Sound - Phoenix 2K2 Sound Board Installation |
by Paul Norton
INTRODUCTION
This article details the installation of a Phoenix 2K2 sound board in an Aristo-Craft GP-40 diesel. The installation instructions would be similar for any Plug and Play diesel using track power, a trailing battery car, or on-board battery power.
This diesel is radio controlled using an Aristo-Craft, 2.4 GHz Train Engineer. The auxiliary controller built into the 2.4 GHz receiver will be used to trigger the bell and horn, as well as, raise and lower the sound volume.
Nothing in this sound board installation prevents the locomotive from being returned to its original condition for re-sale at a later date.
REMOVING THE SHELL
Remove the cover for the switches (dynamic brake blister) from the top of the locomotive.
Remove the handrails from the sides and ends of the locomotive.
Place the locomotive upside down on a soft engine cradle taking care not to damage the horns.
Remove the ten screws outlined in yellow that hold the shell to the frame.
- Two are at the very front behind the short hood pilot. Do not remove the screw in the center.
- Two are near the edge of the frame in front of the rear wheels of the front truck.
- Two are under the rear of the front truck.
- Two are just in front of the rear truck.
- Two are at the very rear behind the long hood pilot. Do not remove the screw in the center.
Turn the locomotive over and lift the shell from the frame from the back to the front. The long hood, cab and short hood will all come off as one piece. Set the shell on the engine cradle beside the frame taking care not to damage the horns.
INSTALLING THE RECEIVER
If the 2.4 GHz Train Engineer receiver is not already installed, remove the 12-pin dummy plug outlined in yellow from the front of the Plug and Play socket.
Install the receiver, ensuring the pins on both ends are properly lined up with the socket. Straighten the antenna.
Program the receiver in accordance with the instructions provided in the Installation and Operation Manual for the 2.4 GHz TE. The manual is available on the Aristo-Craft web site as an Adobe pdf file. To read or download the manual, click on the link.
PLUG AND PLAY WIRING
The 2.4 GHz Train Engineer comes with a 7-pin auxiliary control wiring harness that is used to trigger the functions of the 2K2 sound board.
Aristo-Craft also sell a set of plugs to power the sound board and connect the on-board speaker in their locomotives to the sound board.
The 7-pin auxiliary control wiring harness plugs into the rear of the receiver.
The 2-pin connector plugs into the header labeled SOUND PWR on the front of the Plug and Play circuit board.
The 3-pin connector plugs into the header labeled SPK.
SOUND BOARD WIRING
The Phoenix 2K2 has screw terminals on each end of the sound board which makes fastening the wiring easy. The terminals are number 1 through 8 on one side of the board, and 9 through 16 on the other.
Here are the functions assigned to each of the terminals.
- Track/Motor Power, 0 to 24 Volts
- Track/Motor Power (0 to 24 Volts)
- Line Out, Audio
- Volume Increase Decrease (See note below for terminal 4.)
- Volume Ground
- Volume Decrease Increase (See note below for terminal 6.)
- Speaker
- Speaker
- Accessory Programming Jack, red wire
- Accessory Programming Jack, yellow wire
- Input
- Input
- Input, Bell
- Input, Whistle/Horn
- Input, Speed
- Accessory Programming Jack Ground, black wire(See note below for terminal 16.)
Terminals 1 and 2: Insert the wires of the 2-pin connector, attached to header labeled SOUND PWR on the front of the Plug and Play circuit board, into the sound board terminal openings labeled 1 and 2. Tighten the screws down to secure the two wires.
These two wires are connected through the internal wiring of the diesel to the motors. They will power the sound board when the locomotive is running. The sound will change as the speed of the motors increases and decreases. Polarity is not an issue, as it changes every time the locomotive changes direction.
NOTE: If the locomotive motor switch is turned off during the testing or programming of the sound board, the engine sound will be at full speed and not change.
Terminals 4 and 6: Insert the yellow and blue wires of the auxiliary control wiring harness attached to the TE receiver, into sound board terminal openings labeled 4 and 6 respectively. Tighten the screws down to secure the two wires.
When key 1 on the 2.4 GHz TE transmitter (which includes a minus sign) is pushed, the sound volume will decrease. When key 3 is pushed, the sound volume will increase. Key 2 will be used for another function which will be explained later.
NOTE: When the blue wire for key 1 was originally fastened in the opening of terminal 6 (decrease volume) and the yellow wire for key 4 in opening of terminal 4 (increase volume), the opposite results were obtained. So you may want to make a note in your 2K2 manual that when using the 2.4 GHz TE, terminal 4 decreases the volume and terminal 6 increases it.
NOTE: Phoenix has confirmed that it is safe to use the 2.4 GHz TE auxiliary controller in place of the switch provided with the 2K2 sound board. But the auxiliary controller should NOT be used in place of the switch provided with the PB9 sound board, as it functions differently than the 2K2.
Terminals 7 and 8: Insert the two wires of the 3-pin connector, attached to header labeled SPK on the front of the Plug and Play circuit board, into the sound board terminal openings labeled 7 and 8. Tighten the screws down to secure the two wires.
These wires are connected, through the internal wiring of the diesel, to the on-board speaker.
Terminals 9, 10 and 16: If you are not using the Phoenix accessory for programming the 2K2 sound board, skip this step.
NOTE: Phoenix has advised not to hook up the black (ground) wire from the auxiliary control wiring harness attached to the TE receiver to the 2K2 sound board as it causes a ground loop.
Mount the jack for the Phoenix accessory for programming the 2K2 sound board in an accessible spot. On this GP-40 it was mounted with the battery switch and charging plug, on a styrene plate that replaced the smoke unit.
If you wish to keep the smoke unit, it could be mounted between the smoke unit and the switch panel by drilling a 5/16ths inch hole.
Insert the red, yellow and black wires of the programming accessory jack into the sound board terminal openings labeled 9, 10 and 16 respectively. Tighten the screws down to secure the three wires.
Terminals 13 and14: Insert the green and orange wires of the auxiliary control wiring harness attached to the TE receiver, into sound board terminal openings labeled 13 and 14 respectively. Tighten the screws down to secure the two wires.
When key 2 on the 2.4 GHz TE transmitter (which includes a B) is pushed, the bell will ring. Item 1.k in the Assign Functions Menu on the transmitter can be used to change the bell trigger from momentary to latching so it will sound until the B key is pushed again.
When key 4 on the 2.4 GHz TE transmitter (which includes an H) is pushed, the horn will sound until the key is released.
Terminal 16: Phoenix has advised not to hook up the black (ground) wire from the auxiliary control wiring harness attached to the TE receiver to the 2K2 sound board as it causes a ground loop.
Plug the small 3.6 volt battery pack which came with the sound board into the 2-pin header in the sound board.
When charged, this battery pack will power the sound board for a programmable length of time when the locomotive is stopped.
MOUNTING THE SOUND BOARD
Apply a Velcro dot to the large IC on the bottom of the sound board. Apply another dot on one side of the small battery pack.
Mount the sound board and battery pack in a suitable spot inside the locomotive shell. For this particular diesel, the battery fit in a bulge in the side of the hood behind the cab, and the sound board was mounted on the other side.
INSTALLING THE SHELL
Replace the shell using the "Removing The Shell" instructions as a guide. Be careful not to pinch any of the wiring between the frame and the shell. Do not fasten the shell down yet.
Place the locomotive on the track, add power and test the sound system and the triggers on the transmitter. If everything functions as it should, fasten the shell to the frame.
CONGRATULATIONS! You have successfully installed a Phoenix 2K2 sound board in an Aristo-Craft GP-40.
ENJOY!
Comments:
From Paul Norton [76.68.97.100] - 5/23/09 4:53 PM
From Steve Featherkile [75.106.192.54] - 5/21/09 4:13 PM
Good article.
It's too bad that the "Evolution" can't access all of the sounds on the 2K2. Now that would be a much better product.
To keep the idle sound running longer than the 5 or 6 seconds that the little battery gives you, snip off the plug that comes with the little battery supplied by Phoenix, and wire it into the full power battery. Then plug it into the 2 prong socket for that little battery, and the idle sound will continue for as long as there is juice in the big batteries. You can install a SPSP switch to turn off that electricity, and the 2K2 will go through the shut down sounds.
Comment on this Page
Last Modified 9/25/09 3:40 PM
Thanks Steve!
As there are still two auxiliary controller wires left, there may be other sound functions that could be used. As I become more familiar with the system, perhaps I will add a few more.
As you mentioned, the lithium-ion battery pack could be wired directly to the sound board using a small, 2-pin battery plug. In the GP-40 the sound board has been programmed to allow the small, Phoenix battery pack to carry the sound for two minutes after the lithium-ion battery switch has been turned off.