Can one have more then 8 DCC switches? What If one were to use a separate power pack. Plug one in for running the engine and first eight switches then switch power packs {unplug original and plug in extra power pack for switches 9 and above?
???
Question is confusing. You can have as many switches (turnouts) as you like, I currently have a little over 50 in use. No problem. They are just like any other kind of track.
Unless you are asking about motorised switches (turnouts) a power supply for them? All you usually need is an 18v power supply to power the motors. One supply for all of them as they are usually lined (You don't throw a switch) one at a time.
Hope that helps.
Cheers.
Roger T.
You can pretty much have as many DCC switches as you want, they only pull power when operating the switch.. The real question is how many stationary decoder addresses can your DCC system handle?
Len
Or you can hook up only the switches away from the edges of your layout to your controller, and use hand-thrown switches for the ones closer to the edges or controls.
What company make a DCC system that can handle more then 8 Bachmann switches /turnouts? As I want to use the track to handle the DCC and not need extra wire to each turnout.
YOur best bet would be to check the specs for different systems directly on the various manufacturers sites.
Bachmann Dynamis: http://www.bachmanntrains.com/home-usa/ez_content/dynamis_manual.pdf
Printed page 15, .pdf page 14, says it can handle up to 25 switches.
Digitraxx DCS-51 Zephyr Xtra: http://www.digitrax.com/products/starter-sets/zepx/
Support up to 999 switch addresses
NCE Power Cab: https://ncedcc.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/article_attachments/200656629/Power_Cab_V_1.65_Manual.pdf
Supports up to 16 Macros controlling up to 8 switches each, allowing routes to be set with one command.
You should be able to find the specs on other systems using whichever search engine you prefer.
Len