Pedalboard/Power Supply Advice

[jasetbass]

Hi All,

I’m after a bit of help please...

After years of having no effects whatsoever, I stupidly bought a pedal and now I'm on that slippery slope that means I now need a pedal board!

So, I’m after a single rail board and after a big of digging, I’ve shortlisted the Pedaltrain Nano+ and the T-Rex ToneTrunk Minor. I’ve read the specs so know about the size and weight differences etc., so I’m after a bit of owner’s knowledge. Anyone got any opinions on these boards, in particular whether the soft cases are any good?

I’m also after a power supply to fit underneath the board, and I’ve shortlisted the Cioks DC5, the T-Rex Chameleon, and the Truetone CS7. Again, I’ve read the specs and get all the stuff about volts, amps, isolated outputs etc, but I don’t understand the difference in the transformer types. The DC5 is toroidal, the Chameleon is transformer, and the CS7 is digital switching; does this make a difference? I’m mindful that on such a small board, if a pedal is susceptible to mains hum, then there isn’t much scope to move it away from the power supply.

Any help or advice would be much appreciated.

Cheers,

Jase

[icastle]

Toroidal is the same as 'transformer' - it's a doughnut shaped one is all.
Digital switched power supplies are smaller and lighter and work with many pedals quite well, but not all of them.

[dannybuoy]

The DC5 is the only one that will fit under a Pedaltrain Nano, I recommend it (Hotrox sell them).

I tested plenty of pedals on top of the power supply, into a headphone amp with the treble whacked up to check for noise introduced by pedals being too near the power supply. There was a barely detectable hum introduced with some pedals when placed directly over the supply. Certainly not an issue, even when recording. The Diamond compressor picked up loads of noise when it was anywhere on the board though, even in bypass, yet was fine when placed directly on the floor!

[0175westwood29]

the strymon Ojai will fit under and has a lot of power ontap for such an tiny little thing!

andy

[jasetbass]

[quote name='icastle' timestamp='1478797953' post='3171746']
Toroidal is the same as 'transformer' - it's a doughnut shaped one is all.
Digital switched power supplies are smaller and lighter and work with many pedals quite well, but not all of them.
[/quote]

Cheers, but aren't toroidal transformers supposed to have less noise by design? And are they better than digital switched supplies? Any ideas which pedals don't work so well with switching supplies? I'm confused as to whether the type should be a significant factor, or is it just different ways to crack a nut? Manufacturer's blurb says their way is best, but is it?!

[jasetbass]

[quote name='dannybuoy' timestamp='1478801839' post='3171801']
The DC5 is the only one that will fit under a Pedaltrain Nano, I recommend it (Hotrox sell them).

I tested plenty of pedals on top of the power supply, into a headphone amp with the treble whacked up to check for noise introduced by pedals being too near the power supply. There was a barely detectable hum introduced with some pedals when placed directly over the supply. Certainly not an issue, even when recording. The Diamond compressor picked up loads of noise when it was anywhere on the board though, even in bypass, yet was fine when placed directly on the floor!
[/quote]

Appreciate the reply. Yeah, realise I'm limited with the Nano. That's why I'm trying to get advice on both board and supply, 'cos if consensus was that the ToneTrunk was rubbish, then that pretty much makes my mind up.
The Diamond's optical isn't it? Do you think it's an optical thing or specific to the Diamond? More to the point, did you leave the Diamond off your board, or replace it with a different compressor that didn't have the same problem?
Cheers

[jasetbass]

[quote name='0175westwood29' timestamp='1478809436' post='3171876']
the strymon Ojai will fit under and has a lot of power ontap for such an tiny little thing!

andy
[/quote]

Thanks Andy, gives me an alternative to the DC5 if I go Nano/digital switching...

[LewisK1975]

I've got the Metro 20 board (same underside clearance as the nano) and the Coiks DC-5. Works great for me (for now! ).

Worth adding that some folks have successfully modified these boards to have taller feet so you get a bit more clearance underneath. See here, it's a older pedaltrain 'mini' in this case but the principal is the same.: -

http://www.thegearpage.net/board/index.php?threads/pedaltrain-mod-part-1-adjustable-feet.1240974/

http://www.thegearpage.net/board/index.php?threads/pedaltrain-mini-mod-part-2-mounting-a-power-supply-diy.1249528/

[jasetbass]

[quote name='LewisK1975' timestamp='1478857531' post='3172130']
I've got the Metro 20 board (same underside clearance as the nano) and the Coiks DC-5. Works great for me (for now! ).

Worth adding that some folks have successfully modified these boards to have taller feet so you get a bit more clearance underneath. See here, it's a older pedaltrain 'mini' in this case but the principal is the same.: -

http://www.thegearpage.net/board/index.php?threads/pedaltrain-mod-part-1-adjustable-feet.1240974/

http://www.thegearpage.net/board/index.php?threads/pedaltrain-mini-mod-part-2-mounting-a-power-supply-diy.1249528/
[/quote]

Thanks for that, so another DC5 vote!

Anything that involves me and power tools will inevitably end in disaster, so I don't think I'll be going down that road lol!

[Wiggybass]

After years of faffing about with PSUs for pedal boards I discovered this:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Diago-Micropower9-PS10-universal-supply/dp/B006GOX01A/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1478953680&sr=8-1&keywords=diago+power

I now have a few for various things and they're great - noise-free, cheap as chips, light and reasonably robust. They also provide up to 1000mA at 9v which is enough to drive most pedalboards. Recommended.

[dannybuoy]

[quote name='jasetbass' timestamp='1478850737' post='3172058']


Appreciate the reply. Yeah, realise I'm limited with the Nano. That's why I'm trying to get advice on both board and supply, 'cos if consensus was that the ToneTrunk was rubbish, then that pretty much makes my mind up.
The Diamond's optical isn't it? Do you think it's an optical thing or specific to the Diamond? More to the point, did you leave the Diamond off your board, or replace it with a different compressor that didn't have the same problem?
Cheers
[/quote]

I think it must just be the Diamond, I now use an Effectrode PC-2A which is also optical and that doesn't have any noise problems whatsoever.

What pedals are you powering? I would start off with a simple 1-Spot if they are all 9V and analog.

[dannybuoy]

[quote name='jasetbass' timestamp='1478860926' post='3172161']


Thanks for that, so another DC5 vote!

Anything that involves me and power tools will inevitably end in disaster, so I don't think I'll be going down that road lol!
[/quote]

You need to drill holes in the Pedaltrain to mount the DC5 btw. It's quite heavy so double sided tape might not hold up and there's not enough clearance to use Velcro without bigger feet!

[dannybuoy]

[quote name='jasetbass' timestamp='1478849987' post='3172050']


Cheers, but aren't toroidal transformers supposed to have less noise by design? And are they better than digital switched supplies? Any ideas which pedals don't work so well with switching supplies? I'm confused as to whether the type should be a significant factor, or is it just different ways to crack a nut? Manufacturer's blurb says their way is best, but is it?!
[/quote]

Toroidal transformers spread the coil around a donut rather than all wrapped around in the same direction. I guess this results in less noise as the as each wrap of the coil is facing another going the other way so that their electromagnetic fields cancel each other out. But if you put a pedal on top with a coil in it like an old wah pedal, it would still pick up significant noise from a toroidal transformer, just nowhere near as bad as a regular one.

Switching supplies don't generate the same kind of electromagnetic disturbance. But if they are poorly designed and not filtered properly they can be noisy, such as generic cheap ones designed for general use like charging your phone rather than for audio applications. I would expect anything made by the likes of Strymon or OneSpot to be well designed though. I was all set to buy a OneSpot CS-7 until I realised it would not fit under my Pedaltrain Metro.

Edited November 12, 2016 by dannybuoy

[jasetbass]

[quote name='Wiggybass' timestamp='1478953792' post='3172913']
After years of faffing about with PSUs for pedal boards I discovered this:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Diago-Micropower9-PS10-universal-supply/dp/B006GOX01A/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1478953680&sr=8-1&keywords=diago+power

I now have a few for various things and they're great - noise-free, cheap as chips, light and reasonably robust. They also provide up to 1000mA at 9v which is enough to drive most pedalboards. Recommended.
[/quote]

Cheers for the suggestion but I'm after isolated outputs with different voltage options...

[jasetbass]

[quote name='dannybuoy' timestamp='1478956112' post='3172938']


Toroidal transformers spread the coil around a donut rather than all wrapped around in the same direction. I guess this results in less noise as the as each wrap of the coil is facing another going the other way so that their electromagnetic fields cancel each other out. But if you put a pedal on top with a coil in it like an old wah pedal, it would still pick up significant noise from a toroidal transformer, just nowhere near as bad as a regular one.

Switching supplies don't generate the same kind of electromagnetic disturbance. But if they are poorly designed and not filtered properly they can be noisy, such as generic cheap ones designed for general use like charging your phone rather than for audio applications. I would expect anything made by the likes of Strymon or OneSpot to be well designed though. I was all set to buy a OneSpot CS-7 until I realised it would not fit under my Pedaltrain Metro.
[/quote]

Thanks for this (and the other replies), so the chameleon's definitely out. Think the ToneTrunk's the board, cos it's bigger and angled. Might have gone for the cs7 but on reflection, I don't think it'll even fit under the tonetrunk so it's looking like the DC5.

[jasetbass]

[quote name='dannybuoy' timestamp='1478956112' post='3172938']


Toroidal transformers spread the coil around a donut rather than all wrapped around in the same direction. I guess this results in less noise as the as each wrap of the coil is facing another going the other way so that their electromagnetic fields cancel each other out. But if you put a pedal on top with a coil in it like an old wah pedal, it would still pick up significant noise from a toroidal transformer, just nowhere near as bad as a regular one.

Switching supplies don't generate the same kind of electromagnetic disturbance. But if they are poorly designed and not filtered properly they can be noisy, such as generic cheap ones designed for general use like charging your phone rather than for audio applications. I would expect anything made by the likes of Strymon or OneSpot to be well designed though. I was all set to buy a OneSpot CS-7 until I realised it would not fit under my Pedaltrain Metro.
[/quote]

Thanks for this (and the other replies), so the chameleon's definitely out. Think the ToneTrunk's the board, cos it's bigger and angled. Might have gone for the cs7 but on reflection, I don't think it'll even fit under the tonetrunk so it's looking like the DC5.