Power Cab System Reference. Manual - part 13

DISPLAY OF ACTIVE ADDRESS

The current active address (long or short) is indicated on the top line of the display. If
you wish to change the decoder address press 1. Any other button will skip
programming the address and continue standard programming.

ACTIVE ADR:SHORT

SETUP ADDR 1=YES

ENTERING THE DECODER (LOCOMOTIVE) ADDRESS

The short address is displayed first. If you wish to change it type in the new address
and press ENTER. If you wish to keep it unmodified just press ENTER to skip to the
display of the long address.

ACTIVE ADR:SHORT

SHORT ADDR: 003

If you put in a new address you will see the following LCD screen asking if you wish
to make this address the primary address. Only one address can be the primary
address – the long or the short. You cannot have both active at the same time. The
decoder will not allow it.

The long address is displayed next. If you wish to change it type in the new address
and press ENTER. If you wish to keep it unmodified just press ENTER to continue
programming.

SETUP ADDRESS

LONG ADDR: 1044

If you enter a new long address you will be asked if you want to activate it. Press 1
for yes. Any other key continues with programming.

ACTIVATE

THIS ADDR: 1=YES

NOTES ON ADDRESSES:
The short address is available for use on layouts using short addresses. If the short
address is to be the primary address you should use the last two digits of the loco
number. Short addresses range from 1 to 127.
For the long address, any number from 0 through 9999 can be used. You need to
distinguish long addresses from short when assigning an address below 128 by
entering a zero as the first character.
Example: short address = 64

long address (below 128) = 064

We recommend that if a long address is used, leave the short address at 3. This has
two advantages. One, if the long address is forgotten, the short address is always 3.
Two, advanced consist addresses share the same 1 to 127 address range available
to the short addresses. Using the same address for an Advanced Consist and
another existing loco will cause unpredictable results.

SETTING UP BASIC DECODER CONFIGURATION (CV29)

This option will setup various decoder configuration parameters. There are six of
these parameters squeezed into one CV. Press 1 if you want to set these
parameters. Any other key will skip to Motor Control Setup.

SET CFG?

ENTER=NO 1=YES

You will be asked a series of questions regarding the basic operation of the
locomotive. If you are in doubt about the proper answer just press ENTER and you
will usually be OK.

DIRECTION BIT - NORMAL OR REVERSE

Press ENTER for the locomotive to operate in the normal direction or press 1 to
switch the direction of operation.

DIR BIT? 02:00PM

ENTER=NORM 1=REV

SPEED STEPS - 28 OR 14

If the decoder in this locomotive is an early 14 step decoder then press 1. (all
decoders made since 1997 support 28 speeds). NOTE: If you are wondering how to
set the decoder for 128 speed operation, you do not have to program anything. 128
speed mode is always enabled in decoders that support 128 speed step operation.

SPEED 02:00PM

ENTER=28 1=14 _

DC (Analog) MODE

Press ENTER to turn DC operation mode off, press 1 to turn DC mode on. We
recommend leaving DC mode off for most layouts.

DC MODE 02:00PM

ENTER=NO 1=YES _

This is to prevent all your locomotives from taking off at once in case of a failure in
your power booster or someone accidentally connecting the track to a DC power
supply (it happens more often than you might think).

ADVANCED ACKNOWLEDGE

Press ENTER to turn Advanced Acknowledge mode off, press 1 to turn Advanced
Acknowledge mode on.

ADV ACK? 02:00PM

ENTER=NO 1=YES _

NOTE: advanced acknowledgment is not operational in any decoders at this time as
the NMRA has not defined how it is to work.

SPEED TABLE SELECTION

If the Standard Speed Table is to be used, press ENTER. If an Alternate (uploadable)
Speed Table in the decoder is to be used, press 1.

SPEEDTBL 02:00PM

ENTER=STD 1=ALT_

ENABLE LONG OR SHORT ADDRESS

The short address is used when operating on DCC systems that do not use long
address.

ADDRESS 02:00PM

ENTER=S 1=LONG:_

SETTING UP MOTOR CONTROL PARAMETERS

This option can be used to setup the various locomotive motor speed control
parameters. You can skip adjusting any of these parameters (CVs) by pressing
ENTER. Press 1 to adjust motor control.

SET UP MOTOR

CONTROL? 1=YES

The first adjustment is:

START VOLTAGE (CV2)

Start voltage is the amount of voltage the decoder sends to the motor when a speed
step 1 command is sent to the locomotive. This is some extra voltage to help get the
motor running. You can put in any value from 0-255. If you put in a value of 10 then
10/255 (about 4%) of the full motor voltage will be applied to the motor at speed step
1. In most decoders the start voltage is added to each speed step.

OPS PROG 11:22AM

START VOLTS: _

A good way to setup the Start Voltage is to first set your throttle to speed 1 then go
into this Start Voltage programming and try different values until you get the desired
starting speed. This approach can be used with most of the motor speed
adjustments. You may exit programming at any time by pressing PROG/ESC.

MAXIMUM VOLTAGE (CV5)

This is the amount of voltage applied to the motor at full speed. A value of 255 means
send the full available track voltage to the motor. Lower numbers will tell the decoder
to send proportionally less voltage when full speed is called for.

OPS PROG 11:22AM

MAX VOLTAGE: _

A value of 192 will cut the maximum speed to 192/255 (about 75%) of the track
voltage. Most decoders interpret a value of 0 to mean 255.

MID SPEED VOLTAGE (CV6)

This is the amount of voltage applied to the motor when the middle speed step (14 or
64 depending on speed mode) is requested. A value of 128 means to send about ½
the available track voltage (128/255 of the voltage) to the motor.

OPS PROG 11:22AM

MID VOLTAGE: _

Lower or higher values will send proportionally higher or lower voltages at mid-speed.
Most decoders interpret a value of 0 to mean 128.

ACCELERATION (CV3)

With this CV set to 0 the decoder will be in what is commonly called ‘direct drive’. The
decoder will instantly jump to the speed requested by the throttle. You can add
momentum by adjusting this parameter.

OPS PROG 11:22AM

ACCELERATION: _

A value of 1 will force a delay of .007 seconds between speed steps in 128 speed
mode (.032 seconds in 28 speed mode). This is equivalent to .896 seconds (.007 x
128 speeds) to go from speed 0 to full speed. A value of 10 will yield about 8.9
seconds to full speed.

DECELERATION (CV4)

Deceleration works to delay the slowing down of the motor with the same timing as
acceleration.

OPS PROG 11:22AM

DECELERATION: _

MOTOR PWM FREQUENCY (CV9)

DCC decoders almost always drive the motor of the locomotive with Pulse Width
Modulation (PWM). This is a series of full voltage pulses that vary in width from very
narrow for low motor speed to very wide providing higher power to the motor.

OPS PROG 11:22AM

PWM FREQ: _

How often the pulses are sent is called the frequency. The frequency is adjustable
on some decoders. Settings for this CV vary so consult your decoder manual for the
proper value. If your decoder is capable of ‘silent’ operation usually a 0 is required.

NCE TORQUE COMPENSATION (Dither) KICK RATE
(CV116)

If your decoder supports NCE torque compensation this menu item will be displayed.
If not you will be sent to SET UP FUNCTION MAPPING.

NCE decoders since version 3.5 provide Torque Compensation for smooth low
speed operation. Torque Compensation gives a steady stream of ‘kicks’ to the motor
when running at very low speeds. You can adjust how often the motor is kicked
(Kick Rate) and how hard it is kicked (Kick Strength).

OPS PROG 11:22AM

KICK RATE: _

CV116 controls the rate. The typical value is 2-4 with the maximum practical value of
about 6. The smaller the number the more often the motor gets a brief voltage kick. A
value of 0 turns off the kick. A value of 1 gives continuous kicks to the motor (not
very useful). When using Torque Compensation set the Start Voltage to 0 for best
operation.

NCE TORQUE COMPENSATION (Dither) KICK DEPTH
(CV117)

This is how hard the motor is kicked at low speed. Typical values range from 1 to 40.
High quality motors (Kato) need very little kick strength where lower quality motors
such as old Athearn and LifeLike need relatively large values (30-50) for slow speed
crawling,

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