Model Railroading > Decoder Programming Help

A friend of mine has an Athearn SP GP9 with the full light package and a Tsnami sound decoder.
However, the light package does not work correctly. The front and rear Mars lights don't light
at all, and the rear one lights with the Mars light effect. My friend says he has gone through
all the directions and can't figure out what to do. And I have absolutely no clue on how to solve
this dilemma. Does anyone have any solutions here? Any and all help is appreciated.

Nick Tharalson,
Marion, IA

I don't believe there is a light were the red mars light is, and you really wouldn't want it anyways. It was just a warning light that indicated the train was in emergency to an approaching train on double track, and two watch out for derailed fouling cars. The gryalights are right under the mars light and should have the oscillating effect. The regular headlights were the lower most set of lights

Ted Curphey
Ontario, OR

Ted is correct. However, my friend can't get the Mars light to work, and the rear headlight
has the Mars light effect. We're trying to fix this. Sorry if I wasn't too clear on this.

Nick Tharalson,
Marion, IA

Do a factory reset on the decoder.

Nick,

Is this a brand new loco? If so, did the lights ever light up?
I agree with the earlier suggestion to do a factory reset. If the lights do not work after that, it may be either the bulbs, the wiring, or the decoder itself. If the engine is broken right out of the box, it can probably be returned for a warranty repair.
I believe that the Tsunami is a dual mode decoder. What happens if engine is run on DC? Do the lights come on?


Bob Perkins
Cedar Rapids

Trace the wires from the rear of the locomotive. There will be a bundle of two pairs from the rear headlight. There will be another bundle of two pairs for the rear oscillating lights and then a single pair for the oscillating red light. That is 10 wires going to six contact points which seems like a lot of opportunity for error during assembly.

Good luck.

Posted from Windows Phone OS 7