Nano Clone - can't daisy chain?

::Saint:: · #1 08-05-2009, 05:29 PM

I have a weird problem with a new Nano Clone I just picked up - when I plug it into the daisy chain on my pedal board and turn it on, the power light on the pedal board blink on and off and nothing works, but when I plug it in with a dedicated adapter it works fine. It's not sucking up too much juice because I unplugged everything else and it still did the same thing.

Seems like the power supply just doesn't like it for some reason and I'm not sure why -- are these not able to be used with a daisy chain?

**DosiYanarchy** · #2 08-05-2009, 05:37 PM

alot of the new ehx pedals cant be daisy-chained unfortunately ie: Bass Blogger, Steel Leather, XO BMS

warwick.hoy · #3 08-05-2009, 05:46 PM

Do what I did with my Nano Clone,...sell it. It's sucks volume like no other and the low end loss is unacceptable,...unless of course,...you know,...you were trying to achieve volume suck and low end loss.

Isn't there a sticker near the power jock that says,..."do not use in a daisy chain"?

FreaqyFrequency · #4 08-05-2009, 05:55 PM

They need to be fed an isolated charge. GigRig virtual batteries should solve the problem, while still allowing you to daisy chain.

::Saint:: · #5 08-05-2009, 05:56 PM

Dang.. maybe I'll axe it then.. wasn't digging on the sound particularly anyway, and you're right about the volume loss...

FreaqyFrequency · #6 08-05-2009, 06:01 PM

And I, too, back what James says. It is one of EHx' most horrid creations to date.

In the same price range, look into the ModTone Aqua Chorus.

McHaven · #7 08-05-2009, 06:07 PM

The Nano Clone is reverse polarity, so when it plug it in the daisy chain, it shorts out everything else. It needs its own isolated power source. But yes, it sucks. It is the worst thing EHX ever released.

warwick.hoy · #8 08-06-2009, 07:22 AM

And I speak from experience. I bought one off craigslist on an impulse. I wish I would have checked here first. I was able to sell it on ebay for about the price I paid for it though. A CEB-3 is better than the Nano Clone,...and it's wacky polarity? What was EHX thinking?

varunkapahi · #9 08-06-2009, 07:32 AM

yeah most ehx xo pedals dont work in daisy chain. my small stone added buzz soon as connected to a daisy chain and the bass muff adds buzz when turned on

stflbn · #10 08-06-2009, 07:33 AM

Line6 Tonecore pedals don't like daisy chaining either.

::Saint:: · #11 08-06-2009, 09:38 AM

My BBM is fine with a daisy chain as was the LBM before it.. though this would explain why that Steel Leather I had briefly didn't work well. Strangely, the Nano BassBalls I had worked fine. Man they need to be a little more forthcoming about that polarity business as I would have had no reason to think a cheap Nano pedal would have to be special like that.

I've been told good things bout the CEB-3, but I just can't handle the tone suck that comes along with Boss pedals.. I didn't even think it was that big a deal until I took my LS-2 out of the chain and heard the difference..

JasonNL · #12 08-06-2009, 09:53 AM

Not to hijack the thread or anything, but do these 'non-daisy-chainable' pedals also not work with, say, a T-Rex Fuel Tank? I was considering getting one of those because it could also power my Valve Drive, but if it won't work with some of my other pedals, I'll have to get the PP2+ instead and keep the Valvedrive wallwart hooked up as well

warwick.hoy · #13 08-06-2009, 04:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ::Saint::

My BBM is fine with a daisy chain as was the LBM before it.. though this would explain why that Steel Leather I had briefly didn't work well. Strangely, the Nano BassBalls I had worked fine. Man they need to be a little more forthcoming about that polarity business as I would have had no reason to think a cheap Nano pedal would have to be special like that.

I've been told good things bout the CEB-3, but I just can't handle the tone suck that comes along with Boss pedals.. I didn't even think it was that big a deal until I took my LS-2 out of the chain and heard the difference..

JanusZarate · #14 08-06-2009, 04:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stflbn

Line6 Tonecore pedals don't like daisy chaining either.

Different cause, however. Poor filtering, high current draw, etc.

Quote:

Originally Posted by varunkapahi

yeah most ehx xo pedals dont work in daisy chain. my small stone added buzz soon as connected to a daisy chain and the bass muff adds buzz when turned on

Never had this problem with any EHX XO pedals in a daisy chain (prior to getting a PP2+, I daisy-chained my XO Clone Theory, Little Big Muff, and other XO pedals without issues), aside from the ones which have positive ground designs...

Which leads me to this:

Quote:

Originally Posted by McHaven

The Nano Clone is reverse polarity, so when it plug it in the daisy chain, it shorts out everything else. It needs its own isolated power source. But yes, it sucks. It is the worst thing EHX ever released.

It's not reverse polarity. Many reverse polarity pedals work fine on a daisy chian - you just need to get the right barrel plug.

However, some pedals with reverse-polarity jacks are also "positive ground" pedals. Usually, it's because they're using PNP transistors. A classic example of a pedal using PNP transistors (and consequently, having this daisy-chaining problem) is the Fuzz Face.

EHX did disclose that their Nano Muff and Nano Clone could not be daisy-chained, and has been placing warning labels near the power jacks on these pedals. I think there's a blurb in their manuals about it, too. I haven't looked into the Blogger or XO BMS to see if similar blurbs and labels exist.

To be clear, however, only a select few XO and Nano pedals are positive ground designs. Most work just fine on a daisy chain.

Also, the "can't daisy chain" business is a tad misleading. Yes, it's true that you can't daisy-chain them with most pedals. But you can still use isolated power supplies, and if you happen to be particularly weird, you can daisy-chain positive ground pedals together.

Getting onto the subject of isolated power...

Quote:

Originally Posted by JasonNL

Not to hijack the thread or anything, but do these 'non-daisy-chainable' pedals also not work with, say, a T-Rex Fuel Tank? I was considering getting one of those because it could also power my Valve Drive, but if it won't work with some of my other pedals, I'll have to get the PP2+ instead and keep the Valvedrive wallwart hooked up as well

The Fuel tank does not have isolated outputs, so you couldn't use it for these kinds of pedals.

warwick.hoy · #15 08-06-2009, 05:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MysticBoo

EHX did disclose that their Nano Muff and Nano Clone could not be daisy-chained, and has been placing warning labels near the power jacks on these pedals.

Which is what led me to ask,..."wasn't there a sticker near the power jack" in my original reply.

No offense to .:Saint:., but assuming the "do not daisy chain" label exists on his particular pedal,...we would be having this conversation right now. EHX didn't put it there for their own health.

If the OP bought it used (or new even) and there was no label on the pedal,...or the instructions included,...nor did the seller make it explicitly clear; I'd say that the pedal was misrepresented IE the label was intentionally removed.

For the record when I sold mine on ebay,...I made it clear as bell that the pedal could not be used on a daisy chain. I chased one bidder away with my honesty,...but I'd rather they buyer know than get grippie e-mails and negative feedback. The buyer said he was using batteries so it didn't matter.

JanusZarate · #16 08-06-2009, 05:06 PM

I'm really hoping that EHX discontinues it and releases a Nano Clone II or Nano Small Clone. The Small Clone is an awesome pedal, and if they could shrink the Small Stone with perfect success, why not do the same with the Small Clone?

Agito · #17 08-06-2009, 05:21 PM

The Big muff and the nano small stone got this problem as well?

JanusZarate · #18 08-06-2009, 06:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Agito

The Big muff and the nano small stone got this problem as well?

No, they do not.

Like I mentioned earlier, most of EHX's XO and Nano series pedals are just fine.

Off the top of my head, these ones can't be daisy-chained because they have a "positive ground", although they do run at 9VDC:

Nano Muff
Nano Clone
Bass Blogger
XO Bass Micro Synthesizer

I might have missed one or two, but IIRC, all of the other 9VDC ones are fine.

There are other XO series pedals which also can't be daisy-chained, but those are blatantly obvious because they run on unusual voltages. For example, the new XO Frequency Analyzer runs on 40VDC, and the Hum Debugger runs on 7.5VAC. Good luck daisy chaining those with anything!

::Saint:: · #19 08-07-2009, 01:04 PM

I don't recall seeing a label on the Pedal about not Daisy Chaining, though I'll admit I wasn't looking for one when I hooked it up, as my thought process was "this is a $50 Nano pedal, how specialized can it be?".

I will admit to not having read the manual, but in my defense, it's a pedal with one knob and a footswitch.. seemed fairly self-explanatory.

JanusZarate · #20 08-07-2009, 02:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ::Saint::

I will admit to not having read the manual, but in my defense, it's a pedal with one knob and a footswitch.. seemed fairly self-explanatory.

This is partly why I think it's in dire need of replacement by a superior version - a true Nano "Small Clone."