oace
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Posts: 241
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Post by oace on Jun 1, 2024 17:04:40 GMT
Rail Sound Car Project Re-using the additional stuff that was installed by the previous owner of my Bassett-Lowke "Lady Patricia"...  ... I choose to install it in a separate standalone "Rail Sound Car" that can be added on demand to any steam locomotive train :  The unit includes a sound card with integrated Class D 2W/8R amplifier, a bunch of programmable steam locomotive rail sounds via a remote control, a deported infrared sensor, plus a 9V rechargeable battery PP3 / 6LR61 NiMH, loaded by the track supply and managed by the soundcard. Unfortunately, there's only UK / EUR sounds, no US... The building has started, based on a Hornby flat car :  I am waiting for some parts : roller pickups, oval loudspeaker, etc... Wait and See !  OACE |
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Post by healey36 on Jun 2, 2024 12:34:44 GMT
An interesting project, OACE, one I've often contemplated myself. I have an old sound unit made by Ott Machine some twenty-five years ago which I've considered putting into an old Lionel coffin-style prewar tender. I figure it would be a way to add sound to a prewar loco (I'm not really into sound, but some like it). Keep us posted on how this project goes!
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oace
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Posts: 241
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Post by oace on Jun 2, 2024 21:10:07 GMT
An interesting project, OACE, one I've often contemplated myself. I have an old sound unit made by Ott Machine some twenty-five years ago which I've considered putting into an old Lionel coffin-style prewar tender. I figure it would be a way to add sound to a prewar loco (I'm not really into sound, but some like it). Keep us posted on how this project goes! Thanks healey36 ! To be honest, I have no experience nor knowledge about Rail Sounds : this is the first time that - incidentally - I have such a device to deal with... So I am somewhat improvising !  And yes, like you : I must confess that I'm not really into sounds too, but since I inherited of that "noisy stuff" from returning my "Lady Patricia" to its original specs, why no trying to do something with it, for the fun ? I expect the missing parts from middle-late of June - and sure : I'll post the evolution...  And its surprises !  OACE
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oace
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Posts: 241
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Post by oace on Jun 9, 2024 10:35:13 GMT
Work is on progress :   But I am still waiting for miscellanous parts to go further... OACE |
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Post by healey36 on Jun 9, 2024 13:57:36 GMT
Great logo for your car...did you cut that from a box of tea?
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oace
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Posts: 241
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Post by oace on Jun 9, 2024 19:43:08 GMT
Great logo for your car...did you cut that from a box of tea? Exactly ! Or rather a tea bag... The top is covered with a green tumbled simili leather ribbon.  OACE
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oace
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Posts: 241
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Post by oace on Jun 12, 2024 17:49:31 GMT
Work in on progress - II : Le Retour...  * Wheels and rollers pickups. * Loudpeaker (90x50mm flat model). * Speaker grille. * Lead ballasts. Next step : electronics... T |
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oace
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Posts: 241
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Post by oace on Jun 13, 2024 20:51:37 GMT
End of the build of "LA DIPLOMATE" : I still wait for the NiMH rechargeable battery to replace the provisional 9V Alkaline, since the reloading of the battery can be done automatically by the track voltage.  The chuffing is track-voltage triggered, the others noises are controlled by the remote control : OACE |
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Post by Country Joe on Jun 13, 2024 22:23:05 GMT
Great job, OACE. The sounds are really good.
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oace
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Posts: 241
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Post by oace on Jun 14, 2024 14:51:45 GMT
Great job, OACE. The sounds are really good. Thank you @country Joe ! Today, I improved the sealing of the enclosure of the speaker, by adding suitable soft gaskets : there were too much leaks in the flat car / cover assembly, and that was detrimental for the chuffing bass tones. Now it's a bit better... OACE
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Post by steveoncattailcreek on Jun 14, 2024 15:34:19 GMT
Today, I improved the sealing of the enclosure of the speaker, by adding suitable soft gaskets : there were too much leaks in the flat car / cover assembly, and that was detrimental for the chuffing bass tones. Now it's a bit better... Yeah, bass output is generally improved any time you can provide a long path from the front of the speaker to the back, and that's defeated or reduced if you have too many "leaks" that tend to short-circuit that path. Have you provided or maintained a port from the interior, though? Sealing the speaker up too tightly can actually reduce the bass response and result in somewhat muffled tones. IOW, for most speakers it's best to provide a long but free-flowing path for the air to follow as the speaker cone pumps it back and forth. For instance, when I installed a pair of crossing bell sound modules on my layout, the tiny speakers that came with the modules produced a very tinny, thin sound on their own, so I created a DIY sound chamber for each speaker, using a disk of foam board inside sections of cardboard toilet paper tubes. *Much* louder sound, and better quality to boot: Of course, I had the luxury of plenty of space under the layout, but you may be able to provide a port under the tender, as far away as possible from the speaker opening, and perhaps even an interior baffle to lengthen the path if you want to go full-on audio design crazy!
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oace
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Post by oace on Jun 14, 2024 19:43:53 GMT
Sure steveoncattailcreek ! You have the advantage of having a permanent layout , unlike me...  Yes, I primarily made an enclosure simulation using the TS parameters of the choosen speaker (VISATON SC59FLX2) to see if a ported (Bass-Reflex) enclosure was worth for the internal volume of the car, and it showed nearly the same frequency response as a sealed enclosure with Cotton wool stuffing. So no plus here, for the given volume and speaker available. When I will built a layout (it can be large but always provisional, no other possibilty), I'll take pics and videos of the LA DIPLOMATE Rail sound Car, hauled in a train just behind the steam locomotive and her tender... OACE |
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Post by steveoncattailcreek on Jun 14, 2024 21:19:27 GMT
Yes, I primarily made an enclosure simulation using the TS parameters of the choosen speaker (VISATON SC59FLX2) to see if a ported (Bass-Reflex) enclosure was worth for the internal volume of the car, and it showed nearly the same frequency response as a sealed enclosure with Cotton wool stuffing. So no plus here, for the given volume and speaker available. Yeah, most of my speaker experience was from decades ago, when I played bass in a rock band. At the height of my quest for adequate sound, I was running two Fender Dual Showman amps driving four Dual Showman bottoms (each with two 15 inch Lansing speakers, for a total of 8!), and *still* was not fully satisfied. Mind you, this was in a modest size club, not stadium performances! Nonetheless, every month or so I'd manage to blow a speaker (luckily we eventually found a place that would re-cone the speakers at a fraction of the cost of new!). I blamed the poor performance and high damage rate on the design of the Dual Showman bottoms, which were *not* ported and thus IMHO put a lot more stress on the speaker cones, resulting in the damage I was inflicted with. Well, that, and turning the volume up to 11 . . . 
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oace
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Posts: 241
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Post by oace on Jul 4, 2024 16:06:33 GMT
The Rail Sound Car "LA DIPLOMATE" inserted in a LMS Train :  OACE |
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Post by healey36 on Jul 6, 2024 13:24:45 GMT
Looks and sounds sharp, oace.
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And its surprises ! 
