# Digitrax in Aristo Dash-9 questions



## Cougar Rock Rail (Jan 2, 2008)

Hello all,

I have some questions for anyone familiar with installing a Digitrax decoder (presumed to be a 583ar) in an Aristo Dash-9. One of my friends in our train club recently purchased a new Dash-9, and it came with the Digitrax decoder installed but it ran backwards. we reprogrammed CV29 to make it run forward, but now he just installed a second Digitrax decoder in a second identical engine and it too ran backwards. What gives? I'm assuming that the decoders were installed correctly because I understand they just plug into a socket. According to the Digitrax website, the default setting for CV29 should be 6, making it run forwards. Am I missing something? Since he is using MTS, the setting we want is 14 speed steps, analog possible, so it seems like a value of 5 is what we will probably need again on this second loco?

Keith


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## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

Many Aristo locos are wired backwards. This is very common.... wait until you want DC and DCC compatibility... a little rewiring is in order. 

What you do is get it to run the right way on DCC... swap the motor leads until it runs forwards without reprogramming the direction as reverse. 

The try it on DC... if it goes forwards when you want, you are done.. if not, you swap the pickups, NOT the motor leads. 

Clear as mud? 

Welcome to the land of "no particular standard in internal wiring".... 

The Aristo stuff is tested on DC only, and they do NOT pay attention to the correct wiring of the socket.... if it runs the wrong way on DC, they swap wires SOMEWHERE (a random location)... thus making it run the right way on DC and a crapshoot on DCC or anything that uses the socket. 

Regards, Greg


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## Road Foreman (Jan 2, 2008)

Keith, 

Greg is right.. The problem is that the decoder is programed to go forward when the right hand rail is positive on DC.. This is the NMRA standard.. If you make the loco work this way, the decoder will work fine.. This is normally backwards compaired to most L S locos.. 

BulletBob


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## George Schreyer (Jan 16, 2009)

If the loco runs backwards as compared to what your throttle says it should do then either change the CV29 bit to change the normal direction of motion OR reverse the motor wires. 

Then, if the loco still runs backwards when run on DC, reverse the TRACK wires. 

Note than on the DG383x and DG583x decoders, the white and yellow wires on the function harness ARE REVERSED AS WELL. They yellow wire is the one to use for the front headlight. The white one for the reverse headlight. This is apparently due to a patch that Digitrax made due to a reversal error that AristoCraft made. This also holds for the DG583S decoder that will never see an Aristo socket.


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## Cougar Rock Rail (Jan 2, 2008)

That's just F'in great! Once again I'm reminded of why I'll never own anything from Aristo...sheesh! 

Thanks very much guys! 

Keith


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## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

Aristo stuff is not too bad, you just have to re-assemble it sometimes! 

Funny thing is this kind of random wiring never seems to happen to USAT, built by the same people in the same factory. 

One day Aristo will send an engineer to China to watch them make stuff and straighten them out... obviously USAT learned the secret. 

Regards, Greg


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## Cougar Rock Rail (Jan 2, 2008)

The real shame is they take things 90% of the way to making a great product, then &*&^ it all up by cheaping out on the last 10 of the design and q/c. I really like the GP40's and Dash-9's in CN and CP colours, but all the time I've spent repairing my pal's old Pacifics has scarred me for life. 

Keith


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## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

When Aristo was half the price of other stuff, I did not mind fixing the switches or hobbying on the locos... but the cost advantage is dwindling and the frustration of returning things several times to get them repaired is silly. 

I have a friend whose new RDC had bad pickup to most of the wheels, got it repaired, still one bad truck, got a replacement from Aristo, tested, and that one was bad, and bought a new truck from a hobby shop and it had bad pickups too. He finally bit the bullet and fixed them himself... poor assembly (solder joints) and broken brass power straps... NEW stuff... 

Not trying to bash Aristo, but they do need to improve... maybe they will get tired of all the repairs... 

Regards, Greg


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## Cougar Rock Rail (Jan 2, 2008)

Not trying to bash Aristo, but they do need to improve... maybe they will get tired of all the repairs...


You would sure think so, but I suspect the high cost of shipping keeps many frustrated people from sending things back for repair, and I'm sure Aristo knows that all too well. I'm just at the point where I have almost zero tolerance for these kinds of repairs--life is too short as it is! 

Keith


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## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

My friend was wise to that, made them issues a UPS call tag the first time, told them to ship the new truck to him the second. Sad thing is he still had to fix it himself. 

Regards, Greg


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