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Congratulations on your purchase of an Atlas Master™ Gold Series HO-scale model of an Alco S-2
locomotive that is factory-equipped with an ESU LokSound Select sound-decoder. This sound-decoder
provides the highest quality sound plus state-of-the art motor control. Your locomotive can run on either
conventional DC (with basic features) or on NMRA Digital Command Control (with full features).
This document describes the features of the LokSound Select sound-decoder installed in the Atlas HO
Gold Series Alco S-2 locomotive when the locomotive is operated on DC and on DCC power. You can
download from the Atlas website the current version of the Atlas
User Manual
[1]
, which includes this
locomotive. This
User Manual
provides a more complete description of both DC and DCC operation.
DC Operation of your Atlas HO-scale Gold Series S-2 Locomotive
Using a standard variable-voltage DC power pack, turn the DC throttle up slowly until you begin to hear
locomotive sounds (around 5 volts). You will hear the diesel engine
Start-Up sound sequence
, which
lasts about 25 seconds. The locomotive will
NOT
move before the
Start-Up
sequence has been
completed. The headlight facing the direction in which the locomotive will move turns on in its
Dim
state.
Once the
Start-Up
sequence has been completed, turn up the throttle voltage up to (about 7 volts) until
the locomotive starts to move. Note that you must turn the throttle to a higher setting than you would to
make a non-sound locomotive start to move. The locomotive starts moving slowly due to built-in inertia
from the
BEMF
(Back EMF) motor control. The headlight in the direction of movement will turn from
Dim
to
Bright
; the headlight facing the opposite direction will be illuminated in the
Dim
state.
On a DC-powered layout, an Atlas HO-scale Gold Series Alco S-2 locomotive will
automatically
produce
sounds that are appropriate for its current state of operation. (e.g., the
Start-Up sound sequence
before
the locomotive begins to move) and
Brake Squeals
as the locomotive grinds to a halt. However, it is not
possible to trigger individual sounds (such as the
horn
or
bell
) manually with DC track power. If you wish
to have manual control of sounds, Atlas suggests that you invest in a
Basic DCC System
which will allow
you to control all available sounds and other special effects in your locomotive and yet be essentially as
simple to operate as a DC power pack.
Basic DCC Systems
that are currently available include the:
-
NCE DCC Twin,
-
MRC Prodigy Explorer DCC,
-
MRC TECH 6 Sound Controller 6.0 (usable in smaller scales, but primarily intended for O-scale
and larger).
Moreover, one can change certain operational characteristics of the locomotive when operating on DC
power, using the same DCC programming that is used to change these characteristics in DCC operation.
See Reference [1] for details
Quick Start for DC and DCC Operation of Atlas Gold Series HO-Scale Alco S-2
Diesel Switchers Equipped with ESU LokSound Select Sound-Decoders