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Powering pedals


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Alright I need a crash course on powering pedals.

 

I've always just used batteries as I wasn't gigging.

 

But if I'm looking at picking up some pedals that require adaptor power, what's the best way to handle that?

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Where do you play, how long do you play, and how far from a socket?..

I'd be thinking along the Power Bank USB to 9v type set up with a Joyo ZGPW or Rechargeable unit esp if USB Powered - tge Zoom B1on can be 5v USB powered - USB is gonna be a 'norm'

Or do your new pedals need 18 or 12v power?

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If it's just 9v that you need get a onespot and daisy chain for a first attempt. After that it gets a bit more complicated working out how to mount the bigger and more capable units to your pedalboard. I have a pedalboard with a permanently mounted CS7, but when using pedals at home, or trying out different combinations, or needing a small board for a one off gig etc. I almost always go back to the onespot.

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Do you have any high current draw effects, or any reverse polarity ones, or any that take other than 9V?

 

If they're all fairly low current (maybe around 100mA) and 9V and negative centre, it's worth trying a simple 9V supply and daisy chain. Some pedals don't get on with a shared supply (eg the Zoom B3) and for these you need a power supply with isolated outputs.

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I used a godlyke wall wart PSU (similar to a onespot) & daisychained the pedals. Worked fine for a good few years, but then I started getting a whine. Found out that the PSU was the issue, so got a 2nd hand T-rex Fueltank jr for @ £50 & no more whine.  They power 5 9v pedals & don’t take up much room. 

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Mixing different pedals can cause problems if powered on a daisy chain, but that is certainly the cheapest place to start.

If you do get odd noises then you'll need something with separate isolated outputs. That's when it starts getting expensive.

 

If you do end up needing that, then in my experience it's better to bite the bullet and buy something good - just once. Rather than buying something a little better and then needing something else etc etc.

 

My mini board has a Truetone CS6 that has 6 outputs with some being able to be set at 12V or 18V if needed. It's one of the only power supplies that will fit under a PedalTrain Nano board.

 

My big board has a Cioks DC7. That is a superb bit of kit and they also have an expansion pack to give more isolated outputs if needed.

 

It's worth noting that you can still use a daisy chain on an isolated power supply as long as the total current draw on that individual output doesn't exceed the supply on it. I power 8 pedals on my DC7 that way - I have 2 lower draw pedals on a small daisy chain cable from a single output.

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Harley Benton powerplant PSUs are good and cheap.

The ISO-5 will power 5 pedals (more with daisy chains), has 12V and (I think) 18V options, is fully isolated, fits under a PT Nano/Nano+ and costs £42.

The only downside is the euro/adapter wall wart... myvolts sell a decent upgrade but that's another £15 or so.

 

Voodoo Lab and Cioks are good and not cheap!

 

It's worth investing in a decent PSU... they're not as glamorous or exciting as another pedal, but well worth having IMHO.

 

Get one with more outputs than you currently need, you WILL be buying more pedals!

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Daisy chaining the power can lead to noise issues with some pedals. Getting a PSU with buffered outputs avoids this. I use a MXR DC brick and it works a charm. It also has an 18v output as well as 9v. For my bigger boards I use a Palmer which has 12 buffered outputs, four of which can output 9, 12 & 18v. 

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Great advice on this thread -

 

anyone recommend a small pedal board (4 pedals) with built in power supply? Ive seen a few but all need plug adapter - I plug into wall on a PSU daisy chained but always get noise from chorus (bass clone) rest of pedals just SD comp and MXR80 and tuner are all silent - so thinking powerboard with built-in unit will be easier just to plug and play - currently the bass clone is after the MXR80 but ampless for festivals will be before MXR80 

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5 minutes ago, Duroc17 said:

Great advice on this thread -

 

anyone recommend a small pedal board (4 pedals) with built in power supply? Ive seen a few but all need plug adapter - I plug into wall on a PSU daisy chained but always get noise from chorus (bass clone) rest of pedals just SD comp and MXR80 and tuner are all silent - so thinking powerboard with built-in unit will be easier just to plug and play - currently the bass clone is after the MXR80 but ampless for festivals will be before MXR80 

 

I'm not certain if this is a recommendation, but I've had my eye on these for a while and the thomann stuff is cheap but seems to work fine.

 

https://www.thomann.co.uk/harley_benton_spaceship_power_50c.htm

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1 minute ago, SimonK said:

 

I'm not certain if this is a recommendation, but I've had my eye on these for a while and the thomann stuff is cheap but seems to work fine.

 

https://www.thomann.co.uk/harley_benton_spaceship_power_50c.htm

yes was looking this or just the iso 5 unit - i'm pretty tempted by the new board. - if it's like the ISO5 then it's supposed to be properly isolated 

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21 minutes ago, SimonK said:

 

I'm not certain if this is a recommendation, but I've had my eye on these for a while and the thomann stuff is cheap but seems to work fine.

 

https://www.thomann.co.uk/harley_benton_spaceship_power_50c.htm

just orderd this as Thomann confirmed you can just put regular amp cable into unit -so that's good for me and i needed a little more room - then can add one more pedal

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1 hour ago, Duroc17 said:

just orderd this as Thomann confirmed you can just put regular amp cable into unit -so that's good for me and i needed a little more room - then can add one more pedal

 

Great - do let me know how you get on with it and post some pictures!

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I have a TGI unit for about £40 you get 18v, 12v, 1 amp 9v and several isolated lower amperage 9v outputs, and a wall wart and cables including a positive earth changer.

Edited by Stub Mandrel
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