Bli's Paragon 2

[hamltnblue]

Well I picked one of the new BLI Paragon 2 AC6000's up this weekend. After checking it out and running about an hour it appears that the unit is identical to the Blueline version with a BLI decoder. CV8 reports a value of 38 which indicates Broadway Limited. Most functions are the same with some good stuff added. I'll only list the CV's added to the Blueline list.
CV1 Primary Address
CV2 Vstart
CV3 Acceleration Delay
CV4 Deceleration Delay
CV5 VMAX
CV6 VMID
CV10 Back EMF on/off
CV15 Unlock ID Code
CV16 Lock ID number
CV17 Extended address MSB
CV18 Extended address LSB
CV21 Consist functions type 0
CV22 Consist functions type 1
CV29 Configuration bits
CV 33-61 Function key assignment
CV67-94 Speed table entries
CV 128 Master volume. Now 0-128 Blueline is 0-15
CV135-152 individual volumes. Same but now default 128. Was 100
CV153 Passenger /Freight message volume
CV155 Maintenance/Radio volume
CV156 City/Farm/Industrial/Lumber volume
CV193-199 Diesel RPM level 1-7 to adjust where Diesel speeds up
CV208 Cab light Throttle stop (NO CAB LIGHT IN THE AC6000)
CV209 Brake set throttle stop
CV210 Brake release throttle stop
CV224 Horn select (between 3 horns) they are present
CV225 DCC Control 1
CV226 DCC Control 2
CV227 Forward/Reverse warning (horn blasts when starting forward or rev)
CV229 Extend consist lighting
CV230 DCC easy consist
CV231 Headlight brightness
CV238 Loop repeat
CV239 Macro loop adjust
CV240 Random sound occurrance
CV245 Enable alternate horn ending and start delay

 

[hamltnblue]

The engine has a reset button that resets all CV values to default. This is of course for those who run DC or cant simply set CV8 to a value of 8.

The new sounds are not played randomly. They have a series of messages that are randomly played on each function key press. You get one sound and it's done such as a moo from a cow or a car horn toot. The function keys can be reassigned.
F14 passenger station sounds
F15 Freight train departing or arrival message
F16 Maintenance facility sounds
F17 Crew Radio messages
F18 City sounds
F19 Farm sounds (Cow, Rooster etc)
F20 Industrial sounds
F21 Lumber mill sounds

Macro recording. I haven't tried this one but it looks interesting.
You use one function key to record the operation of the engine while you're running. You hit the same function key to stop recording.

Another function key is pressed and the engine will repeat the recorded operation. You can repeat between 1-14 times or indefinitely. You can also adjust the timing of the loop. During playback the DCC controller will not function. The emergency stop button will stop the playback and return to normal. There is a limitation to the space you have to record and it depends on how many throttle changes you have as well as horn presses etc. 28 speed steps is suggested to increase recording time.

In the back of the manual there are instructions for NCE procab users to enable function keys F13-28 if you have firmware dated March 2007 and later. Luckily I have it. How it works is if you press the option button once , F1-9 act as Functions 11-19, Twice they act as 20-29. The expn button will also show the status of all 28 functions. Pretty neat.

A couple of things noted during operation.
1. At higher rpm's the diesel has a much higher pitch. Enough to give you a headache. It will require some volume adjustment for sure.
2. With no sound the engine is completely silent. Very nice mechanics as was the case with the Bluelines.
3. The speed steps are completely different that the default of my Blueline AC6000 using an N14IP decoder. To consist some work will be needed.
4. Alternate horns are a bit different than the default. All sound good.

All in all the Paragon 2 has an excellent set of features. Two Thumbs up