Lenz Releases Silver Series Decoders

Lenz Products | Lenz Decoders

Here is an edited copy of Lenz's announcement.

Lenz GmbH is pleased to announce the release of our new Silver Series Decoders.

Silver Series decoders have the same superior silent back emf motor drive as our popular Gold Series decoders and also share much of the same feature set. We are now taking orders for the Silver-MP decoder and will begin shipping product to dealers the first week of October 2005.

Silver-MP: List $31.95, Tony's Price
• In stock and currently shipping to dealers
• Size: L 0.91" x W 0.66"x H 0.12" L 23mm x W 16.6mm x H 2.9mm
• Our thinnest HO scale decoder that will fit in very small spaces
• the Silver decoder series introduces a superior performance and feature set at a great price.

Here are the specs:

Current Rating:
Cool Continuos running: 1.0 amps - you can run your decoder for days at this rating and the decoder will stay cool. Almost all HO and many S and O scale locomotives draw less then 1 amp in normal continuous operation.

Peak motor current:
1.8 amps - As you increase the continuous amp rating the decoder begins to heat up. The decoder can safely take peak currents of up to 1.8 amps before the temperature overload protection safely shuts down the decoder.

Locked Rotor Stall Current:
> 5 Amps* (overload protected) - Many high efficiency motors have a high stall current. This is simply not a problem with the Silver decoder. The high frequency back emf motor drive coupled with both short and temperature overload protection means that the decoder can safely protect itself against even a locked armature.

The motor drive. Its quiet and smooth motor control results in exceptional performance. The reason is that the Silver decoders have the same motor drive as found in our high end Gold Series decoders!

The motor drive is a high frequency (23k) 7th generation back emf motor control. While the default setting is fantastic, the motor drive can also be user configured if desired to the individual motor characteristics in the locomotive.

Add to this all the high end DCC features common in Lenz Decoders, plus a broad array of advanced lighting features and function mapping capabilities. The decoder has four 100ma built-in function outputs that are short protected. The decoder supports function mapping so each of the 4 function outputs can be configured to one or more of 10 DCC functions (F1-F8 + F0-F or F0-R) and one output can support any of the 14 DCC functions. The exceptional lighting effects (same as the Gold decoder) can be optionally be activated by up to two separate configurable DCC functions and the decoder operation affected by two additional configurable function inputs (switching speed and braking delay).

The Silver decoders also support Asymmetrical DCC for location specific commands using a simple BM-1 or our soon to be released BM-2 and BM-3 Series for Block management

Asymmetrical DCC allows your layout to come alive, even if you only have one operator. You can also use asymmetrical DCC to enforce speed control through important sections of your layout or to stop a train in a siding, in the station, or before an occupied rail crossing. Using a few diodes, you can even protect a train from overrunning a turnout thrown in the wrong direction, preventing unintended shorts which shut down a section of the railroad.

The Silver decoders come with our industry leading 10 year warranty. The motor and all function outputs are short and overload protected and of course the decoder will be submitted for full NMRA conformance.

We welcome comments or suggestions from readers; please write or call.