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Offline SHSB  
#1 Posted : 30 September 2015 00:40:43(UTC)
SHSB

United Kingdom   
Joined: 17/09/2015(UTC)
Posts: 6
Location: Sussex, England
Hi all this is my first post to any forum so if I am in the wrong place for my questions please redirect me.

I have a garden layout which until now has been controlled with the Massoth DiMax system. My dealer after a short demonstration persuaded me to try the Märklin CS 2. I am not sure the CS 2 is suited to the LGB/garden fan. For instance there were/are no LGB loco icons unlike my DiMax which had all my loco icons including the Dietz T1 railcar out of the box. Of the several issues and questions concerning the CS 2 there are two which if I cannot find solutions to mean the CS 2 is going straight back to the dealer!

Firstly, I have locos (Zimo decoders) with up to 16 functions all of which my DiMax operates perfectly. The CS 2 states in the Manual it can display 15, this limit is bad enough but my CS 2 shows only 12. As my electric couplers are variously operated by function 13 or 15 this is very frustrating not to say disappointing, they [electric couplers] cost a lot of money to get installed.

Secondly, I have an LGB loco which has been fitted with Massoth electric couplers operating on function 6 (shared with the safety valve sound). Unfortunately, although when the function is selected the couplers work correctly, a few seconds later they start going up and down on their own. I can cancel this action by pressing the function button a second time but even so the fact that they [couplers] are doing this bothers me as to what damage/wear is occurring.

I don’t know if anyone here has come across these types of problems with the CS 2 before but unless I can find some solutions soon mine is going straight back to the dealer. It seems to me that support here in the UK is a very poor relation to that enjoyed by our our German cousins who it appears enjoy masses of information. Unfortunately, I do not read technical German.

CS2 DETAILS:
Hardware Ver: 5.1
Software Ver: 3.8.1.(112)
Updated 17 Sept 15
thanks 1 user liked this useful post by SHSB
Offline H0  
#2 Posted : 30 September 2015 07:48:30(UTC)
H0


Joined: 16/02/2004(UTC)
Posts: 15,249
Location: DE-NW
Hi!
Welcome to the forum!
Originally Posted by: SHSB Go to Quoted Post
Hi all this is my first post to any forum so if I am in the wrong place for my questions please redirect me.
Well, "Digital" is the correct section, but asking your CS2/LGB question at the end of a thread that deals with MS2 firmware upgrades makes it off topic.
You should have started a new thread.

Märklin now sells the CS2 also in LGB starter sets and recently they added some LGB loco icons to the CS2. More should come in the future.
Your CS2 is missing the 4.0 upgrade (from "Q2/15" LOL) and the 4.1 upgrade from September 2015. Those included some LGB loco icons.
With version 4.0 they added many English help pages and removed many "typos" from the English UI.
It is CS2 tradition that new features will show German texts even if the CS2 was set to "English". In that respect the 4.0 version if five steps forward and one step back.

The CS2 currently handles 16 functions via its touch screen (F0 through F15) and it is expected that the bar will be raised to 32 soon.

Functions F0 through F15 will work only if they have a symbol. When adding a new loco, F13 through F15 (maybe more) will be blank and will not have any function. Simply apply a symbol to the function key.

With respect to digital couplers: you can change any function key from permanent to momentary on a per loco basis. Probably you need that for your couplers so they will be active only while you press the key.
I think you can even set a time-out.

If you cannot read German: how about French or Dutch? The latest PDF manuals for the CS2 are available in German, French, and Dutch.
Regards
Tom
---
"In all of the gauges, we particularly emphasize a high level of quality, the best possible fidelity to the prototype, and absolute precision. You will see that in all of our products." (from Märklin New Items Brochure 2015, page 1) ROFLBTCUTS
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Offline SHSB  
#3 Posted : 30 September 2015 10:19:33(UTC)
SHSB

United Kingdom   
Joined: 17/09/2015(UTC)
Posts: 6
Location: Sussex, England

Hi,

Thank you very much for this information. I dare say I will make many more forum etiquette mistakes; this is all very new to me. To newbie’s like me even the phrase “opening a new thread” is a puzzle, though I have just this morning seen the button at the top of the screen and made the connection!

So now I will shuffle off to where ever I am supposed to be, but before I do, I have a question. You mention upgrades 4.0 and 4.1. Are you saying these updates have been issued since 17 September which was when I last went through the thoroughly daunting (for me) and unpleasant update procedure?

How does one know that there are missing updates?

I can read/write/speak basic German but since I can hardly understand the digital gibberish (to me) written in this forum and elsewhere there is absolutely no hope when it is presented in German! The Märklin manual (English) is IMHO not very helpful and seems like many other sources to depend on a certain level of prior digital knowledge. But complete beginners like me need more of a step by step approach.

Anyway, once again thank you for your time and information.

Regards

Robert

Offline H0  
#4 Posted : 30 September 2015 10:55:37(UTC)
H0


Joined: 16/02/2004(UTC)
Posts: 15,249
Location: DE-NW
Hi, Robert!

Don't worry about "newbie netiquette mistakes". These things happen to everyone.
A moderator moved your questions to a new thread.

Originally Posted by: SHSB Go to Quoted Post
How does one know that there are missing updates?
Either by following this forum or by pressing the Update button on the CS2 while it is connected to the Internet.

Version 4.1 was published on 17 September, version 4.0 came a few weeks earlier.
If you made the upgrade with USB flash memory, then version 3.8.1 is the latest version you can get.

The transition from version 3.5.6 or earlier to 3.6 or later requires starting the upgrade process twice. With later upgrades you have to start it only once. So it will be easier next time.
If your CS2 is not connected to the Internet then you cannot yet get the latest version 4.1.
Regards
Tom
---
"In all of the gauges, we particularly emphasize a high level of quality, the best possible fidelity to the prototype, and absolute precision. You will see that in all of our products." (from Märklin New Items Brochure 2015, page 1) ROFLBTCUTS
UserPostedImage
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Offline SHSB  
#5 Posted : 05 October 2015 00:14:57(UTC)
SHSB

United Kingdom   
Joined: 17/09/2015(UTC)
Posts: 6
Location: Sussex, England
Hello Tom

Thank you for the update information. I was connected to the internet at the time of my first update attempt on the 17 Sep but I only got Ver 3.8 at that time. I have now successfully updated to Ver 4.1 (the procedure was much smoother). Unfortunately, none of the LGB icons included in that update were relevant to me.

I took photos of all my engines made them into icons and uploaded them to the CS 2 from a 2 GB SD card. What may be of interest to others is that when I carried out the upload procedure (which requires being connected to the internet) the system made a cs2 directory, sub directories and folders including one for icons, this is very useful and now the 2 GB card will remain dedicated to the CS 2.
I named my icons in such a way as to force them to the top of the icon library in the CS 2. For example my LGB cleaning loco became “0A2 LGB Cleaning Loco.png”. The numeral 0 and letter A forces the icon to the top or near the top of the library, 2 is the loco address.

The allocation of symbols did the trick but now I have another question (isn’t that always the way!) On my Zimo locos the functions are from 1 – 16 not 0 to 15. Function 16 is the tunnel fade which I like to use when the loco/train is transitioning from the visible scene to the hidden areas to pass time. What if anything can be done about this or, is it best to wait for the update to 32 functions?

Finally, does anyone know of a way to dim the CS 2 screen? On my Massoth commander I can dim the screen for night time use. One of the reasons for buying the CS 2 was to be able to operate from the comfort of the conservatory at night or during inclement weather conditions. At the moment the brightness of the screen against the railway night time illuminations makes this difficult. Also, does anyone know of a way to output the screen of the CS 2 to a large screen, touch sensitive or not?

Regards

Robert
Offline H0  
#6 Posted : 05 October 2015 07:36:42(UTC)
H0


Joined: 16/02/2004(UTC)
Posts: 15,249
Location: DE-NW
Originally Posted by: SHSB Go to Quoted Post
On my Zimo locos the functions are from 1 – 16 not 0 to 15. Function 16 is the tunnel fade which I like to use when the loco/train is transitioning from the visible scene to the hidden areas to pass time.
With my locos with Zimo decoders, functions start at 0. And function assignment can be changed. So maybe move some Fx to F0 and move F16 to Fx.

Originally Posted by: SHSB Go to Quoted Post
Finally, does anyone know of a way to dim the CS 2 screen?
There is a "night mode", but I don't see much difference.


Originally Posted by: SHSB Go to Quoted Post
Also, does anyone know of a way to output the screen of the CS 2 to a large screen, touch sensitive or not?
Use a PC with the PC version, a Mac with the Mac version, or an iPad with the iOS version. Simple solution without soldering.

Regards
Tom
---
"In all of the gauges, we particularly emphasize a high level of quality, the best possible fidelity to the prototype, and absolute precision. You will see that in all of our products." (from Märklin New Items Brochure 2015, page 1) ROFLBTCUTS
UserPostedImage
Offline SHSB  
#7 Posted : 04 November 2015 19:07:07(UTC)
SHSB

United Kingdom   
Joined: 17/09/2015(UTC)
Posts: 6
Location: Sussex, England
Hello Tom

As ever thank you for your reply. I tried the dimming trick and it didn’t work! Perhaps it’s going to be in an update:)

I have ascertained that the PC CS 2 software should work in Win 10, so when time permits I will try this out as a way of getting the big picture.

Finally, is it possible to delete loco icons from the main list and if so how?

Regards

Robert
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