You mention adding engines. Are you always adding them in the same spot on the layout ? You can have a well wired layout with squeaky clean track and still have issues. Dirty pickup rollers and wheels can attribute to the bad signal as much as anything. I would get one reliable working engine that delivers solid 9’s and 10’s on one of your upper loops and test using only that engine on the lower one. It should find your bad spots. Remove any passenger cars or lighted cabooses as some can effect your signal check. If things are checking out good. Add things back one at a time and see what changes.
It sounds like you rotate stuff on and off the layout. It works for a few nights and then not. The variable may be what your running. Not your layout. To divide the lower level. Either add insulating pins to the center rails or simply cut them. You could put all your yard and sidings on one channel. Or just disconnect them if possible for the time being. Even though physically connected as one large run. You can run 1/2 off one channel and the other off your remaining one. Engines will seemlessly travel from one to the next. Whatever your using as a power supply can be daisy chained to run both. Without seeing what you have. You could just have to much going on for one channel.
Track isn’t cheap. Some change out for appearance reasons or just more choices such as Ross offers. If the only negative you have is the track signal. I would work with what you have and at least exhaust every avenue before ripping it up. I have a large layout 30+ years old with Gargrave’s and Ross. I’ve always thought it was a good choice. You mentioned numerous numerous turnouts. It’s not a foolproof solution. It still needs to be wired and problems still may arise.
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