9-18 volt center negative

Open lane

Open lane

New member
I just got a friedman smallbox pedal.

Instruction card reads "9-18 volt center negative"

Does that mean it is safe to use with my typical 9v powersupply?


Please let me know. Thank you. And, yes, i'm paraoid. Fried a pedal years ago. Lesson learned: better to be safe :)
 
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Yes, it's fine with a normal boss type power supply but you can also connect it to a 12 or 18 volt supply (which will usually give the circuit more headroom).
 
Ah ok. Thank you guys. Just wasn't sure if it meant 9 through 18 or if 9-18 was a separate thing. Got it!

THANK YOU.
 
Just about all power supplies have a diagram showing if it is center negative or center positive.
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If i plug a positive (power supply) into a negative pedal... or a negative (power supply) into a positive (pedal), will i be fried? Or will there just be no sound?
 
Open lane said:
I just got a friedman smallbox pedal.

Instruction card reads "9-18 volt center negative"

Does that mean it is safe to use with my typical 9v powersupply?


Please let me know. Thank you. And, yes, i'm paraoid. Fried a pedal years ago. Lesson learned: better to be safe :)
Click to expand...

It's a great question -basically everything since the 90s (and all of the Boss, Mxr stuff from the 80s) uses the standard 2.1mm single center pin style DIN connection is center pin negative for guitar pedals -so if it's a power supply that comes with a pedal that is the standard you are good. If you buy another generic power supply (not made for sale with pedals) you need to check

The other 2 factors

Voltage (usually 9 Volts on Analog pedals (sometimes 18 on compressors etc) and Regular sized digital pedals, then often 12 or 18, 24 volts on heavy digital effects and especially workstation pedals

and Milliamps rating on the power supply -usually power supplies are 50-250 mA for regular analog and digital pedals and anything from 300mA to 1 Amp for big stuff like workstations.

The good news is most pedals have protection against big voltage mismatches, and a pedal will run a little hot if the voltage is low because it's needing to draw more current or vice versa and it wont get hurt.

So if you are not using the power supply that came with your pedal -look up the voltage and current (MilliAmp) rating and make sure your supply voltage is the same as the pedal AND the current rating of the power supply is equal or even BETTER bigger than your pedals requirements -example -if pedal is rated for 50 mA - get a supply that's 100mA or bigger -you always want some headroom.
 
Usually they have a resistor that prevents reverse damage

Super cheap.pedal may not. But who cares

I have gotten power supplies from Amazon
With center positive

The Ammonn rockpod thing had a center positive power supply
awould work with either one
this is where i got the wrong cable

My mooer PE100 didn't want a center positive

They come either way
Look on the device and the power supply
Match them up

Pay attention to the amp draw as well
If you have say a digital delay
It may need more than the half amp that standard wall warts supply
 
What i see-

Is- that the half circle (that covers halfway over the minus sign) - implies a negative center.

(i might be wrong. :rolleyes: double check! )

-Erl :confused: :oo

EDIT: I accidentally fried my bandmates Sansamp pedal, by switching over to the wrong polarity. :/ I would think it's certainly best to be very sure. )
 
Erlend_G said:
What i see-

Is- that the half circle (that covers halfway over the minus sign) - implies a negative center.

(i might be wrong. :rolleyes: double check! )

-Erl :confused: :oo

EDIT: I accidentally fried my bandmates Sansamp pedal, by switching over to the wrong polarity. :/ I would think it's certainly best to be very sure. )
Click to expand...

Correct. The negative is “inside” the center.
If it had a plus sign inside the half circle, it would represent a center positive plug.
 
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