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Earlier Digitrax tech support mentioned buying a DCS210 (not the DB210 I was assuming). Why was this suggested and what are the differences in specifications, operation & price?
I have finished soldering my additional feeder wires to my added layout of 40 sq ft ( total layout now 90 sq ft). I ran 1 engine around ENTIRE layout and had no hesitation or flickering headlight. I am planning to run 3-4 engines eventually.
Plus I did the short test with a quarter like substance across track and Zephyr Express did register a fault. Then it reset itself. IF IT DID NOT DO THIS, I would have definitely needed a booster per the instructions in Digitrax link you sent me.
So now I am in a quandary to boost or not to boost.
Digitrax said I would need a booster with all the turnouts/switches I will have---eventually 12 Cobalt Digitals and 4 Atlas snap switches run by a pair of Digitrax DS52s (stationary decoders).
Do you believe the momentary amperage drawn by these individual digital switches will overload my Zephyr Express (3 amps).
For each turnout I have 1-2 ground signals as well drawing some amperage as well.
I wish I could calculate the amperage drawn from the 3-4 engines and these momentary switches (with ground signals) to estimate if amperage will go over 3 amps.
Do you have a formula for this or where could i find a way to calculate amperage used?
The Digitrax web site, www.digitrax.com, will give you the most current info about the DCS 210 and DB 210. Same for the current draw of DS 52s. Usually I see the loco current draw to be the lion's share of power. Do you know what your locos draw in max amps?
Where do you find max loco amperage?
Does anyone think the momentary 16 digital switches described above and the 1-2 ground signals with each one draw much amperage?
In that case, it's down to total power requirements.
Do not the turnouts and/or DS52 offer a separate, auxiliary power supply so they don't have to consume track power?
HO engines use varying amounts of current depending on speed and load, but seldom exceed about 0.5A individually. IIRC a lightly loaded single unit train would typically draw about 0.15A at a moderate speed. Others may have researched that more deeply, but that's what it's roughly like.
Amperages just add numerically. So if you add up all the expected loads, it should be less than the source rating.
Diesel: thanks for your engine amperage response.
The 16 Cobalt digital and Atlas snap switches and ground signal lights (2 for each switch) all
powered by bus lines.
Have you heard of DCC Concepts Alpha meter to measure amperage ?
Any thoughts on purchasing this to keep track of amperage load on a layout?
The command station does have current limit protection (at least, I would expect that from Digitrax). So it's very unlikely that you can damage anything if the station doesn't have the capacity. I'm not familiar with the actual station, but it probably has some kind of overload indication. If that never trips, you don't need to worry.
The command station does have current limit protection (at least, I would expect that from Digitrax). So it's very unlikely that you can damage anything if the station doesn't have the capacity. I'm not familiar with the actual station, but it probably has some kind of overload indication. If that never trips, you don't need to worry.
It will trip if a short and then reset when short is resolved. I have heard that is a good test that you are not overloading the layout (IF it does NOT trip, then a booster is indicated.)
Diesel: thanks for your engine amperage response.
The 16 Cobalt digital and Atlas snap switches and ground signal lights (2 for each switch) all
powered by bus lines.
Have you heard of DCC Concepts Alpha meter to measure amperage ?
Any thoughts on purchasing this to keep track of amperage load on a layout?
Not familiar with the Alpha Meter, but I bought a DCC Specialties RRAmpMeter and it has already become an essential part of my layout. It can be used as a portable meter to measure amperage from the tracks, or plugged inline with main DCC out before the main power bus, to measure voltage/amperage use by the entire layout. It's so handy I plan to buy a second one to test power around the layout and install the other permanently in a control panel. But, more germane to your situation, unless you have a dozen or more engines on the layout all at once, with lighting, sound, and/or keep-alives, with several running full-tilt at any one time, you are unlikely to need a booster. My layout has a fairly similar size & setup (about 90 square feet of layout, 12 ga bus wires, maximum run about 30 feet to end of line in either direction), and even with my dozen engines sitting on the layout and running 2-3 at a time, the meter shows about half an amp. With a 3 amp Zephyr Express, you have plenty of power overhead. Regarding your 16 switches, a quick glance at the Cobalt Digital specs looks like a dozen of them will use, at most, half an amp, while the Atlas switches, assuming they're solenoids, would only use power while you're actually switching tracks. So, all told, it sounds like you don't really need a booster yet.
Are you breaking the layout into power districts? Is there a reversing section?
If you're splitting a layout into power districts, you're potentially reducing the available power for each district based on the maximum power of your command station divided by the maximum power for each district before triggering a circuit breaker (generally about 2 amps), and reversing sections are often treated as a separate power district. It will very likely be just fine (it all comes down to the total power you use being less than what will overload the system, and it sounds like you're well under safe levels) but figured it was worth asking.
When I switched over to DCC in 2022, I bought the full-strength EVOXD with DCS210+ command station, with a potential maximum of 6 amps, and then recently divided the layout into 2 power districts with 2-amp circuit breakers on each district, because even with circuit breaker protection, any time things shorted out it got a potential 6-amp jolt instead of 2 amps, which had bad effects on some of my smaller decoders (I have a couple tiny switchers & streetcars with N scale decoders, and have had to replace several, while the HO scale decoders are mostly okay.) But if you already have the Zephyr you're well set for your needs already.
