Williams sound

I have a couple of Williams Steamers and I have found no Volume Control on any of them.  However with the soft sound issue i wound up drilling two holes in the rear of the Tender shell where the Marker Lights mounts are molded in and this opened up some volume by giving the sound some room to come out of beside the bottom where the speaker is. On Diesels I have no Clue as I do not own one.  Marty Fitzhenry just did an up grade to Proto-Sound 2.0 or 3.0 on some Williams Switchers he might be one to ask as well as heading over to the Bachmann Forum and asking over there I hope i was able to help

Williams now has True-Blast Plus Sound Systems for diesels and True Blast II sound systems for steamers. Each consists of a circuit board and a speaker. They plug into each other and into Williams' current reverse board.

I installed one in my Williams NS Reading Heritage Unit. Now it has prime mover, whistle and bell sounds.

On the older Williams before Bachmann there is a volume switch, looks like an old TV set volume switch with the end for the knob cut off, on the circuit board, you may need to clean the contacts before turning it in either direction. Also some of the early True Blast 2 by Williams/Bachmann used the same switch. You need a small flat tip screw driver to adjust it with.

I have not seen the newer True Blast Plus by Bachmann so I can't say if it can be adjusted or not. Somebody else may know.

Lee Fritz

How old is your Williams engine? It may or may not have a volume switch depending on it's age. Also what is the sound that it makes?

With the horn for the True Blast 2 it should be the grade crossing sequence.

For older and before the Crown Edition it was just a regular horn that would sound off for as long as you held the whistle button.

I am not sure if the Crown Edition engines have a volume switch, I know it has a station leaving announcement.

Lee Fritz

So I cracked open the switcher and it has all the sound on the roof held in by glue. So I put on track and hit horn button and could barely her it with the speaker in my ear so i wiggled the board and got a crackle then I bent this round thing on the board just a little bit as I hit the horn button and it was load so put the top back on and now I can here it well so hopefully that will do it.

Philly it's the grade crossing sound

Is the new true blast better sounding and is it worth the extra money or should I find how to put proto 2 in it

Jeff here is a picture of the williams true blast 2 and the metal bracket next to the yellow wires is the volume control. You can adjust volume on the williams new sound board but be very careful what you use to turn the volume it strips very easy and Jeff make sure your speaker is in the baffle it will put out low sound as well.  

To be sure if you like the new True Blast Plus by WBB try to hear one at a friend's house or at a local hobby shop and then decide what you think.

Don't listen to any sound system and make a decision just by hearing it on the internet, hear the sound system in person.

Sometimes the engine shell will make the sound of a horn muffled.

Either way you are going to spend at least $110.00(probably more) for a newer sound system.

Lee Fritz

I tried running again today and again hardly any sound so off cam the shell powered the track back up and moved sound board around a little and got sound again could this be a grounding issue.

Gentlemen,

   Long ago I had Frank at the Iron Horse install a True Blast in my big original Williams Yellow & Gray  UP City of San Fran passenger train, it sounds great.   Just like the Diesels Engines coming down thru the Yough River Run, here in Someret County.  The TB is Loud and clear, the installer knew what he was doing, still sounds that way today.  Don't know if it's a TBI or TBII.

PCRR/Dave 

Using chessie1971's photo, that circular brown and silver piece is the pot.  The silver part has a little piece sticking up that you can touch with a toothpick and it will rotate, increasing and decreasing the sound.

Thanks Keith and i tried to do that could not figure out how to do it LOL.

Thanks guys but I think I have other issues with the sound board maybe a ground I don't know

Did you buy the engine new or used? If used somebody may have put a bad sound board in it. I have swapped sound boards before when I traded or sold a Williams engine.

Lee Fritz

Williams used different sound systems, and customers installed a wide variety of them. I came across a Crown Edition NYC Niagara with a QSI 3000 system.

True Blast whistles and horns always sounded grade crossing signals but the new ones have long or short sounds controlled by transformers.

Does Bachmann have a true blast plus system for the E-7? Where could I get one?

Not all of them. Possibly if it is an older engine without the control check if any wiring came loose. Happens to my Dash-9 once in a while.