Power conditioner?

[JB_From_Hell]

My house has really noisy wiring. A pedal on a battery sounds fine. Plug it in with an adapter, now it’s noisy as hell. I also use an old Fender amp and single coils, so my stuff tends to be noisy.

Would plugging everything into a power conditioner help? Pardon my ignorance.

 

[JMP/HBE]

Re: Power conditioner?

Only if you have modern wiring with a true earth ground.

 

[Mincer]

Re: Power conditioner?

In my experience, a power conditioner can only do so much. You can get an isolated power regulator ($$$) which will help things.

 

[Darg1911]

Re: Power conditioner?

What kind of adapter? A power conditioner cant make up for a noisy power supply.

 

[idsnowdog]

Re: Power conditioner?

You would first need to figure out if the noise is etherborne vs mainsborne. What is the signal to noise ratio like when you use a humbucker equiped guitar vs single coils?

 

[JB_From_Hell]

Re: Power conditioner?

Humbuckers are significantly quieter. I still get noise when plugging pedals into a power supply, though.

 

[dotsdad]

Re: Power conditioner?

Is the noise louder, softer, or the same when you use different outlet/room/circuit?

 

[idsnowdog]

Re: Power conditioner?

Humbuckers are significantly quieter. I still get noise when plugging pedals into a power supply, though.

Is the power supply a wall wart transformer or is it some kind of multiple outlet brick? I have a wall wart which is horribly noisy while my power brick is dead quiet.

 

[JB_From_Hell]

Re: Power conditioner?

It’s a wall wart. I’ll try it in another room. Maybe I’ll gamble a few bucks on a one-spot.

 

[Obsessive Compulsive]

Re: Power conditioner?

If you are on the first floor, try grounding it. Bury a 1m (3-4 foot) metal rod into the ground, run a copper wire from the tip of the rod to an unused jack of your amp. Better if the soil is wet. I have tried it, it works.

 

[Silence Kid]

Re: Power conditioner?

Reverse the polarity of the plug, maybe?

 

[Darg1911]

Re: Power conditioner?

If there is an issue with the earth ground for the service or the building, take care of it. But creating a separate earth ground for a single component or outlet is not a great idea (no offense).

Get a better wall wart. One Spot should be a safe bet. The Fulltone linear wall wart supplies are really quiet (they were only 100ma) but they are discontinued. Fulltone has gone to switching supplies now too.

 

[JB_From_Hell]

Re: Power conditioner?

Thanks guys. I’m going to try a better supply first.

 

[Silence Kid]

Re: Power conditioner?

Are you actually able to flip the plug upside-down? Worked for one of my power supplies.

 

[Little Pigbacon]

Re: Power conditioner?

Never hurts to check the basics.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Power-Gear-3-Wire-Receptacle-Tester-50542/206212329?cm_mmc=Shopping%7CVF%7CG%7C0%7CG-VF-PLA%7C&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIy7um_LS42QIV1xaBCh2eKgICEAQYASABEgLGLPD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds&dclid=CI7R-_60uNkCFbfH4wcd64kCbw

View attachment 87402

 

[MetalManiac]

Re: Power conditioner?

I bought a Panamax top of the line Power Conditioner to use with my best amp. At the time, it was very expensive,likie over 400 dollars but I guess now its older tech . So what is a "Power Conditioner" supposed to do?;

11 protected and filtered outlets featuring exclusive Automatic Voltage Monitoring (AVM), Protect or Disconnect technology and Panamax Level 5 Noise Filtration.
Industries best protection - specifically designed and engineered to provide protected and filtered power to home theater systems.
Guards against damaging power spikes and current fluctuations that can harm your AV system components and impact performance.
Limited Lifetime Connected Equipment Protection Policy; Lifetime Product Warranty
With over 30 years of innovation, millions of units sold, multiple patents granted and numerous industry awards, Panamax is the recognized leader in AV equipment protection.
Improves system performance and prolongs equipment life by providing a consistent level of optimal power
Level 4 Power Cleaning and Filtration eliminates common symptoms of contaminated power

 

[Little Pigbacon]

Re: Power conditioner?

I bought mine used and got a great deal on it. Then I rebuilt it using a parts kit I ordered off eBay (Zanzabar). Of course, mine sounds vastly, epically better, in every possible way.

 

[MetalManiac]

Re: Power conditioner?

I like the "protect or Disconnect" thing. I have heard of lightning strikes wiping out , well not so much amps, but sensitive electronics like monitors,TV's and related equipment and PC's-even expensive AC's. Evidently just turning off your power strip still leaves your equipment vulnerable to lightning surges, and worse yet leaving it connected to the wall. We have been having lightning/thunder storms here recently , and when they hit, I disconnect everything, and then have to plug it all back in afterwards.

 

[Little Pigbacon]

Re: Power conditioner?

Panamax has a good thing going with “protect or disconnect”. It actually monitors the mains voltage on power-up to make sure it’s within a window of safety before connecting the load. If the incoming voltage goes outside that window during use, it will disconnect the load. This is designed to protect against things like losing a neutral wire at the panel, and other dangerous conditions. Of course, it still has MOV’s to help protect against faster-moving threats.

 

[PFDarkside]

Re: Power conditioner?

I don’t recall the answer to this question, does the Super have a grounded, three prong plug?

Are you daisy chaining your pedals on a single wall wart, then running them in battery they are quiet? You can try the One-Spot first, but you may need to get an isolated power brick in the end.