Function
Idle/Moving
F0
Headlight on/off
F1
Bell on/off
F2
Horn
F3
Air release
F4
Coupling
F5
Brake release (idle) / brake squeal (moving)
F6
Dynamic brake on/off (you loco may not have this brake)
F7
Air hose firing/uncoupling lever
F8
Click 3 times w ill shut dow n / notch dow n w hile CV122=3
F9
Engine cooling fan / notch up w hile CV122=3
F10
Rail w heel clack (only moving)
F11
Traction air compressor
F12
Select diesel rumble type, total 4 types
F13
short air release
F14
flange noise
F15
Air pump
F16
Associated loco sound
F17
flange noise
F18
Change bell type (use F1 to turn off bell after adjustment)
F19
Horn type select (total 34 different horns)
F20
Associated loco sound
F21
Change bell volume (use F1 to turn off bell after adjustment)
F22
Change horn volume
F23
Change diesel rumble volume
F24
Coupling
F25
air release
F26
flange noise
F27
Air hose firing
F28
air release
Trim off some plastic
Apply tape
Apply tape
Trim off some plastic
DCC base unit
Power supply
Test track
27 ohm resistor
Figure 4. Diagram of test track
INSTALLATION
Refer to the instructions that came with your Kato F3 locomotive for
removal of the body shell. Remove the original circuit board by very
carefully removing the plastic clip and sliding the PCB out. Don’t lose the
clip. There are two wheel pickup contact strips. These strips must be
wrapped with tape approx. 1/4 wide (as shown in the image below) to
prevent them from touching the motor leads. Trim off some material from
the plastic cradle under the motor lead area to compensate for the tape
thickness. After applying the tape and trimming the plastic, reinstall the
strips. before installing the new decoder, bend the spring contacts under
the rear of the decoder approx 45 degrees to provide correct contact. Now,
install the decoder in place of the original PCB and reinstall the plastic
clip you removed earlier. Apply a strip of tape over the clip & down the
chassis sides to help hold the decoder in place. Re-install the body shell.
Now your loco is ready to go to work on your railroad.
MAKE A TEST TRACK
Before you start with your decoder installation, we strongly recommend
building a test track that uses a 20-ohm resistor to limit current. Only test
your installed decoder on the test track. The test track will prevent any
damage due to an incorrectly installed decoder.
TEST
All MRC decoders have been factory programmed with address #3, 28/128 speed
steps and maximum top voltage. After you have finished your decoder installation
you are ready to test it. Never run the installed decoder on your layout without
first passing the test. You may damage the decoder if it is not wired correctly or if
you have not properly isolated the motor and lights.
Put the loco on the test track. Select the “Run” mode of your DCC system and
select or acquire address #3. Move up the throttle and the loco should move
forward. Push the light button, [F0], and the front headlight should come on.
Change the direction of the loco, the loco should change direction and the rear
headlight, [if equipped], should come on. The locomotive cannot get to full speed,
due to the resistor. If the loco moved forwards and backwards, and the light{s}
came on, you did a great job. Congratulations!
Do not run the loco for an extended period of time on the test track or the resistor
will overheat.
*NOTE- If your installed decoder does not pass the test, find the problem, correct
it and test it again. As long as you test the decoder on the test track there is little
chance of damaging the decoder. That is why the test track is so important. Also
do not confuse a test track with a program track. A program track does not use
the current limiting resistor. Sound decoders need full power to the program track
to install all programming instructions.
DCC OPERATION
The decoder has four types of prime diesel rumble. You can use F12 to select
different diesel rumble. The factory defualt setting is authentic F diesel sound.
The decoder has start up and shut down feature. Press any function key to start
up the engine before operating the loco. To shut down the engine you must bring
the loco to idle and then press F8 three times. If the loco is previously shut down
you have to start up the engine. You can use F19 to select 34 different horn
sounds and use F18 to select different 8 bell sounds. If you don’t have MRC
Prodigy Advance DCC you have to use CV program to select these feature.
The decoder is defualt to automatic notch. You can program CV122 to 3 to set
manual notch for realistic operation. And then use F9 to notch up and use F8 to
notch down. In real life the notch level has noting to do with travel speed.
There are many more program features available with this decoder. Please refer
to the CV Chart to explore other features of the decoder.
DC OPERATION
This decoder provides four sets of synchronized true diesel rumble sound.
However, with DC operation you can only access one set of rumble. And you
can’t control Bells, horns, etc. We recommand you to use MRC BlackBox for
your DC operation. It will enable the full range of sounds on a DC system.
Note- Bell, Dynamic Brake, and Rail-Wheel Clack, cannot play at the same time.
If you activate the bell sound, [F1], while either the Dynamic Brake or Rail-Wheel
Clack sounds are activated, the Bell sound will override the other 2 sounds. Rail
Wheel Clack does not operate while the loco is in idle. There will be a slight
delay when you turn off Dynamic brake and Rail Wheel Clack sounds.