With the new ZL do the handles have to be off before turning it on like the MTH Z4000. Or can you just leave them @ 18 volts?
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Spence,
Leave them at 18v, or as I do, a their max, which is about 18.6-18.8v and it stays there rather consistently. I turn it on & off with a remote control outlet, and never bother adjusting the handles.
Alex
It is not like the MTH. If any of the ZW-Ls throttle levers are up (throttle opened) when you turn it on, you immediately get that much power to the track. So if you turn it off with Track 1 set to a scale 23 mph, it will come back at that level, etc. Also means that if you bump the throttle a bit past "off" inadvertently, when you turn it on, you are in for a surprise as the train takes off unexpectedly.
That said, I don't use this feature. I always shut down all the throttles to zero and then shut it off, and vice versa: not sure it would harm it as much as that is just how I was taught to run my trains sixty years ago.
Ingeniero:
Lee:Thank you both. I have the MTH Z4000 and am not happy with it. My ZW with 2 180 bricks & my MPC transformer both work with the handles left on. If you leave the Z4000 handle on the red light comes on & then you have to sut the handles off n& then on. It doesn't seem like a big deal but I'm use to the old way. I guess I'll have to spring for a new Lionel.
Spence,
Definite difference in engineering the ZW's even the old ZW's come on at what ever level they are turned of at, the MTH Z4K is engineered for a manditory restart when the power is shut down. I like the fact my old KW & ZW's can be controlled by the remote without having to be reset the handles, resetting my Z4K is not a big deal to me however, my ZW's & KW's have been around a long long time because I do not have to mess with the handles using the DCS, I wish MTH would have engineered in the same manner, no doubt about it.
PCRR/Dave
In command mode, you leave the dials set to max but when you turn it on you have to dial up the power using the legacy remote. No power is applied to the track in command mode until addressed by the remote.
Originally Posted by Joe Fermani:
In command mode, you leave the dials set to max but when you turn it on you have to dial up the power using the legacy remote. No power is applied to the track in command mode until addressed by the remote.
Joe is right. One additional point, the Legacy Control System needs to be powered up first, and then turn on the ZW. They recommend that they be on separate power strips.
Dave
The main reason I did not go with a Z4000. I went with the modern ZW so I can leave the handles where they are and not have to reset them. I think that was a design oversight with the Z4000 in my opinion.
Does the fact that the MTH Z4000 is UL approved require that the transformer start at "0" volts? Is the Lionel transformer UL approved?
Originally Posted by Hudson5432:
Does the fact that the MTH Z4000 is UL approved require that the transformer start at "0" volts? Is the Lionel transformer UL approved?
No, that's not why. Not sure if there is a documented or fully accepted rationale for why, but it may have been to prevent jackrabbit starts if someone forgot to drop the handles when operating conventional trains. Actually not a bad feature, just not terribly useful if you are running command control and want the voltage to always be up.
Yes the ZW-L is UL (or some similar agency) approved. The output power of the ZW-L was actually reduced to gain such approval, it was originally supposed to be 720 watts, but it could not get approval if capable of putting out that many watts.
-Dave
another nice feature is if the channel shuts down due to a short, you can reset the channel via the remote and power it back up without going back to the transformer. Wish the remote would display the voltage when you addressed the channel. That would really be nice.
