Why, thank you Ethan. I did increase the chuff rate tonight and it now sounds a bit closer to prototype. I must admit, I'm really enjoying the sound control and smooth operation offered by DCC. My Sprog system displays the sounds on a screen and each sound effect has a slider control for volume and the bell ringing rate and chuff rate can be adjusted slower or faster with a slide control as well. Simply amazing to me. Every loco I get from now on will have DCC and sound. I'm still thinking about getting a Prodigy Express for the handheld throttle control but the Sprog's onscreen laptop throttle will do for now. There's no turning back.
Great update! I can now use my iphone as a handheld wireless throttle for my Sprog system. I got WiFi for our house and using my laptop as the JMRI server and the iphone app called WiThrottle I can use my phone for all functions. Speed control is just a matter of sliding my thumb up or down along the side of the phone's screen and all function buttons are on my touch screen. If I get a call/text/alert on my phone during operation the system automatically puts the loco in idle mode. Couldn't be simpler. I can hardly believe how cool this is. Now I can walk all the way around my layout {OK, I know it's just a 4x8 .Humor me here} and follow my train every inch of the way. If anyone is in a position to try this I highly recommend it. You will not be disappointed. And a big thanks goes out to Keith Robinson.
Another first! Tonight I ran two locomotives on the same track independently using my iPhone as a wireless throttle. Unbelievable! I had dual controls via a split screen so I could see and use both throttles at once. Very cool for a DCC newbie like myself. Going wireless is about as enjoyable as it gets. I would hate to be tethered to a cord. Now I need to explore getting DCC controlled switch machines. Yee Haw!
I think you're hooked. Won't be long before you are behind a computer and running your trains from a dispatcher's board. I'm glad you're having fun. Won't be long before I'm right there with you. Keep up the good work and postings. Great information.
Just thought I would pass this along to any Sprog 3 users. I received this email from the manufacturer: Dear SPROG customer, According to our records, you purchased a SPROG 3 unit from us between February and August 2012. Unfortunately we have discovered an issue with the SPROG 3 that will require a small modification that can only be performed by returning the SPROG 3 to us directly. The SPROG 3 may be damaged if the track output is shorted. The problem has not been seen to affect all users, but we prefer to proactively encourage return of any SPROG 3 units to perform the upgrade. We will, of course continue to honor our upgrade policy on any affected unit at any time in the future. We will perform this remedial work at no cost to you, and apologize in advance for any inconvenience. I've had no trouble with mine but I returned it for their free upgrade anyway. If you have one you probably got the notice but I'm just throwing this out there just in case.
