what does "regulated" mA mean?

Baa · #1 09-10-2007, 01:08 PM

I was checking my pedals for powerconsumtion cause i'm looking into powersupplies.
In the manual for one of the pedals it says: " Powerconsumption: 30 mA". OK, cystal clear.
Then it says: "Use 9V, 100 mA regulated power supply".
And it's the word "regulated" that has me confused. I'm not sure what they mean by that.

sonicvi · #2 09-10-2007, 01:21 PM

It just means the power supply has some additional circuitry inside that keeps the voltage and current supply constant. Almost any power supply you buy at a music store or electronics store will be regulated.

seanm · #3 09-10-2007, 01:37 PM

Many wall wart type supplies are unregulated. This means that unless you are pulling close to the rated current, the voltage will be much higher than normal.

A regulated power supply helps this problem.

Baa · #4 09-10-2007, 02:03 PM

Ok, so it´s just a question of the powersupply beeing able to keep the currency stabil (regulated) not keeping it necesseraly stabil att 100 mA. Thanks for clearing that up for me. I'm no electronics-wizard and reading manuals in english (since it's my third language) gets a bit confusing sometimes.

bongomania · #5 09-10-2007, 02:04 PM

Unregulated power can lead to extra noise, hum, or faulty operation of the pedal.

seanm · #6 09-10-2007, 02:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Baa

Ok, so it´s just a question of the powersupply beeing able to keep the currency stabil (regulated) not keeping it necesseraly stabil att 100 mA. Thanks for clearing that up for me. I'm no electronics-wizard and reading manuals in english (since it's my third language) gets a bit confusing sometimes.

No, the regulated power supplies you would be using would keep the voltage regulated, not the current.

English tends to be a sloppy language. What they are saying you need is:

a regulated power supply
it must supply 9V
it must provide at least 100mA