I have recently purchased a boss pedal (ds2 to be exact) it works fine with the 9v battery that came with it. However I usually use a power supply for my pedals and the boss says to only use the boss power supply. Is that true to only use a boss 9v power supply or just marketing?
Boss Pedals and Adapters
- Thread starter Xandeeno
- Start date
Joey Voltage
New member
Re: Boss Pedals and Adapters
Yeah, it's both marketing, and the assumption that the user won't likely understand what is required or what the published consumption specifications on the back plate really mean. The voltage is actually not as critical and can be higher than 9V (or a tad lower in many cases) if you prefer on most pedals, the exception being ones that may use digital processing. On something like an opamp type overdrive pedal for example, you could most likely use a supply as high as 24v. The one rating you want to pay more attention to is the current rating. You want to at least have a power supply that can match it, or one that is rated to provide excess. For example if you have a pedal rated to have a total current consumption of 9v@ 300ma, you want a supply that can at least source that or more. So if you find a supply that is rated at 9v 500ma, you are golden, however if you find one rated at 200ma, you may be asking for some problems as this may cause excess heat rise, voltage drop, and eventual failure of the power supply.
Yeah, it's both marketing, and the assumption that the user won't likely understand what is required or what the published consumption specifications on the back plate really mean. The voltage is actually not as critical and can be higher than 9V (or a tad lower in many cases) if you prefer on most pedals, the exception being ones that may use digital processing. On something like an opamp type overdrive pedal for example, you could most likely use a supply as high as 24v. The one rating you want to pay more attention to is the current rating. You want to at least have a power supply that can match it, or one that is rated to provide excess. For example if you have a pedal rated to have a total current consumption of 9v@ 300ma, you want a supply that can at least source that or more. So if you find a supply that is rated at 9v 500ma, you are golden, however if you find one rated at 200ma, you may be asking for some problems as this may cause excess heat rise, voltage drop, and eventual failure of the power supply.
Joey Voltage
New member
Re: Boss Pedals and Adapters
I forgot, one other thing you want to pay attention to is the polarity of the ring and top of the jack/adapter. Most of the time boss uses the opposite configuration than what is common and has the male conductor polarized as negative, and the sleeve positive. You will either have to find one of those adapter that rat shack used to sell with the plug in multi adapters so you can have the wall warts polarity correct, or you have to modify your wall wort adapter by cutting the lead and resoldering the wire leads together again oppositely to how it was so the polarity in the connection is correct. You obviously would want to plan ahead and heatshrink each bare part of the wireSo they don't short to anything or each other. My vote is for the multi prong multi voltage adapter something like this:https://www.ebay.com/p/Powerline-Un...de56|iid:10&trdt=0&rdtsrc=vi&iid=322520040407
Great, thought it was thanks
I forgot, one other thing you want to pay attention to is the polarity of the ring and top of the jack/adapter. Most of the time boss uses the opposite configuration than what is common and has the male conductor polarized as negative, and the sleeve positive. You will either have to find one of those adapter that rat shack used to sell with the plug in multi adapters so you can have the wall warts polarity correct, or you have to modify your wall wort adapter by cutting the lead and resoldering the wire leads together again oppositely to how it was so the polarity in the connection is correct. You obviously would want to plan ahead and heatshrink each bare part of the wireSo they don't short to anything or each other. My vote is for the multi prong multi voltage adapter something like this:https://www.ebay.com/p/Powerline-Un...de56|iid:10&trdt=0&rdtsrc=vi&iid=322520040407
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