New TCS Speaker - The 28x18mm* "micro" speaker with enclosure - TCS Part Number 1717

*dimensions are reflective of the total outside perimeter

TCS recently released a new style of speaker for sale. This speaker is, at it's core, based upon the increasingly-popular cellphone-style "sugar cube" speaker; however, no other speaker of a comparable size can deliver crisp, clean, quality audio the way this speaker does. Even compared to some of the high-quality offerings from TCS, this new speaker can blow some of them out of the water! (Now just imagine what it can do to your OEM speaker *wink*)

In TCS' march for continuous improvement, and continuing dedication to delivering the best quality products with the latest and greatest technology, we guarantee you can hear the difference between this speaker and the competition.

This 28mm x 18mm speaker is a tough little beast capable of pumping out 1.2 Watts of power, despite the relatively small size of the actual driver. This micro speaker comes packaged inside an air-tight injection-molded plastic enclosure to maximize the volume and frequency response, especially at the low end. On the outside, 5 out of the 6 sides are covered in a padded foam material. This material will prevent distortion caused by vibration if the enclosure is within a small space, or crammed up against any surface(s).

This speaker also comes from TCS with 6-inch (152mm) long 32AWG wire and a 2-pin JST "SR"-Series connector. This connector can be clipped off if not needed, but can be readily plugged into some products such as the WM-MB1 and WM-MB2 motherboards. Check it out in the 1717's debut installation for the Walthers Mainline GE GEVo HERE.

Specs

Dimensions: 1.1" x 0.71" x 0.32" (or 28mm x 18mm x 8.1mm)
Sound Pressure Level (SPL): 95 dB ± 3.0 dB at 1.2W, 10cm, 2.0 KHz.
Effective Frequency Band: 500 Hz. to 20,000 Hz.
Power Rating: 1.2W (Typical) 1.5W (Peak)
DC Impedance: 6 Ω ± 20 % at 1.2W 2000 Hz.

Important Safety Note When Using This Speaker:

TCS WOWSound decoders use an audio amplifier capable of supplying up to 2 Watts of power to an 8 Ohm load at maximum volume. The amplifier(s) on a WOWSound product can support speakers with impedance ratings as low as 4 Ohms. A reduction in impedance will result in a more power (more Watts) being supplied to the speaker. This speaker is rated at 6 Ohms of Impedance and 1.2 Watts of continuous power. (See "Specs" for more details) It is recommended that you set your master volume to ~60% or less to prevent over-driving and damage to your decoder or speaker.

 

How This Speaker Came to Be

Our audio experts at TCS were truly blown away by the first impressions we got of the first samples of these speakers, delivering an impressive amount of volume, and more importantly bass, in such a small package!

Originally, this design was going to be a one-off use for an OEM project, the Bachmann Sound Value GP35, but we were so impressed that we couldn't NOT make it available to our customers for their own installations!

The latest run of EMD GP35 locomotives for 2022 in the Sound Value line from Bachmann Trains are a unique lot. The chassis used in these particular locomotives was originally not designed for sound AT ALL, so our clever engineers at TCS had to think outside the box for a solution. Our line of thinking led us to a unique decoder design with an integrated speaker inside the decoder itself! (shown below)

By integrating the speaker directly into the decoder's PCB, we were able to place the speaker in a tactical position - directly above the motor! Doing so allows the sound output from the speaker to flow through the only hole in the top of the chassis, around the motor, through internal routes in the chassis, and out through the trucks. We also noticed that the sealed nature of the shell also amplifies resonance, improving the audio quality. The foam padding on the enclosure prevents unwanted vibrations and distortion, and holds the speaker in place within the decoder. Very clever, if we do say so ourselves. But don't just take our word for it; pick up your own Sound Value GP35, coming later in 2022 from Bachmann Trains!

 

Your New Favorite N-Scale Companion

Thanks to the compactness, as well as its ability to output a lot of power, this new speaker is very useful in N-scale sound decoder installations. One of our favorites is the KATO FEF-3.

This locomotive in particular has an internal design which is very friendly to the installation of this speaker and a WOW101-Steam sound decoder. TCS' Dan M has done three successful installations for customers using the setup shown below:

 

The final product of this setup is loud, clear, and authentic steam sound which might confuse your HO buddies into thinking you changed scales!

Video Coming Soon!