On the brighter side, at least DCS sets are available now so there shouldn't be a problem trouble finding a new one.
Originally Posted by repair technician:
I can only speak for me but i believe in the old adage if it ain't broke don't fix it!! another words if it's working fine why upgrade and take a chance to make your TIU and DCS system possibly stop from working!
Sometimes thing's are best left alone if they working satisfactorily !
Alan
You nailed it Al !!. Unless there is an extreme compelling reason to upgrade, I just leave it alone. The TIU and remote and I have this understanding "don't bother me and I won't bother you (as such)" I feed you electrons and you feed commands to the engines.
I have never really dug under the hood of my TIU trying different commands and functions. Basically it is add engines, run train, blow whistle/horn, ring bell, Oh I have pressed other buttons but there really has been no real Whoopee moment. Heck I couldn't do a "la**** *p" (sorry Rich didn't know what you professionals call multiple engine strings)without reading Barry's book.
Each to his own. I just like running trains round and round, throwing turnouts, watching signal change. Boring, right?
Initially, the TIU stopped working and the red LED was blinking 16 times and the remote stopped communicating with the TIU. It was then decided that a software update would fix it.
Well, it communicates with the remote now, at least until you move the locomotive. 
Well John look at the bright side if you ever need a TIU receiver board now you got one!
Alan
John do you have the part number for the TVS diodes in the TIU i have 2 H rev TIU and i want to put the protection in then on each channel like Rev l has!
Thanks John for any help you can give in this matter
Alan,
i have 2 H rev TIU and i want to put the protection in then on each channel like Rev l has!
Every TIU, including the original Rev. G, already has a TVS on each channel. There's nothing to upgrade.
This and a whole lot more is all in MTH’s “The DCS O Gauge Companion 2nd Edition", available for purchase as an eBook or a printed book at MTH's web store!
What he said Alan, they're already in there. 
Fuses, OTOH, are not in the original Rev. G unit.
Originally Posted by gunrunnerjohn:
What he said Alan, they're already in there. Fuses, OTOH, are not in the original Rev. G unit.
GRJ,
Who needs fuses? Isn't that what all those fancy "educated" semiconductor triacs, transistors and ICs for? They are just sooooo much faster than fuses. Of course little harder to replace....
I guess the TIU didn't go to the "finishing" classes and still needs fuses.
well when i looked inside of my tiu H i only saw 1 tvs diode in it!
Alan
This is the original Rev. G TIU, there are clearly four TVS diodes in view. No fuses, this is the original version.
Attachments
Alan, Take this in good humor. When you avatar name is repair technician, one assumes you would know what the TVS diodes look like Just jesting...we all have our oops moments. G
samparfitt posted:Initially, the TIU stopped working and the red LED was blinking 16 times and the remote stopped communicating with the TIU. It was then decided that a software update would fix it.
This is the only post that stated what I am also experiencing. LED blinks when first powered up just as you also saw (it's either 15 or 16 times - not sure whether to count the last time it comes on). I have uploaded both remote and TIU with the latest software to date - I didn't expect the TIU to accept the software, but it did. However, it still has not affected the number of times the LED blinks when powered up. I continue to get RF OUT OF RANGE message on remote. I have looked at both sides of the TIU board with magnifiers with absolutely no signs of overheating or any other anomoly ; nor did I find any poor solder joints. RF board was still affixed to main TIU board. I am completely baffled. I've even tried playing around with different addressing without success. It's hard to believe that there is no way to do a 'Hard Reset' via a jumper or similar on the main board. The LED blinking has to be 'saying something' (and no I don't really want to hear - time to buy another); that simply means the reason is unknown. It would be nice for a MTH 'knowledgable tech' to chime in to let me know what it means, or if anyone else has come to find a cause - and hopefully a solution. I'm already looking for a good price on a new one, but really would like to fix the one I have; which happens to be a Rev. G (no sticker or marking on the TIU). Thanks to all for any help in advance. I know this is a reply to an old post, but wasn't sure about starting a new thread; I just signed up and is my first post. Thanks again!
That is usually indicating a failure of the TIU hardware, probably a memory chip. The sad part is it's typically the reason to buy a new TIU, it's not an easy repair. The memory chips are large surface mount chips with fine pitch leads on all four sides. It's a daunting task to replace one of those without the proper equipment.
I would certainly agree as surface mount chips are only easily replaced with the proper equipment, which I don't have. I suppose at this stage I will just bite the bullet and get another TIU. Do you know what causes such a failure? I'm just looking to put the proper safeguards in place to prevent a similar future failure of another TIU. I must admit this particular TIU was one of my son's gifts when he was 7 or 8 and I don't have any idea what is was subject to when he and his brother were playing trains long ago. They, and I of course, had much fun!! The TIU and remote were packed away probably near 15 years ago, and I just recently unpacked it wanting to update it to the latest software. Thanks again for your reply.
There is probably nothing you could have done to prevent this failure, it's just luck of the draw. I actually had one of the club TIU's that had the same type of failure, and we've discussed several here before with the failure. None have ever been fixed, and I see little hope for that one. I just toss them in the closet and use them for spare parts.
That sounds like what I'm going to do; always nice to have a spare parts closet. Not really glad, but somewhat 'comforting' (best word I could think of ;-) ) to know that I'm not the only one that has experienced this failure type. Not sure if it's proper to ask in this forum, but might you recommend a place to get DCS stuff discounted?.? I'm probably looking at not only replacing this bad TIU, but also getting me some stuff also so I can get back into playing trains!
Chewy, google what you want and you'll come up with many sources, but be sure to compare shipping costs. Do be aware that the current remote would not be substantially different than what you already have, so it should not automatically be replaced.
