about a year ago i installed a DZ123 into a F59 athearn locomotive (Dallas TRE). everything worked great with the install. i ran it for a few days and still no problem. i put it in my trainbox and just until yesterday i took it out to run it. well nothing happened. the engine did not move at all. i put it on the programming track and read the decoder address. just what i had programmed. can anyone help me solve this problem. just some more info i have a digitrax zephyr system and all of my other locos run great after the same amount of time. i have had nothing but bad luck with these DZ123 decoders.
I've had several DZ123s with no problems, but I haven't got enough layout finished to use them alot. But, since you can read back the decoder, it indicates that the decoder sees the rails, and the motor sees the decoder. So, I'd wonder if there was a addressing mode (short vs long address) problem, or maybe something else corrupted. Resetting the decoder would be one posibility, or perhaps first just reprogramming the address. Jeff
Forgetful decoders enjoy a good Reset I've heard in a couple of other threads anecdotal evidence that 'some decoders' 'forget' their settings if they sit in a box for several months. The work-around employed is to place the offending beast back on the programming track, reset it and reprogram all the settings. Then it's all beautiful and happy tracks. I believe the reset method varies from brand to brand; usually it's just program a set CV to a set value. My 8-page datasheet for a DZ143 says to set CV08 to 08; so a DZ123 should be similar - but check the datasheet, or www.digitrax.com. Then you'll have to reprogram address / inertia / everything. If that doesn't work, I'd suggest cleaning the various bits that move and conduct and try again. And if that doesn't help, I'm running out of ideas, so come back and ask here again
I'm having the same problem with a DH163, but even better! I stopped the locomotive, then switched the direction, and when i put the throttle up, nothing happened. It just sat there. It does not appear to be responding to anything. there are no signs of scorch marks or other damage. I tired putting it in a different locomotive to make sure the wiring was ok, but still nothing.
That DH163 sounds even worse Only thing I can think of is to try putting it on the programming track and see if it even responds - with my NCE PH-Pro, for example, if you watch closely the engine 'twitches' as the programming code accesses it to display information like manufacturer, model, current CV settings. (The decoder 'responds' by drawing current, by moving the motor - hence the loco twitches) If you can measure volts at the decoder and it doesn't even twitch on the programming track, I would fear the worst. If it at least twitches, you can try the reset and reprogram the address and see how much life you can draw out of it.
