case) in the name.  Your're not limited to upper case letters and a few symbols like the naming feature in the DCS remote.

Mike - thank you for your input.  We have TMCC (no TMCC engines were running), but haven't evolved into Legacy yet.

David1 - thank you for your input.  Multiple attempts at deleting and reloading loco were made w/o success on club layout.

Dave Hikel - thank you for your input again.  If I pulled the shell, would I be able to observe whether or not I had a replacement board?

Maybe.  Based on the sound file name it looks like this engine came with a 3 volt PS2 board.  If it was replaced in the last few years it would have a small sticker on the board that reads "3v2x."  If it was replaced earlier in its life I don't think there would be any distinguishing characteristics.

MTH was using 3v boards 2002 Vol I ?

Nope, that engine is using the older 5v PS2 boards.

Sorry Mark, I looked at the wrong digit in the file name.  Hotpressmugs is correct, this was a 5 volt engine.  FYI, some engines from the 2002v1 catalog that weren't delivered until 2003 did come with 3 volt boards.  You have to be careful in that vintage.

Since the board started out as 5 volt a visual ID is still a "maybe."  If the board failed early in life it would likely have been replaced with another 5 volt board.  If the failure occurred more recently the board could have been replaced with a 5 volt board with 3 volt with 5 volt style connectors (physically larger than the 3 volt). If this was ever done a good tech would have also changed the charging port from a round barrel jack to a rectangular two-pin jack.  Check the underside of the engine.  If you see a rectangular charging port it has the board replaced.

For those interested, here's a partial breakdown of the MTH sound file naming conventions.

One way to tell if original is if the board has a label on the relay that identifies the engine.  Replacement boards only have a label with a date code/SN.  G

When you add the engine does everything work other then there is no name displayed? If so have someone with a dealer loader program load the serial information and name into it. You can add a name yourself through the EDIT Engine Name portion of the menu. It will not follow the engine if you add it elsewhere but at least at home you can identify the engine.

Thanx, Paul. Was able to add engine name, and it "stuck".  Now, as I understand your post, the name will not show on a "foreign" DCS layout, but if I use the dealer loader it will?

Paul,

It will not follow the engine if you add it elsewhere but at least at home you can identify the engine.

Are you certain?

Changing the name of a PS2 engine by creating a Custom Name changes it in the engine, as well as in the DCS Remote in which the change was made.

It should show on every DCS Remote to which the engine is subsequently added, until the engine is Factory Reset.