Hey all,
Well, I set up my unitrack, rekeyed two of my #4 turnouts, set up a programming track and set about to run my first two decoder equipped locomotives. I have the Prodigy Express system, which is basically the Prodigy Advance minus the whistles.
In terms of initial programming, I kept it basic. I was able to rekey my Locos to the displayed 4-digit road numbers, but I did nothing in terms of speed scales or any other issues.
So... I ran 2 locos on a basic loop with a programming side track. I love how DCC is able to work this way. The only snag I found is when I tried to consist the two locos together. I had positioned each loco facing in the opposite direction intentionally. I brought them together, and then followed the instructions to set up my first consist. However, I discovered that when I was programming the consist, it wouldn't let me key in the direction of the consist to each locomotive. Both were automatically set to "Forward", no matter how many times I hit the "direction" key.
This created issues when the consist was formed, because each loco tried to pull in their own direction... likely creating an unnecessary strain on the couplers and on the engine itself. I know I could lash them together Elephant-style, but according the Prodigy Express manual it should be able to have one of the locos in the consist run in reverse.
Am I missing something here... both locos have the Digitrax DN163K1B decoder... and I was wondering if there needed to be some sort of "activation" of the advanced consisting feature...
Any suggestions?
Well, I set up my unitrack, rekeyed two of my #4 turnouts, set up a programming track and set about to run my first two decoder equipped locomotives. I have the Prodigy Express system, which is basically the Prodigy Advance minus the whistles.
In terms of initial programming, I kept it basic. I was able to rekey my Locos to the displayed 4-digit road numbers, but I did nothing in terms of speed scales or any other issues.
So... I ran 2 locos on a basic loop with a programming side track. I love how DCC is able to work this way. The only snag I found is when I tried to consist the two locos together. I had positioned each loco facing in the opposite direction intentionally. I brought them together, and then followed the instructions to set up my first consist. However, I discovered that when I was programming the consist, it wouldn't let me key in the direction of the consist to each locomotive. Both were automatically set to "Forward", no matter how many times I hit the "direction" key.
This created issues when the consist was formed, because each loco tried to pull in their own direction... likely creating an unnecessary strain on the couplers and on the engine itself. I know I could lash them together Elephant-style, but according the Prodigy Express manual it should be able to have one of the locos in the consist run in reverse.
Am I missing something here... both locos have the Digitrax DN163K1B decoder... and I was wondering if there needed to be some sort of "activation" of the advanced consisting feature...
Any suggestions?