Lionel Blue Comet Whistle

Bruce,

I too hope that you have a different sound set and it is purely a factory error which Lionel will correct soon.  In the meantime I have embedded the Lionel video of the Blue Comet which was probably filmed in a room a bit smaller than Ben's .  The "whistle" is at the 18:30 mark of the video.  To me it sounds a lot like Ben's video and my Blue Comet.  What do you think.

 

I have really been thinking, and I went up to play my Blue comet whistle again.  It really does sound like a big freighter steam whistle - not like a diesel.  Sooo many people are complaining, I wonder if at least one batch was not made with a diesel horn instead.  

 

It would help if Lionel could post a video/sound clip of what it is supposed to sound like.  I would try but to post mine, but I doubt my camera's microphone is sensitive and accurate enough to do justifce to subtle differences.  

Hi Stelios:

 

I must admit that the whistle in these videos seems similar to Ben's whistle and, from what I remember, somewhat like mine. However, I do hear a difference between the whistle Ben sounded when the Comet was coming (slowly) toward the camera device and later as it passes even with the camera.

 

I think both of these videos have most of the qualities I remember in my version, so I don't think I have something different from everyone else. Primarily, I think that the whistle seems to sound more "horn-like," but I detect some musical quality to it that suggests more of a low, breathy whistle (I think of my Big Boy whistle) rather than than higher, shrill whistle (I think of my Mikado or Hudson). [When I get back to my layout, I will try honking my diesels and compare the sounds, hopefully with audio/video for the forum (I'm sure others will do this way before me).] I heard this  musical quality in particular about 1 min into Ben's video, as the train was even and passing by the camera. Mike Reagan's video also demonstrated some of the musical parts, with, admittedly, more of a "diesel-honk" quality during some of the sounds than many would have liked.

 

That being said, I am not as well-versed in railroad history or have anything other than very recent experience in the hobby. But, Ben, I promise that I will do some recording of my Blue Comet; I owe the forum some video of my VL Hudson at the very least. Look for me in about 3 weeks...

 

Regards to all,

 

Bruce

Sounds like a whistle.

After listening to the most recently posted video I can’t believe Lionel put a whistle sound like that into a steam locomotive model.  The sound Is similar, in my opinion, to the large scale air horns used on ocean going vessels.  Not being knowledgeable about the components that make up a digital whistle sound in the Lionel Rail Sounds board it would almost lead me to believe that possibly one or more of those components are not functioning correctly which might result in the different sounding whistles some claim their engines have.  Anyway, it’s a stab in the dark, so to speak.  Is anyone out there knowledgeable on these things and how they function? 

Also, might the difference in sound F-V Trains heard in Ben’s video be the result of the Doppler Effect?

OK.  The best I can do from a video/audio perspective is give you a comparison of the 2002 vs. 2012 Lionel Blue Comets.  I apologize ahead of time for the quality as it is shot with an iPhone and I don't have a permanent layout.  I put down one piece of track, powered it up and shot both engines.  Let me know what you all think of the differences.

 

The 2012 does not sound like a steam whistle and the 2002 does sound like a steam whistle.

I agree W/ Don!!!

Fredstrains

Thanks for the video, Stelios. I perceive that the 2002 definitely sounds like a very breathy whistle. 2012 has more of a honk, but there is a higher pitch sound with it, making more of a whistle sound. I have no idea which one I would choose, but I am happy with mine. Neither sounds close to the sound in the Tom Snyder video, IMHO.

 

I think Nicole's comments about the level of whistle power (?) might be the answer. FWIW, I run mine with Legacy; don't know if that makes any difference either.

 

Wish I was on vacation in NC and could send some video for some kind of comparison.

 

By the way, compliments to all. It's great to have a civil discourse about differences, rather than in other threads (like my VL Hudson thread)!

 

Regards from sunny FL,

 

Bruce

I only have the 2002 Blue Comet locomotive #831.  And to date I have yet to hear a video of Lionel's 2012 Blue Comet #832 that sounds likable to be.  Even listening to Lionel's own product video, I would be disappointed and embarrassed with sound quality of the new "whistle" had I been the product manager for the 2012 locomotive and a saw what the factory delivered. 

 

Although I have no plans to purchase the new locomotive -- since I'm very happy with the earlier 2002 model (and would rather spend "train funds" on a different locomotive right now) -- I would hope that Lionel sees fit to provide consumers with a correct version of the whistle at no cost to the client.  Definitely worth staying tuned to this space for those concerned.

 

David

Good news for those tracking this thread.  Lionel has a fix for the 2012 Legacy Blue Comet Whistle.  You will need an RA from Lionel to send the tender back and they will put a better sounding one in.   According to Lionel, "To have your Legacy Blue Comet up-revved just contact us 586-949-4100, ext 2."

You can here how it sounds in this other thread.

https://ogrforum.com/d...ent/7906207213131322

Yes... I saw this on the other thread yesterday.  Glad to see Lionel stepped up to the plate on this one.   It seems from a description in the other thread that Lionel's "fix" does NOT involve a hardware change -- but rather a "re-programming" of the sound board in the tender.  Hopefully, at some point in time, this is the type of "upgrade/fix" that can be done via consumers who are so inclined rather than shipping stuff around the country unnecessarily -- although I'm sure UPS doesn't mind the extra business. 

 

From a quick listen to the video, the "fix" provides a DEFINITE improvement!  Buyers of the new loco will likely be very pleased.

 

David