OK New Yorkers - I confess my only subway riding experience has been on our local WMATA system. I got my R34s and put the power car on the tracks to add it. Tried the horn. Like it a lot. Then hit the bell. Was rather surprised to hear the buzz sound. It sounds intentional; i.e. like a recording, so I assume nothing is wrong with my unit. Tried Google but couldn't get a hit. What's the story on using that sound vs. a normal bell?

Thanks.

There are no bells on a subway train. When a conductor would communicate with the motorman, the signal used was a buzzer. For example, two buzzers meant "proceed."

Elliot

I just wish I could do the two quick buzzes like the conductors really do. I can't hit them fast enough to get that right cadence. Is it any different with DCS than from the transformer?

Chris,

No, it's the same with DCS. It's most likely a function of the recording, not how fast you can press the button in sequence.

As an addendum to this post, I thought I'd add the following buzzer codes. Things may have changed over the years, but here are the buzzer codes as I knew them to be:

Conductor to Motorman:
1 Buzz = Call me. Also used as a signal to stop at next local stop (for example, when express was running on local track).
2 Buzzes = Proceed forward.
3 Buzzes = Stop immediately.
4 Buzzes = Back slowly (in yard only).

Motorman to Conductor:
1 Buzz = Come forward (call me).
2 Buzzes = Station platform signal has cleared. Ready to proceed (close doors).
3 Buzzes = Leaving the cab. (Also used as a signal to keep doors open). (Also used as a signal to set manual brake)
4 Buzzes = Ready (request permission) to back up.

Elliot

motorman to conductor.
5 buzzez= krispykreme break.

conductor to motorman.
6 buzzez= bring me some.

lmfao!

Thanks for the answer and the optional entertainment.

It would be cool if MTH included a soft key to play the "boong boong" sound when the doors are closing