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We are developing this page in response to a number of questions we have received concerning MASTERswitch® and its application. If you have any additional questions you would like answered or have contributions to make to existing answers below, please email us here. Whilst the original MASTERswitch® is no longer available most of the Q/A below also apply to the current versions.
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To purchase MASTERswitch V2, please click here This page was last updated on 28 June, 2009 |
Q. What is a MASTERswitch® and what does it do? A. MASTERswitch V2 has these features:
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Q. What do I get for my money in the MASTERswitch® pack? A. TWO DCCconcepts MASTERswitch V2 TWO High quality DPDT Switches (Standard ¼” mount collar types) FOUR Red 3mm LED’s (Enough for panel indication of a complex route) TWO Green 3mm LED’s (in case you prefer green on some routes) SIX resistors (for use with the LED’s) TWO pages of info and wiring data |
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Q. Can MASTERswitch® be used on DCC systems as well as DC? A. Yes, but you will lose the ability of the MASTERswitch® to power switch with some accessory decoders, such as the Lenz LS150. The NCE Switch-It (for Tortoise point motors) is ideal, though, as it has spare terminals to allow for latching to take place. MASTERswitch will work with ANY DCC accessory decoder – it doesn’t care whether its momentary of fixed output. It is also ideal for boosting the power of the Lenz LS150 which sometimes needs help with sticky Peco Point Motors! |
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Q. My MASTERswitch® appears to have blown up. Why? A. This would suggest that you were using an AC power supply and not DC - the original MASTERswitch®MUST use a DC supply. Using a DC supply MASTERswitch® will stand up to 30 amps! However, MASTERswitch version 2 and MASTERswitch+ can use EITHER DC OR AC power supply. |
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Q. I have connected everything up but the point motors still do not throw the points. What have I done wrong? A. It's probably not anything you have done wrong but sounds more like a shortage of power. For Peco and Seep point motors there is no substitute for adequate voltage - and because there is voltage drop on wires under load, and many layouts have less than ideal wiring, more than 12v is usually desirable. |
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Q. How can I ensure I have an adequate power supply to operate MASTERswitch? A. Try to locate an old laptop computer power supply. 18~19 volts at 3 to 4 amps of perfectly regulated DC supply is the common output - PERFECT for point motors. And usually FREE!! The 12V DC output from trainset controllers is not adequate and is not a regulated supply. |
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Q. Is there any particular type of wire I should be using to connect everything together? A. Mount the MASTERswitch® close to the point keeping heavy power wires (from MASTERswitch® to point) short... and then you can use any light wire (even phone cable) for the connection to the switch! Lower cost and much easier than routing heavy wire long distance. |
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Q. How do I use MASTERswitch® in conjunction with a Lenz LS150 accessory decoder? A. The LS150 should be set to the ex factory momentary pulse. The LS150 then connects to the top switch terminals of the MASTERswitch, not the lower terminals. It acts only as a momentary contact to throw the MASTERswitch®, which does all the work. Centre switch pad = common out of the LS150, Left and Right outputs of the LS150 to the other two pads. The MASTERswitch® should then be connected to a regulated DC supply at the lower terminals as per instruction sheet. Basically, the LS150 acts as a switch in this configuration. The photo alongside shows the LS150, controlling a crossover from port 2. There is also another crossover, with a MASTERswitch® controlled by port 1, and a couple more points driven directly from ports 3 & 4. The track bus is black and red, and the DC bus is red and blue. On the point motors and MASTERswitch® input, yellow is common, white is straight and blue is diverted. On the micro switches, white goes to the frog and red and black come from the track bus. With the track bus also feeding to the toe of each point, there is an awful lot of wiring! (Thanks to Martin Gibson for the photo) |
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Q. I have a buzzing sound coming from the MASTERswitch® or point motor. Why? A. At best this indicates a poorly recitified DC supply, and it cannot occur with a regulated supply. The most common symptom of this is that the point motor throws but has a vibration in its sound. This is a power supply issue and NOT a MASTERswitch® issue. The noise is caused by AC ripple which makes the Peco point motor coils resonate. We have also had another instance of buzzing apparently coming from the AC power supply of the LS150. This seems to be caused by the LH100 throttle which overrides the duration of the pulse from the LS150 (i.e. the pulse lasts as long as the button is depressed). This doesn't happen with throttles from other manufacturers, e.g. NCE, which apparently function more efficiently with the Lenz decoder than the Lenz throttle! Definitely not a MASTERswitch® fault, though. |
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Q. Can I use a ZTC304 decoder with MASTERswitch®? A. To use the Masterswitch to throw a point via a ZTC 304, what we want to achieve is for the 304 to effectively become a simple spdt switch in its operation, so connect as follows: The switching of the MASTERswitch® takes only a few mA but you want to keep the jumpers to the rails and frog short to prevent voltage drop so for this application, mount the masterswitch close to the point. You can use quite light wire between the ZTC304 and the MASTERswitch®.
Powering the Masterswitch - use a 12~18 volt DC supply for the MASTERswitch®
Connecting & powering the ZTC 304 - The MASTERswitch® allows constant power/constant contact switching and normally uses a standard dpdt switch, so set up the ZTC 304 for constant output (as if it is going to be connected to a colour light signal). Diagram 2 in the ZTC 304 manual is the correct reference for the 304 wiring - note the use of a DC supply is stipulated. You will NOT need a CDU connected to the ZTC 304. Connect the common to the centre switch position on the MASTERswitch®. Connect the other two switch contacts as if they are the red and green.
When you trigger the MASTERswitch®, it will ONLY give a momentary power pulse to the Seep point motor BUT the MASTERswitch® itself will remain constantly "latched" or locked in position by the 304 which is what we want to happen.
Achieving frog switching:
Method 1 (untested on ZTC304 but works with other brands) - Because you are ONLY switching one half of the DCC track power, it is
normally OK if the decoder output and the track power (frog switching) share the switch terminals - they won't interact.
So... it should be OK to parallel the frog to the MASTERswitch® centre switch position, and the left/right rail to the left/right switch position. This works fine with other brands of point decoder such as the NCE switch-it. HOWEVER this has NOT been tried with a ZTC decoder so this is a suggestion only.
Method 2 (guaranteed 100% OK with all accessory decoder) - The alternative way is to connect a low cost changeover relay (spdt or dpdt) to the same MASTERswitch® terminals that you are connecting the decoder to, i.e. connect the relay activating coil to the MASTERswitch® centre switch position and either the left or right switch pad, and the relay switch terminals to the frog/left rail/right rail.
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A. Guaranteed to improve the performance of any twin coil solenoid, MASTERswitch® V2 has evolved from the original MASTERswitch® to give even better value and performance. MASTERswitch® V2 is packed in pairs and supplied complete with a comprehensive 8 page instruction manual showing all wiring connections and several of the many different possible applications including crossover wiring with switched frogs, connection to DCC accessory decoders and combination with MASTERswitch ® PLUS in control of complex trackwork. MASTERswitch® V2 has the following features:
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Q. What is MASTERswitch® PLUS? A. MASTERswitch® PLUS is a revised type of MASTERswitch® which offers far more than the original. ANY kind of power can supply it - 12 to 20v AC, DC or DCC, and it can switch both solenoid and motor drive types of point motor as well as act as an auto-reverser and automated point change device. Plus....
4 full sets of changeover switches (latching), the LED position has resistor already built in (common+) and screw terminals for connecting switch Also - it has a lowered startup current requirement and built in an added boost stage to the solenoid drive so it really slams Peco points across - it can switch 4 to change an entire scissors crossover!! |
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Q. I have been provided with an Opto Isolator board with the MASTERswitch® V2/MASTERswitch®+. What is it used for and how do I wire this in? A. This is a simple to use device that is sometimes needed on DCC systems and is wired between the Accessory Decoder & MASTERswitch®. Connections are in the same order as most accessory decoders and also match the input terminals of the MASTERswitch® perfectly – ie: left, common, right as per this image.
These clever little PCBs will let you connect anything to anything with absolute safety, as they will take any form of input and repeat it while maintaining full optical isolation between the two devices. Designed originally for MASTERswitch V2 and Plus, they can also be used for interfacing detectors to computers, for creating a buffer between higher and lower voltage systems, allowing model railway devices to be safely connected directly to low power digital devices and computers etc. They are compact and easy to apply—simply connecting between any two devices, with the “command” device connected to the Blue terminals, the receiving device to the Green. It is not necessary to use all 3 terminals, so a simple 2 wire connection can be made via centre plus either left or right terminals. |
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Q. I want to use Seep point motors with the MASTERswitch® V2/MASTERswitch®+. How do I wire this type of point motor with the MASTERswitch? A. Wiring is very straightforward and is illustrated in this diagram, provided (with thanks) by Trevor Wright. Click on the diagram for a view you can read!
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