Athearn SD70ACe review and comparison


The only problems I have had with my two UP ACe's (8334/MOPAC) is the engineer side ditchlights are dim on both of them, and the wire for the headlights are routed under the roof magnet braket instead of through the guide hole they provide so you can see the wires hanging down into the detailed cab interior. Should have spent less time/money making interiors nobody will see, and spent more making sure the assemly was done correctly.

Handrails are arrow straight (even the front and rear) and their are no paint blemishes. One is slightly faster than the other in DC operation, but that will be fixed with decoders since they will be ran on DCC.

They both run great. Very quiet after a 1 hour break in with no truck problems.

Overall I am very happy with them. Hopefully by the time they release the NS M-2/ACe, and CSX ACe's they will have the little quirks fixed.
 
I got an email today from Athearn stating they know there is a quality issue on the new Genesis SD70ACe and that they are sending over people to China next week to resolve the issues that they have been notified of. I was glad to see Athearns quick response to getting back to me and I truly hope they get the quality back up on these units.
 
Coy said:
The only problems I have had with my two UP ACe's (8334/MOPAC) is the engineer side ditchlights are dim on both of them, and the wire for the headlights are routed under the roof magnet braket instead of through the guide hole they provide so you can see the wires hanging down into the detailed cab interior. Should have spent less time/money making interiors nobody will see, and spent more making sure the assemly was done correctly.

Handrails are arrow straight (even the front and rear) and their are no paint blemishes. One is slightly faster than the other in DC operation, but that will be fixed with decoders since they will be ran on DCC.

They both run great. Very quiet after a 1 hour break in with no truck problems.

Overall I am very happy with them. Hopefully by the time they release the NS M-2/ACe, and CSX ACe's they will have the little quirks fixed.
Click to expand...

Try hitting F7 and see whether the ditch lights get brighter. F7 is manual dimming.
 
diburning said:
Try hitting F7 and see whether the ditch lights get brighter. F7 is manual dimming.
Click to expand...

They are both DC. The problem with them is that the bulb is not fully seated in the ditchlight housing. I fixed them both today. Thanks.
 
Coy, can you look in the first post picture and tell me if the wire are run in the cab the same way than mine ?
 
julienjj,

Yes, they are. If you look above the magnet bracket, you can see the guide hole that would set them above the cab interior, instead of hanging down into it. With the wires being set the way they are in both of mine, and yours also it seems, pushes the back wall of the cab down, and leaves a small gap.
 
Athearn published some upgraded cv seting to improve the sound, I highly suggest you try them,it make the horn really louder, and the bass deeper

• CV 128 = 230 Master Volume
• CV 129 = 255 Horn Volume
• CV 130 = 80 Bell Volume
• CV 131 = 150 Prime Mover Volume
• CV 143 = 50 Channel 14 Mixer (Poppet)
• CV 153 = 7 Equalizer Control
• CV 156 = 165 250Hz Cut/Boost
• CV 157 = 140 500Hz Cut/Boost
• CV 158 = 160 1 KHz Cut/Boost
• CV 159 = 145 2 KHz Cut/Boost:
• CV 160 = 200 4 KHz Cut/Boost
• CV 161 = 7 Reverb Control Register
• CV 162 = 180 Reverb Level
• CV 163 = 32 Reverb Delay Time
• CV 164 = 32 Reverb F.B. Gain Level
• CV 169 = 10 Reverb Ch. 7 Mixer Level
 
Update : With the new settings, the loco now blow out a steady 74DB when iddle, and the horn push it to 83.4DB, making the locomotive as loud as the mth ( only at 230/255 !). I suggest you lower the master volume a bit, since it does get annoying quickly
 
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