Question about pedal power and supply

[agedhorse]

There have been a few discussions about pedals and pedalboards lately and it SEEMS as though most players aren't really using batteries anymore but instead are using either a stand alone power supply or a multi-output (and sometimes multi-voltage) power supply integrated into their pedalboard.

These days, how important is it that a pedal operate from a 9V battery (acknowledging that some simply can not) and is it worth paying more for a pedal that can support battery operation (even if it means <20 hours of battery life)?

As a follow-up, how many of you guys would suggest that the days of using 9V batteries is coming to an end?

I'm looking for comments from a player's perspective, one who uses amps and cabinets and not somebody who mostly uses them at home with their studio.

 

[two fingers]

Just about the only time I see anyone using a pedal with a battery is a tuner.

I use a COIKS AC10 power supply that feeds several DC pedals and one AC pedal. Most of mine don't even run on a battery (that I'm aware of).

I, for one, would have no use for a battery option.

 

[lz4005]

I suspect there may be a self selection bias in the TB effects forum. People on here really like effects and tend to own and use a lot of them.

I don't know if their opinions are representative of gigging bass players as a whole. I don't know that they aren't either.

As for myself, I rarely have more than one pedal in my signal chain at a gig, so I have a strong preference to those that include a 9v option.

 

[Kro]

Well, being one n among many, I can't remember the last time I used a pedal powered by battery, and I wouldn't buy a pedal if it were battery powered only.

I barely put up with having a battery in my bass.

 

[voided3]

I would say battery operation on most pedals isn’t necessary or practical due to the amount of current many effects draw; you don’t get enough runtime. Plus if you leave the cable plugged in on many they drain the battery.

It’s not too often you only see someone using just one lone battery operated pedal, though I have ran a Tech 21 Blonde on a battery when going direct into a QSC powered speaker for a cocktail hour type setup on guitar.

I have used just a Boss TU-3 as my only pedal on gigs, but those have to be plugged in. It would be cool if it had a built-in long range USB charged lithium ion battery for those scenarios and could run for 12+ continuous hours, but I’m sure that would be prohibitively expensive and an AC adapter isn’t a huge accessory.

There also is the trend towards mini pedals that save pedal board real estate, allowing you to have a well equipped board in a small form factor. The usual trade off is you can’t physically fit a battery in them. I don’t think I’d want to run five or more pedals on a board with battery power, anyway.

 

[Thrillhouse]

I haven't used a battery in a pedal in many, many years. Maybe there are some out there for whom battery support in a pedal is important but all of the musicians I play with or see around town have pedalboards (big or small) with a power supply of some sort. And there are so many affordable and versatile power supplies available nowadays that I don't really see a reason to use batteries anymore.

 

[Burwabit]

The only pedal I use with 9V goes with my travel/jam/practice rig (direct Velcro). My real pedal board has real power.

 

[BogeyBass]

Definitely a end to 9volt batteries

Only thing that use to require a battery was crybaby wah wah. But Dunlop cured that years ago.

Im a hardcore vintage fuzz pedal user and for pedals that actually sound different with a battery. I sometimes prefer a battery over a power supply.

Then again most fuzz builders caught on and just place little resistance inline to give the slightly dead battery sound.

 

[grocker]

Battery is still a great option to have,I've had adapters die at shows and it sucked,specially on my wireless receiver,adapter went bad at the show,so no wireless that night....Nice and convenient to go to practice with just a pedal to the PA mixer with no adapter,nice for practice at home if you pull out your preamp and just plug into it without searching for wired adapter .Peace of mind is having the old battery compartment .

 

[agedhorse]

I suspect there may be a self selection bias in the TB effects forum. People on here really like effects and tend to own and use a lot of them.

I don't know if their opinions are representative of gigging bass players as a whole. I don't know that they aren't either.

As for myself, I rarely have more than one pedal in my signal chain at a gig, so I have a strong preference to those that include a 9v option.

This is why I asked this question here, looking for gigging users of pedals rather than collectors and aficionados. IME, this forum has a better representation of a cross-section of players.

 

[Spent]

During my recent weekend warrior days (a gig every weekend) I plugged in. Each effect that took a battery had one just in case. I tried rechargeable batteries but they didn’t cut it; I don’t like one time use batteries for environmental reasons and yes I drive a Prius. I was fortunate to play a lot of great venues and was well compensated. I needed reliability and consistency, no time for equipment issues.

 

[fauxtoe]

Out of the 9 current pedals on my board, only one of them was designed to take a 9v volt...and that would be the Mesa Subway preamp. So, I think that's fairly telling in regards to the 9v being dead in pedals. I use an isolated power supply to run it all.

If Mesa is exploring the option of deleting the 9v battery out of their pedals, then by all means do it especially if it allows for a smaller enclosure or a different design aspect.

 

[EastCoastThump]

Pedal hounds have all gone to boards and power supplies. But I still see batteries used by some players who only use one or two pedals.

So tuners or budget standalone preamp/DI pedals probably still make sense to include a battery compartment.

 

[beans-on-toast]

I never use batteries anymore for pedals. A good regulated power supply is a must. I’ve even gone to the extent of adding power supply connectors to battery only pedals.

Some digital pedals have higher current requirements and come with an external power supply.

I do have a 48v phantom power unit for a mic that uses a 9V battery. This is for portable operation. Same goes for a preamp that I use with a piezo pickup.

I see buskers using battery powered pedals.

 

[Wasnex]

There have been a few discussions about pedals and pedalboards lately and it SEEMS as though most players aren't really using batteries anymore but instead are using either a stand alone power supply or a multi-output (and sometimes multi-voltage) power supply integrated into their pedalboard.

These days, how important is it that a pedal operate from a 9V battery (acknowledging that some simply can not) and is it worth paying more for a pedal that can support battery operation (even if it means <20 hours of battery life)?

As a follow-up, how many of you guys would suggest that the days of using 9V batteries is coming to an end?

I'm looking for comments from a player's perspective, one who uses amps and cabinets and not somebody who mostly uses them at home with their studio.

I used to gig with Boss TU2 tuner. I always plugged it into a walwart instead of running off a 9V battery. I also used a stand light that I plugged in. Some bands prefer using battery powered lights, but IMHO, this is an unnecessary expense. Some of the devices I used could run off 9V or phantom...my preference is phantom.

A few years back I bought a Pedal Train Pro. It has two Voodoo Labs Pedal Power 2 Plus power supplies. I have more pedals than will fit. All but one of the pedals runs off 9V or 18V - tip. I use a series adapters for the 18V supply and distribute that to three pedals using a True Tone daisy chain cable. I checked the current draw of the pedals and the current rating the outlet on the Pedal Power 2 Plus that I am using.

The one weird pedal is my Empress Super Delay which needs 9-12V + tip. I could get a polarity reverse cable and have one empty slow power supply slot, but I just use the wall wart that came with it.

With this many pedals...no way I would consider using batteries and some of my pedals are even not wired for battery power.

 

[beans-on-toast]

For some strange reason, Line6 requires a 9V AC @ 2A for some units. Of course, they also use a standard barrel plug. You’d think that they would have used a different format to avoid confusion.

I have a DIY Aion L5 preamp pedal, based on the Moog Lab Series, that uses this power supply. They convert to +/-15V DC on the PCB.

Lab Series L5 Preamp - DIY PCB Project - Aion Electronics

 

[fdeck]

While remaining respectful of the CUP, I think that I can provide a bit of info, since some of my preamps are compatible with wall warts, and others aren't. My impression is that upright bassists, and those with only one device or pedal, are OK with batteries. Pretty much anybody with more than one gadget has switched to a wall wart.

An amp with a 9-V power outlet would be a nice touch.

Going digital pretty much dooms batteries at the present state of the art, unless you've got some secrets up your sleeve. Also, there are the tradeoffs to manage, between current consumption, circuit complexity, and noise floor, which are a challenge for battery powered analog circuits. You can simply do more with a bigger power budget.

 

[fdeck]

For some strange reason, Line6 requires a 9V AC @ 2A for some units. Of course, they also use a standard barrel plug. You’d think that they would have used a different format to avoid confusion.

I have a DIY Aion L5 preamp pedal, based on the Moog Lab Series, that uses this power supply. They convert to DC with a chip on the PCB.

Lab Series L5 Preamp - DIY PCB Project - Aion Electronics

The AC input probably means they are converting to a split positive-negative power supply internally.

 

[matante]

I like having the option of battery power because it can solve noise issues. However, not having that option is fine. It's not going to be a deal breaker at all.

 

[instrumentlevel]

For rock band gigs, I have a compact pedal board with a T-Rex Fuel Tank jr and a very long ac cable. No batteries there. But I also have a compressor pedal that I use with a battery on church gigs. I like that it keeps things simple: amp, pedal, bass. That said, I have a 1 Spot I can use if the battery dies.