Pin Out Diagrams
Decoder Buddy Information
This product is versatile in terms of direction of the placement of the board and mounting in various configurations. It can easily replace a QSI board, a Dual Mode decoder board or be mounted directly on the electric motor or frame with Kapton tape. (It is recommended that a piece of Kapton tape be placed on the bottom of the mother board to assure electrical isolation from the electric motor or frame.)
This mother board does not include the 21 Pin Decoder.
This mother board and connector board require soldering.
These printed circuit boards are NOT FOR USE IN A DC SYSTEM.
The on board resistors are sized for LEDs. (2.2K)
The mother board includes;
- One 21 Pin Decoder receptacle,
- Two pairs of track input pads,
- One pair of motor input pads,
- One pair of keep alive pads (U+ and GND),
- Two pairs of speaker pads wired in parallel,
- Resistors for use with LED lighting. (on board 2.2K)
The connector board contains pads for eight pairs of lighting function connections. U+ or the blue wire has eight connected pads for the common power source. The negative (-) discrete function pads are all labeled to indicate their connection to the functions available in the decoder.
If you require incandescent lamps there are procedures that require soldering and allow for incandescent lamp use. Remember there are different incandescent lamp voltages that have to be taken into consideration also.
The lighting connector was designed so that the shell of the diesel locomotive can be easily separated from the frame without unsoldering wires. This does require that the headlight and rear lights be mounted in the shell of the locomotive and that the diesel has a removable dynamic brake shell.
Dimensions
17 mm x 56 mm x 0.9 mm (0.67” x 2.20” x 0.35”)
Height may vary slightly depending on decoder.
Decoder Buddy Output Cross Reference
|
|
Decoder
|
LokSound
|
SoundTraxx
|
| Pin #
|
Buddy
|
Select V4.0 & V5.0
|
T2 & Econami
|
| 3
|
A6
|
A6
|
|
| 4
|
A4
|
A4
|
Fx6
|
| 7
|
F0r
|
F0r
|
F0r
|
| 8
|
F0f
|
F0f
|
F0f
|
| 13
|
A3
|
A3
|
Fx5
|
| 14
|
A2
|
A2
|
Fx4
|
| 15
|
A1
|
A1
|
Fx3
|
| 17
|
A5
|
A5
|
|
Basic Installation
Tools required:
- Soldering iron 15 Watt range
- Solder and flux
- Cutting pliers and pliers
- #1Phillips screw driver
- (#2 Phillips screw driver to remove the weights from the frame)
- Wire stripper
- Tweezers
The mother board is easier to see in this expanded view (below). The four pads arranged vertically on each end are, from top to bottom, Track, Speaker, Speaker, Track. The Speaker pads are wired in parallel, top to top and bottom to bottom. The four labeled pads across the top are U+ a nominal 14 volts, Ground and two MOTOR connections (Orange on the left and Gray on the right). The two motor pads have through holes in the center to allow for wire insertion from the bottom of the printed circuit board for a neater connection. A consistent motor connection color scheme does not seem to exist so these two pads are not labeled as to polarity or color. You should test that the locomotive runs in the correct direction before reinstalling the shell. U+ and GND are provided for a keep alive. The 21 pin connectors should fit together easily. Do not try to force the decoder board onto the mother board. If disassembly is required a sharp or narrow object inserted at the end of the connector to move the board a little at a time from each end is effective.
The connector board is arranged so the wires from one end of the locomotive are routed though one side of the locomotive and wires from the opposite end are routed through the other side. Function 0f is usually the front headlight and function 0r is usually the rear headlight. A1, A3 and A5 occupy the pads on one side of the connector board. This was done in an attempt to organize the decoder functions and output wires to the front and back of the locomotive. (See the compatibility table for different decoder manufacturer’s pin configuration outputs.) U+, the blue wire or common are all connected to the four holed pads which are both connected within the connector board. Note that when the direction of the <=DECODER points toward the 21 pin decoder the keyed 10 pin connector will mate properly. The connectors should fit together easily. Do not try to force either connector board or decoder onto the headers on the motherboard until pins correctly positioned. After the pins are aligned properly firmly press the connector board and the decoder onto the motherboard so there is no space between the header and the printed circuit board. In some installations it may be possible to separate the connector board from the motherboard before removing the locomotive shell. This makes the process of separating the frame and motor parts from the lights in the shell less cumbersome.
Checklist Procedure:
- Remove the shell of the locomotive,
- Unsolder or cut
- Track wires (4),
- Speaker wires (2),
- Motor wires (2),
- Light wires,
- Keep alive wires (2) it is important to label (or measure) polarity,
- Remove the screws attaching the decoder to the frame weights.
- Attach the motherboard to the frame, frame weights or motor.
Solder
- Track wires (4),
- Speaker wires (2),
- Motor wires (2), (test the direction of the motor before soldering),
- Keep alive wires (2) to the correct polarity terminals (U+ and GND) if desired,
- Solder light wires to the connector board,
- Attach the connector board to the motherboard.
- Test the installation before firmly attaching the shell.
Enjoy your newly updated locomotive!!!
Manufacturers Website: NixTrainz