Reasonably priced power supply?

B

BloodRose

Professional Scapegoat
I need a power supply with 6 9volts and 2 18volts.. most of them Im finding, without going upwards of $200 come with 1 18v.

So far, the MXR m237 brick is about the only one I found. Recommended??

I did find Gator cases Gbus8 that has the perfect layout, and great price, but the reviews are pretty bad, so pass.

Im using cheap Donner on my main board, but Id like to upgrade that one pretty soon too. Works fine, but I worry it may not protect my pedals that well.

Any other suggestions?? Im gonna ask a stupid question too, but just want to make sure my thoughts are correct. What does isolated mean? Each outlet is fully separate?

Thanks
 
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Re: Reasonably priced power supply?

There is a voltage doubler cable that comes with some of them, two outlets are connected to provide 9+9 volts giving 18V, so if there are vacant outlets then that can be used for it.

Donner/joyo/kokorest/caline etc. have mixed up the use of the word "isolated". Their outlets are isolated in a manner where if one outlet failed, the others would continue to work. But the grounds on each outlet are shared and not isolated from each other. Some times this can give problems related to noise when using pedals in front of the amp and the effects loop sharing the same supply, or there are some pedals(most often digital & power hungry) that whine if their power is being shared with others and so forth. One way to solve it is to put that offending pedal on its dedicated power adaptor, another is to have a power supply with a transformer with multiple secondaries so that each outlet is isolated from each other and ground loop doesn't form.

I got the newer joyo jp04 unit which is proper transformer isolated. I would recommend the bbe supacharger in its place though since that might be more dependable. I had made my own power supply which is like a 1spot but less noisy which i use mostly since its lighter & works effectively for my four pedals that i use & the joyo is waiting in the closet for when i need its isolation feature someday lol
 
Re: Reasonably priced power supply?

The DC Brick won't be that big of a step up from what you have now, it doesn't have isolated outputs.

As Hank said, a lot of power supply manufacturers are stretching what they call "isolated outputs". Basically, if the power supply uses a wall wart adapter to power the brick, it doesn't have truly isolated outputs, the ground is shared. Isolated power supply "bricks" plug straight into the wall AC and do all the AC to DC conversion inside. At least, I've never seen an isolated power supply that uses a wall wart, and it would make the isolation much harder to do.

Also, you don't necessarily need 1 output per pedal, you can still chain a few pedals off of one output, the big things you want to isolate are high current digital pedals and pedals in front of the amp should be on a separate circuit from pedals in the loop.

That said, what is really driving the cost of a power supply up for you is the need for 18V and isolated outputs. If your Donner is working for you now and not creating noise issues, I would just keep using it. If you need another supply, there is a Brick for sale in the trading post now. Also, as Hank said, there are doubler cables and if the pedals don't draw too much power you could daisy chain the 2 18V pedals.

You mentioned that you were worried about protection, you're fine, going to an isolated supply isn't going to greatly increase the protection for the pedals. I could argue that they would be less safe because a surge would probably take out a wall wart before it got to the brick but would go straight through to the supply if it was plugged directly to the AC lines (they do have built in protection). If lightning strikes your power supply, go buy a powerball ticket, it's worth a shot! Seriously, if you are worried about surges and stuff, plug into a surge protector like you would use for your computer, TV, stereo, etc...
 
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Re: Reasonably priced power supply?

Truetone 1 Spot Pro CS 12 ... around $179 http://truetone.com/power-supplies/1-spot-pro/1-spot-pro-cs12/
I have one. It's switching tech but true isolation and they managed to make them dead quiet. Every bit as quiet as my Voodoo Labs supplies were.

Also, there is the Brick and the newer Iso Brick. The Iso Brick also uses a "wall wart" as the supply to the box (I think) but despite that, the outlets are electrically isolated. They aren't in the standard Brick.
 
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Re: Reasonably priced power supply?

Darg1911 said:
Truetone 1 Spot Pro CS 12 ... around $179 http://truetone.com/power-supplies/1-spot-pro/1-spot-pro-cs12/
I have one. It's switching tech but true isolation and they managed to make them dead quiet. Every bit as quiet as my Voodoo Labs supplies were.

Also, there is the Brick and the newer Iso Brick. The Iso Brick also uses a "wall wart" as the supply to the box (I think) but despite that, the outlets are electrically isolated. They aren't in the standard Brick.
Click to expand...

I second the CS12Pro. It replaced 2 VoodooLab PP2+ units under my board and is dead quiet.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Re: Reasonably priced power supply?

I just bought a Mosky off Amazon. Think Dunlop Brick knockoff. It works great, but my power needs are simpler than yours.
 
Re: Reasonably priced power supply?

Does the CS12pro have more than one 18v connection? I was looking at one or two of the one spot units and they only had one. Was hoping to stay closer (less than) $100, but I guess I ponying up here could save me big money in pedal replacement..
 
Re: Reasonably priced power supply?

looks like it does... I was looking at smaller units.. Here is the bummer. I originally wanted to buy a nicer unit like this for my main board and move the cheap unit from that one to the second board. BUT.. The second board needs 2 18v jacks and the supply I have only has one.. so... prolly have to buy 2 good power supplies..

** Was looking at the 7. 12 is more than I need for the board too... Another reason I was staying smaller, but guess itll give me reason to add more pedals!! haha

Funny, looked on amazon.. one place has the cs12 for $179, another for about $338.. sheesh.. Wonder which one Id buy???
 
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Re: Reasonably priced power supply?

BloodRose said:
looks like it does... I was looking at smaller units.. Here is the bummer. I originally wanted to buy a nicer unit like this for my main board and move the cheap unit from that one to the second board. BUT.. The second board needs 2 18v jacks and the supply I have only has one.. so... prolly have to buy 2 good power supplies..

** Was looking at the 7. 12 is more than I need for the board too... Another reason I was staying smaller, but guess itll give me reason to add more pedals!! haha

Funny, looked on amazon.. one place has the cs12 for $179, another for about $338.. sheesh.. Wonder which one Id buy???
Click to expand...

Yep, the 12 has 2 x 18V outlets. But if you don't want to spend the $179, you can use a voltage doubler on the 9 volt outlets as hank suggested. That's one pedal taking up 2 outlets but you can always daisy chain some of 9V outlets to effects that aren't so sensitive to noise and don't really need the isolation. Nice thing about the TrueTone is that you aren't limited to the current rating on any particular outlet. As long as you don't exceed the total rating of the supply. This is a good video to check out for information. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8q0YrwWhR_Y
 
Re: Reasonably priced power supply?

I just recently upgraded my rig from a Dc Brick to a T Rex Fuel Tank Jr. It was a hundred bucks. They have various different fuel tanks to choose from. They are completely isolated and use a normal power chord instead of a big ugly wall wart. So truly isolated. I would look into those and I also would recommend the Voodoo lab. I would have picked up that one but I dont have enough pedals yet to justify buying one. Note I say yet. lol
 
Re: Reasonably priced power supply?

The outputs on the Fuel Tank Jr can supply 120mA each, you can daisy chain a few analog pedals off of each output, you don't need 1 output per pedal, unless it is a high current digital pedal.
 
Re: Reasonably priced power supply?

I think all the T-Rex supplies have isolated outputs except for the Classic. The Jr.'s are around $100. Relatively speaking, the Classic is way overpriced for what it is, IMO.
 
Re: Reasonably priced power supply?

The Diago Micropower is decent if you don't run loads of pedals, but the durability is a bit rubbish, the wiring design on the end of the adaptor kept wearing away as its brittle. So I just use a T-rex Fuel Tank junior now, solid, clean power and ultra reliable. Not a bad price either.
 
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Re: Reasonably priced power supply?

Got an MXR iso brick last night. Works great.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Re: Reasonably priced power supply?

Make sure you check all of your pedals for their mA (milliamp) ratings before you purchase... some power supplies provide enough voltage, but not enough milliamps.

For example, Strymon pedals take 250mA (recommended)... typical BOSS, etc types take 100mA...

...and go for isolated if and when possible.
 
Re: Reasonably priced power supply?

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/43744201/True Tone CS12 Front.png

1) If a pedal and slot's "mA" values are different doesn't the pedal work? If It works does the supply spoil the pedal?

2) On CS12 what is the slot which is written 4V & 9V for?

3) What's the difference between 9V 12V 100mA inputs and 9V 4-9V 100mA inputs?

4) On my Dunlop Buddy Guy Wah it's written 3.5mA. It doesn't suit this supply.?!
 
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Re: Reasonably priced power supply?

zanshin777 said:
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/43744201/True Tone CS12 Front.png

1) If a pedal and slot's "mA" values are different doesn't the pedal work? If It works does the supply spoil the pedal?

2) On CS12 what is the slot which is written 4V & 9V for?

3) What's the difference between 9V 12V 100mA inputs and 9V 4-9V 100mA inputs?

4) On my Dunlop Buddy Guy Wah it's written 3.5mA. It doesn't suit this supply.?!
Click to expand...

1) If the pedal draws 150mA & the slot says 100mA, then it doesn't work & could spoil the pedal or power unit. If the pedal were to draw 90mA it would work on the slot for 100mA & all is well.

2) it is to simulate a used battery voltage, user adjustable to value between 4V to 9V.

3) Different voltage values, suitable for 9v & 12v pedals. Do not plug a pedal that runs on 9V into the 12v slot.

4) its fine & will work. The truetone can supply more than 100mA on all its outlets, its mentioned & explained on their website, its special feature of it that won't be found on every other power unit out there.
 
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