Power Supply Conundrum

[Dan Halen]

So I've got a Pedal power Iso-5 and 4 Pedals. The Iso-5 has 3 9V slots, another 9V/12V with 2 plugs, and an 18V.

2 of the pedals are 9v 300mA. they are both Hardwire pedals. I'm not entirely sure what mA means. I know it stands for milliamperes, but that doesn't help "me" understand what it means for this.

The instructions say each 9V slot is 100mA, but then it says something about output. I'm assuming the 300mA is resistance? Either way I wanna know if I can run my 2 300mA pedals on this power supply or am I going to need something bigger?

sorry if this got confusing.

 

[rbd]

think of volts like the slope of a road. the higher the slope the faster you'll get down the road. electric resistance is like every resistance, it fights your progression. a smooth road will have less resistance than a gravel road, so in two roads with the same slope you'll go faster on the smoother road, with less resistance. think of mA how fast you go, which depends on slope, or Volts, and resistance. the mA means how much energy will pass in a circuit, but too much may damage it because of overheating. so if your pedal says it will need 300mA and your power unit indicates a 100mA, be careful, because the power unit will try to deliver the 300mA and may get damaged.

about your particular unit, I'm not sure but seems that you shouldn't be able to do it, but I'll let someone more experienced give an opinion.

 

[Dan Halen]

I'm pretty sure you got it. So not only did I learn something today but I'll also be looking into a different powersupply. 8D

BUT I've another question. I did a bit of research (if you call looking at the specs online research ;p)

Just click on the specifications tab and scroll down to power supply.
CM-2 Overdrive Specs says; Power Supply: 9 VDC, 220mW consumption, 25mA draw. CM-2 Tube Overdrive | Hardwire Extreme Performance Pedals
And the CR-7 Chorus Specs; Power Supply: 9 VDC, 705mW consumption, 80mA draw. CR-7 Stereo Chorus | Hardwire Extreme Performance Pedals

So if they ARE BOTH under 100mA then why do they say 300mA on the underside? is that The maximum resistance via other pedals, or is something else completely. why would they make this so confusing...

 

[Given To Fly]

If you are power supply shopping, take a look at cioks ( Cioks - POWER SUPPLIES FOR EFFECT PEDALS). All they make are pedal power supplies including the PowerFactor which is made to power 3 Eventide Pedals which draw 400ma. You might want something like the DC-10. Short of theft, it will be the last power supply you ever need to buy.

 

[Dan Halen]

If you are power supply shopping, take a look at cioks ( Cioks - POWER SUPPLIES FOR EFFECT PEDALS). All they make are pedal power supplies including the PowerFactor which is made to power 3 Eventide Pedals which draw 400ma. You might want something like the DC-10. Short of theft, it will be the last power supply you ever need to buy.

So how much do the Smaller Supplies go for in USD? because apparently I can't use any of the voodoo lab line without spending an exorbitant amount of money. and the Cioks pedals seem to be much more proficient all round. Even including the Specs they give.

 

[Given To Fly]

Well, my Eventide PowerFactor (which is a rebadged DC-10 with slight differences) was about $200. $200 is a lot to me but when you add up the cost of 9v batteries and 9v adapters, take away the isolated power sections and 5 year warranty, $200 isn't a bad price to pay. They are also built like tanks! My power supply is easily the most durable part of my pedal board!

 

[Dan Halen]

Well today I found the perfect solution. I ended up with a T-rex Fueltank Chameleon. every input is 300mA, it has 5 inputs, it's got separate circuits for every input, it was 150ish so i exchanged it for my Iso-5 and only had to pay 40 (didn't break the bank for me) and it's a neato green colour! 8D

Thanks all for the info. I definitely learned a lot today. and if this thing ever goes bad I'll be extraordinarily pissed....8D

 

[Given To Fly]

It's nice to solve even the little problems.