Trainzer Posted March 17 Share Posted March 17 (edited) Hi all, I am having trouble switching the lights ON or OFF on a loco fitted with a Zimo mx644 sound decoder. It's set to AUX1/AUX2 - F0. Nothing happens when I press F0, no lights. - I have a Hornby Elite controller. I bought the loco with the decoder already fitted. Anyone with a decoder like this and having any issues? Any solutions? Sorry, I am very new to this, so not sure what to do. Thank you! Edited March 17 by Trainzer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LTSR_NSE Posted March 17 Share Posted March 17 What model of loco is it? (manufacturer & product code) Does the model actually have lights? Are you able to control movement & sound correctly? (is it just a problem with lights? or is it a larger issue of communicating with/controlling the loco?) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ntpntpntp Posted March 17 Share Posted March 17 As LTSR_NSE asks, are you able to control movement and other sound functions? Did you receive instructions and details of the function key setup for the loco? A couple of thoughts: 1) have you set the speed steps correctly to match the decoder? In the old 14 speed step DCC the head/tail light function command was embedded within the speed command sent to the decoder, It changed to a separate function command with 28/128 speed step mode. A mismatch between loco and decoder speed steps can cause lights not to work, or make them flash on and off as you change speed. 2) Some Next18 decoders are programmed so that the lights for each end are on separate functions, this is to allow prototypical lighting such as turning off lights at the rear of the loco when it's hauling a train. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trainzer Posted March 17 Author Share Posted March 17 49 minutes ago, LTSR_NSE said: What model of loco is it? (manufacturer & product code) Does the model actually have lights? Are you able to control movement & sound correctly? (is it just a problem with lights? or is it a larger issue of communicating with/controlling the loco?) It's a pre-owned model, fully working as i was told - Bachman Class 37 Just bought it yesterday at the London Festival of Model Railway. Yes, I can control it fine, some other functions work fine, but I notice that some functions don't do anything. According to the paper sheet that came with the loco, sound was fitted by YooChoos. 12 minutes ago, ntpntpntp said: As LTSR_NSE asks, are you able to control movement and other sound functions? Did you receive instructions and details of the function key setup for the loco? A couple of thoughts: 1) have you set the speed steps correctly to match the decoder? In the old 14 speed step DCC the head/tail light function command was embedded within the speed command sent to the decoder, It changed to a separate function command with 28/128 speed step mode. A mismatch between loco and decoder speed steps can cause lights not to work, or make them flash on and off as you change speed. 2) Some Next18 decoders are programmed so that the lights for each end are on separate functions, this is to allow prototypical lighting such as turning off lights at the rear of the loco when it's hauling a train. Yes, I did receive a paper sheet with the functions and what they do. Not all functions work, so I am now thinking that the item may not be fully working. I'm afraid I do not really know what you mean on points 1 and 2. Really novice here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ColinB Posted March 18 Share Posted March 18 F0 should switch on the lights, I have an Elite and that function always works. Best idea is do what I do with models where I don't know the lighting functions (it even happens on a lot of new models where they forget to tell you) basically go through each function and see which one does the lights. Generally Bachmann locos have forward and reverse lighting on F0 and cab lighting on another function. Check the underside of your loco to see if there are any switches to switch them off. It is a 21 pin decoder so you cannot get the fitting wrong, the only other issue might be a wire not connected inside the loco. It might be that the body is not on correctly sometimes the lights connect via spring loaded pins that if the body is not on properly don't connect. Forget options 1 and 2, I doubt they effect you. I use a lot of Zimo sound decoders, unfortunately not on my class 37s but then it sounds like it isn't one programmed by YouChoos. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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