• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

What is the best 9v battery for active basses?

#81
Plutonium244 said:
I guess I fall into the middle camp... I don't buy the very cheapest (even though a lot of people say many of the cheapos are actually the same battery made in the same factory as some of the big names), but I can't see myself paying $7 for a battery. I have a few basses, some take 2 batteries... I am not gonna put $100 into fancy batteries. And like you, there's a decent chance I'd accidentally kill them through carelessness.

I have what I call my "Expensive French Wine Principle". A number of years ago, I brought back a very very nice, expensive bottle of wine from France, saved it for years until a special occasion called for it. When I opened it, it was like vinegar. Turns out by storing on my kitchen counter above the dishwasher, which I did because I then lived in a limited space apartment, I had negligently ruined this $150 investment (and would have been a $300 bottle bottle bought state-side). Bottom line, I am now wary of making a large investment for long-term payoff. You may never get that payoff, but you will definitely be out the $.
Click to expand...


Not all batteries are created equal. But like you suggest a $7 battery does not last nearly twice as long as one that costs $3.50.

Same thing as $100 guitar cables. Having to have "the best" is a game for people with more dollars than sense.
 
  • Like
Reactions: fretless19
#83
IT DEPENDS ON THEIR CURRENT! I'll choose Lithium, expensive ones for EMG. Any brand/make will do. as EMG runs very little current I use two of them and am now in on my 8th year without changing them out. Still at 8,5 volts each or something.

a) They don't oxidize, leak, or get sticky when they turn old.
b) I use two in series, so they NOT run 18v, but at 9v but longer.
c) Guess what? If a smoke detector runs at least 10 years on 1 lithium battery, guess what 2 does...? ;)
d) A smoke detector is "on" all of the time. An active pickuped bass is active when the cables are put in. Guess what? Even longer...:)

But this is provided that the active pickups are really active, AND low juice drain in milliAmpere. Not just any pickup with a preamp/active EQ added on top. I e if the pickup works without batteries in it chances are that they are not active, but the active circuitry is of the onboard EQ/preamp. I know only of EMG that just runs on batteries. Take them out, and they're dead as a doornail.

EDIT: I have two 35DC in my bass that is EMG and active equipped. No excess eq, just tone volume.
 
Last edited:
#84
I honestly don't have the slightest idea what kind of batteries are in my basses lol. I generally by them by the dozen at Lowes or BJs so there are always tons of spares in the house, but my main fretted and fretless basses sound amazing straight passive so I never worry about batteries dying anyway. I never leave a bass plugged in on a stand though, that's inviting the dog to give the bass a quick nose dive into the floor. ;)
 
#87
Still wondering-- getting into preamp questions that only peripherally tie to batteries-- but does anyone know of a preamp that can run at 18v on a single 9v battery? Yes, it almost sounds like this is some kind of joke, but it is not.

Smith preamps can. I don't know of any others offhand.
 
#89
Honch said:
IT DEPENDS ON THEIR CURRENT! I'll choose Lithium, expensive ones for EMG. Any brand/make will do. as EMG runs very little current I use two of them and am now in on my 8th year without changing them out. Still at 8,5 volts each or something.
Click to expand...

This is so true. I can leave my EMG basses plugged in for six months with normal alkalines and they'll be fine. If I do that with my Barts they'll be stone dead in two to three days.
 
#90
Joke or no? Lithiums are really expensive and the basically (no pun) run full power until they don't, which could be middle of a gig or middle of a song. Rechargeables do the same thing. Regular alkalines fail more gradually, so you'll have a bit of a warning where sound gets weaker and more distorted before dying altogether. Not great, but not a disaster.

I use rechargeables in my active bass and just switch it to passive mode when the battery fails. It's easy to keep a backup in the case, of course.

Oh, and all batteries should be tort. Only tort batteries sound worth a sh*t.
 
#91
Plutonium244 said:
Still wondering-- getting into preamp questions that only peripherally tie to batteries-- but does anyone know of a preamp that can run at 18v on a single 9v battery? Yes, it almost sounds like this is some kind of joke, but it is not.

Smith preamps can. I don't know of any others offhand.
Click to expand...

Dunno of a bass pre that does, but AFAIK the FEA Labs compressor pedals double the voltage internally. The tradeoff is that the batts don't last as long, though.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Plutonium244
#92
Ewo said:
Dunno of a bass pre that does, but AFAIK the FEA Labs compressor pedals double the voltage internally. The tradeoff is that the batts don't last as long, though.
Click to expand...

Yup, that'd be like the Smith preamps... will run 18v on a 9v battery but they'll die twice as fast. What about Barts, any run that way?

A few years ago when I bought my Fender MM Jazz, seller indicated it had an 18V Bartolini preamp in it, but there is only space for a single 9v battery in the compartment. So, I am wondering if this preamp can double up the juice for 18v, or if it's one that can run as either 18v or 9v but is running as 9v since that's all the space there is-- single 9v-- or if it's just a plain old 9v preamp.
 
#94
To take care of this the right way go to sears and get 2 marine trolling batteries. Then stop at Radio Shack and get a couple of voltage modulators to crank that voltage down to 9 bolts on each battery. Use a couple of old E strings to bridge the batteries, and 15-20 feet of 6 gauge cable to run to the bass. ( I just used jumper cables to save a buck ).
 
  • Like
Reactions: drews.anderson
#95
CGremlin said:
I don't really have a preference, but I have found that Duracells will burn you quite effectively if you have one in your pocket with change and/or keys.
Click to expand...

Supposedly a true story I read some years back about a guy who liked both shooting and model airplane flying. He went to the shooting range first and then stopped by the airplane field to get in a few flights. He used a 9V NiCad for some reason at the airplane field and put a "discharged" one into his pocket when he changed it out for a fresh one. He put it in the same pocket that he had put a few 9mm pistol rounds into earlier that day ... BANG! With no pistol barrel to confine the pressure the bullet doesn't move fast enough to cause any harm but you can still get a nasty powder burn in an area where you'd really rather not!!
 
#97
Plutonium244 said:
I want to hear from the Energizer faction.
Click to expand...
Duracells are just Energizer clones with a fancy finish. Why someone would pay more for a "copper" finish I don't know. You're just paying for the name. I guess some people like wasting their money on boutique batteries. For the price of one Duracell I can afford 3 or 4 Energizers. Most audience members can't tell the difference anyway. They don't care if your battery comes from a boutique battery builder. And anyway, Duracell doesn't really build it themselves: they buy stock parts from Ray-o-vac and just assemble it and put their own name on it. You could order the same parts and build it yourself and save lots of money.

Energizer got it right the first time, and now everyone's just copying them. All you really need is an Energizer with flats.

Oh yeah, almost forgot... ;););););););););););););)
 
  • Like
Reactions: mj_ and CGremlin
#100
khutch said:
With no pistol barrel to confine the pressure the bullet doesn't move fast enough to cause any harm but you can still get a nasty powder burn in an area where you'd really rather not!!
Click to expand...

Fortunately I've never had that happen, but I have had an ejected cartridge from the station next to me get stuck in my shooting glasses. Ouch. And since you're there holding a loaded weapon, you have to have the presence of mind to get everything safe before you can remove it while it's burning the hell out of you the whole time.
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back