# Inexpensive power supply



## burger-patty-and-bacon (Aug 7, 2021)

I'm using the ghastly One Spot right now with the ridiculous long pigtail chain...  I see pedal power 2 by voodoo is like 130 bucks but I see a boatload of similar units on Amazon for 30 or 40 bux. Brands like Donner and others I have never heard of.   Seeking experiences on budget friendly power and a link to Amazon so I can buy today.  Thanks, lads.


----------



## Coda (Aug 7, 2021)

I’ve the Donner one and I have no complaints.


----------



## burger-patty-and-bacon (Aug 7, 2021)

Coda said:


> I’ve the Donner one and I have no complaints.


Which model?  The dp-3?


----------



## daeg (Aug 7, 2021)

I've had the Donner. IIRC, each supply goes through a choke, but they're all fed from the same input transformer, diode rectifier and voltage regulator, so it's like 'pseudo' isolation. The chokes filter noise on the positive rail, but do nothing to prevent noise caused by ground loops.

The reason the Voodoo Labs, OneSpot etc are so much more expensive is each supply has its own transformer, rectifier and regulator, so it's true isolation. -- No ground loops.

People usually shell out the extra money once they have more than 5 pedals on their board and can't figure out where the mysterious buzz is coming from.


----------



## blackhatboojum (Aug 7, 2021)

As @daeg said, those cheap power supplies aren’t technically isolated like some of them claim.  They work well for the most part but adding a bunch of effects can cause ground loop issues.  Especially when you start mixing digital and analog effects.


----------



## burger-patty-and-bacon (Aug 7, 2021)

Ok.   Lesson taught.   I will buy a better unit.  Power Plus 2.  Thanks guys.    

In my music room I have to swing my chair to the right spot when recording otherwise I get gnarly hum.  I wish I knew where it was coming from.


----------



## daeg (Aug 7, 2021)

burger-patty-and-bacon said:


> In my music room I have to swing my chair to the right spot when recording otherwise I get gnarly hum.  I wish I knew where it was coming from.


Ceiling fan?


----------



## finebyfine (Aug 7, 2021)

I have this one because I personally don't really care about hum enough to spend more just as a bedroom guitarist https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07S68CXJD/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I test all pedals I make with a dedicated 9v or battery though.


----------



## daeg (Aug 7, 2021)

burger-patty-and-bacon said:


> Ok.   Lesson taught.   I will buy a better unit.  Power Plus 2.  Thanks guys.


Almost everyone tries a cheap one, gets frustrated, then eventually shells out the money for the professional quality ones.

My board has 14 pedals, supplied by 2 x OneSpot CS7 and I have zero noise. Expensive solution, but much better than buzz and constant frustration.


----------



## Harry Klippton (Aug 7, 2021)

I have both the PP2+ and a truetone cs6. I'd never buy the PP2+ today for what it's worth


----------



## blackhatboojum (Aug 7, 2021)

daeg said:


> Almost everyone tries a cheap one, gets frustrated, then eventually shells out the money for the professional quality ones.
> 
> My board has 14 pedals, supplied by 2 x OneSpot CS7 and I have zero noise. Expensive solution, but much better than buzz and constant frustration.
> 
> View attachment 14561


I too use the CS7.  I highly recommend it.


----------



## Coda (Aug 7, 2021)

burger-patty-and-bacon said:


> Which model?  The dp-3?


I think so. It’s got 10 ports, seven 9v 100ma, one 9v 500ma, one 12v (not sure of the ma), and an 18v. I’ve run all 10 at once, plus a one-spot daisy chain and have never had noise issues.


----------



## fig (Aug 7, 2021)

I've got a couple of Voodoos (I've no idea how they rate). I use the 4-port on the bench, and the 8-port on the floor for pedals. My pedalboard IS the floor so that works well.....

.....of course I probably look like I'm stomping cockroaches to the untrained eye.


----------



## Gordo (Aug 7, 2021)

I'd use anything that TrueTone makes but haven't tried anything beyond the OneSpot.  I have a few of the Voodoos and they're killer but the price is getting a bit spendy.  My faves because of how flexible they are are the Fuel Tank Classic (+$$$) and my newest obsession: the Dunlop M238 Power brick.  This thing does everything imaginable, is crazy quiet and runs fairly cool.  I don't like having an external wall wart but the thing works so good it's a minor niggle.


----------



## Feral Feline (Aug 7, 2021)

Cioks earned my trust and money.


----------



## Chuck D. Bones (Aug 8, 2021)

burger-patty-and-bacon said:


> In my music room I have to swing my chair to the right spot when recording otherwise I get gnarly hum.  I wish I knew where it was coming from.


Single-coil pickups?  If so, it's magnetic pickup, most likely from your amp.  However, anything powered by the AC line could be the culprit, including fluorescent lights, fans, etc.


----------



## mnemonic (Aug 8, 2021)

I got a cheap ‘Vitoos dc8’ for my birthday last year or the year before, just a cheapo supply with three isolated outputs. Two are adjustable voltage which I like (9/12/18) and the 3rd is just daisy chained to like 5 outputs.

it is actually isolated also which is nice. For a while I was running one output at 18v in series with a 9v one for 27v for a pedal that needed higher voltage (until I just built it a charge pump).

I imagine the cheap Chinese ones on eBay/amazon are lately the same sort of thing.

I had a cheap 9v ‘Stagg’ brand power supply on a daisy chain powering a small other pedalboard on the other side of the room and it recently died. I bought a onespot to replace it as I assumed it would be a high quality replacement. Plug it in and buzzzz… I’ve ordered another cheap £15 Stagg power supply, hopefully it’s still the same design as my old quiet one.

if I were to get another supply with multiple isolated outputs I think I would probably try one of the harley benton ones sold by Thomann (in-house brand).  They have two fairly cheap ones that take a mains cable, and I think at least one of them is still transformer based rather than switch mode.

Looking at their site, the ‘Iso 2 pro’ looks exactly the same as the vitoos one I have


----------



## Grubb (Aug 9, 2021)

daeg said:


> Almost everyone tries a cheap one, gets frustrated, then eventually shells out the money for the professional quality ones.
> 
> My board has 14 pedals, supplied by 2 x OneSpot CS7 and I have zero noise. Expensive solution, but much better than buzz and constant frustration.
> 
> View attachment 14561


I have the CS12 for similar reasons stated above and have zero complaints. Money well spent IMHO.


----------



## xayk (Aug 9, 2021)

I've used/am using a T-Rex Fuel Tank (which had one port die but has been otherwise solid for 10-odd years), an Aetos (rock solid but current is a little limited with today's modern digital pedals), and the Eventide-branded Cioks DC7. The Cioks is unfuckwithable, running a bunch of digital pedals + a Poly Beebo + all the normal analog stuff with aplomb. (Cioks uses rca plugs for the "power" side, so plan ahead for splitters and center-positive and Line 6 cables.)

A few weeks ago I picked up a Harley Benton ISO-10AC, having discovered it on these forums. It's seen no practices and no live shows, so not sure how rugged it truly is, but has been cool thus far at home. The only thing I've noticed is some noise/artifacts in the Beebo, which wants 500mA minimum (the Cioks is 660). I'm in the US and ordered two to offset shipping costs with a friend. 10 outlets, upwards of 500mA, 9/12/18v options, and a USB port for $125 wasn't a bad risk.


----------



## burger-patty-and-bacon (Aug 9, 2021)

Thanks, all.  I am going to get the CS12 TRUETONE unit.


----------



## Harry Klippton (Aug 9, 2021)

burger-patty-and-bacon said:


> Thanks, all.  I am going to get the CS12 TRUETONE unit.


Great choice


----------



## burger-patty-and-bacon (Aug 9, 2021)

Chuck D. Bones said:


> Single-coil pickups?  If so, it's magnetic pickup, most likely from your amp.  However, anything powered by the AC line could be the culprit, including fluorescent lights, fans, etc.


Chuck D. - This room is all LED light, no flourescents, no fans.  Mostly I use all humbuckers or stacked singles, I almost never use true single coils (metalhead).  I have to spin my chair to face a certain wall to get rid of noise and if I swing into certain "hot spots" the noise gets super insane.  I may consider running a dedicated 30A 120V circuit to my mancave.  I have a cinder block home and my sub panel is 50' away.  Could do it with external conduit and just run a dedi circuit instead of having my stuff share the line with whatever the hell else is on the ckt.


----------



## JamieJ (Aug 10, 2021)

I had a caline power supply that was good unless you used more high gain effects or fuzz. It was also poor if you used all slots up and had some hum as a result. I lucked out recently and bought a pedal train novo 24 with flight case and a True Tone cs12 for £140. eBay can be worth it sometimes.


----------



## Mentaltossflycoon (Aug 10, 2021)

I bought a caline over a year ago and outgrew it quickly, got myself into some noise.  It also struggled to power my radial pre which,  on paper should have been fine.  3 months later I ordered a gigrig set up.   Expensive? Yes but I have no regrets. I'm already planning to get another isolator and will have the option to expand further if necessary..... aaaand let's be honest,  with pedalpcb cranking out projects, it'll be necessary eventually.


----------



## JamieJ (Aug 10, 2021)

If money was no object I would 100% go the gigrig route. For my set up i think it would have cost £350+ so I couldn’t condone that for just being a bedroom playa.


----------



## SillyOctpuss (Aug 10, 2021)

JamieJ said:


> If money was no object I would 100% go the gigrig route. For my set up i think it would have cost £350+ so I couldn’t condone that for just being a bedroom playa.


I'm contemplating picking up a generator and an isolator from the gigrig then picking up more bits every few months after that.  It does look like an excellent adaptable system.


----------



## daeg (Aug 10, 2021)

burger-patty-and-bacon said:


> Thanks, all.  I am going to get the CS12 TRUETONE unit.


Good call. I know it stings a little to spend so much on a power supply, but this is a pretty clear "Buy nice or buy twice" situation.


----------



## JamieJ (Aug 10, 2021)

daeg said:


> Good call. I know it stings a little to spend so much on a power supply, but this is a pretty clear "Buy nice or buy twice" situation.


^ +1


----------



## burger-patty-and-bacon (Aug 10, 2021)

I really enjoy the pedals (5 built since starting less than a month ago as total noob!) and know when it makes sense to put $$ into quality stuff.  The CS12 will do me well and give peace of mind on any noise/issues, etc.


----------



## mnemonic (Aug 10, 2021)

My cheap Stagg 9v supply arrived and like my old one, dead quiet.

annoying that the budget-brand cheap supply is so much quieter than the name-brand one that’s double the price but there you go I guess.


----------



## Big Monk (Aug 10, 2021)

I'm late but I use 2 of these on my board:



			Amazon.com


----------



## burger-patty-and-bacon (Aug 12, 2021)

Got my cs12.  Digging it.  Also ordered a 2 tier NUX bumblebee medium size


----------



## Username123 (Aug 12, 2021)

You also could just build a power supply...
This one can be isolated and not isolated. I don't know where you would get the mini isolated transformers though. Might be able to email the site for the specs. I know you already bought one, but just posting this so people can build one if they want. They are ridiculously simple, that's why truetone can survive as a business selling power supplies. This one is not isolated. Take a look at the gunshots though. It is probably child's play for all the experienced members on the forum.  



https://imgur.com/a/ksAK4lM




			http://geofex.com/article_folders/oldspyder/oldspyder.htm
		

The transformer is cheap too.


----------



## daeg (Aug 12, 2021)

Username123 said:


> You also could just build a power supply...
> This one can be isolated and not isolated. I don't know where you would get the mini isolated transformers though. Might be able to email the site for the specs. I know you already bought one, but just posting this so people can build one if they want. They are ridiculously simple, that's why truetone can survive as a business selling power supplies. This one is not isolated. Take a look at the gunshots though. It is probably child's play for all the experienced members on the forum.
> 
> 
> ...



I'd think twice before feeding 120VAC into a perfboard.

You could run an cheap 18V wall-wart into then split it into 10 outputs, each with their own 9V voltage regulator and choke to filter noise... all to create a work-alike of the $30 Donner unit.


----------



## mnemonic (Aug 14, 2021)

Wouldn’t be 120vac on the veroboard just on the transformer primary, secondary is attached to the veroboard which should only be something like 12vac which then gets rectified, filtered, and regulated.

I briefly looked into Rg’s spider power supply diy, real cool but these days with the prevalence of cheap, small, isolated supplies there isn’t any cost or size savings there. 10 or 15 years ago though, it may well have been the best option for someone with the skills


----------



## Feral Feline (Aug 14, 2021)

Why build it? Because the schematic and parts were there... 🤪

Both paths are valid, store-bought & DIY, for different reasons. 😺


----------



## Big Monk (Aug 15, 2021)

Username123 said:


> I guess some people just wants to bash my idea. Sure, you could buy a crappy 30-40 dollar powersupply made by child slaves or criminally underpaid workers. Or you could have high quality parts in a not too difficult project, but whatever. 100 dollars is what you pay for a medium quality powersupply. That is a lot. Sure, you aren't gonna save a ton of money, but you are using high quality parts, and you are not supporting communists or Amazon. Speaking of which, if you buy from Amazon, you are getting a product made by communists and underpaid workers working in horrible conditions, and then you have mistreated employees packing it, but whatever. I guess nobody has anything good to say about my posts.



My Otraki supplies, at $32 each, are fantastic and there is no way I could build them myself for that cheap.

Were they made in China? Yes. Were they sold by Amazon? Yes. Do I have a complicated relationship with this? Somewhat, but the products and distributorship would drum on without me and millions of others so I prefer to keep my social and political beliefs off my DIY forums.


----------



## Big Monk (Aug 15, 2021)

Username123 said:


> Whatever. I don't view it as political, I view it as sympathy for the workers that assemble the products. But I deleted my comment so I guess it doesn't matter.



I mean, we don’t necessarily know anything about the workers who assemble our power supplies anymore than we know about the workers who make our breakfast cereal.

Honestly, all the parts we use are made overseas. Certainly no one is going to stop building pedals because from the switches down to the resistors are built overseas, are they? 

I get what you were saying and I’m honestly conflicted about many of my purchases, including those through Amazon but that’s the marketplace right now. I want things and that’s where I get many of them. 

I guess another way to view it is even if I built my own power supply, theres no way I could make it look as professionally done as my Otraki units and keep the cost down. So I’d have an ugly, expensive unit.


----------



## Big Monk (Aug 15, 2021)

I think you just have to know your audience. A DIY power supply is a great idea when you don’t have a good, cheap, ready-made alternative at your disposal. In short, it’s a utilitarian piece of equipment that doesn’t benefit, like you said, from top notch parts and construction. Hell, it lives like the pedalboard version of a bridge troll underneath everything else!

As an anecdote, I built my own power distribution box for my Christmas village because there was no alternative that I could buy for a decent price and I didn’t care what it looked like. Now I can flip a switch and turn on/off all the 3vDC fixtures that used to use battery boxes. That was an ideal candidate and cost me $10.

I wouldn’t sweat it. I don’t believe anyone is  purposely targeting your posts. Keep posting but keep it light. This is a pedal forum after all.


----------



## daeg (Aug 29, 2021)

mnemonic said:


> Wouldn’t be 120vac on the veroboard just on the transformer primary, secondary is attached to the veroboard which should only be something like 12vac which then gets rectified, filtered, and regulated.
> 
> I briefly looked into Rg’s spider power supply diy, real cool but these days with the prevalence of cheap, small, isolated supplies there isn’t any cost or size savings there. 10 or 15 years ago though, it may well have been the best option for someone with the skills


The thing is, the truly isolated supplies have a transformer, rectifier, filter and regulator for _each_ output.

If you're not going to do that, then all of your DIY hours are going to result in something just as good or worse than the $35 Donner unit.


----------



## Big Monk (Aug 29, 2021)

Just picked one of these up because I’m getting some digital “whine” from my “isolated” (quotations because they say they are but they can’t be if this is happening) supplies:






						Amazon.com: CAMOLA Mosky Guitar Pedal Power Supply 10 Isolated DC Output 9V 12V 18V 300mA 500mA Guitar Effects Pedal Board Power Supply with Short Circuit/Overcurrent Protection : Musical Instruments
					

Amazon.com: CAMOLA Mosky Guitar Pedal Power Supply 10 Isolated DC Output 9V 12V 18V 300mA 500mA Guitar Effects Pedal Board Power Supply with Short Circuit/Overcurrent Protection : Musical Instruments



					www.amazon.com
				




I’ll replace one of my 2 board supplies for now and likely. It a duplicate and have 2 of them for the whole board. I’ll run both Strymon units and my Roctary off this for now to kill the whine.


----------



## carlinb17 (Aug 29, 2021)

burger-patty-and-bacon said:


> Thanks, all.  I am going to get the CS12 TRUETONE unit.


That’s what I have on my board, I use an older donner for my bench or if I want to hook up 20 pedals at once lol.


----------



## Big Monk (Aug 29, 2021)

I’ve never found isolation to be an issue until I purchased my Strymon units. Digital pedals really need isolated taps.

My $35 otraki supplies are great for everything else but my digital pedals definitely need to be segregated.


----------



## Harry Klippton (Aug 29, 2021)

Big Monk said:


> I’ve never found isolation to be an issue until I purchased my Strymon units. Digital pedals really need isolated taps.
> 
> My $35 otraki supplies are great for everything else but my digital pedals definitely need to be segregated.


Strymon made me realize that the effects loop in one of my amps was creating a ground loop too 😞


----------



## mnemonic (Aug 30, 2021)

daeg said:


> The thing is, the truly isolated supplies have a transformer, rectifier, filter and regulator for _each_ output.
> 
> If you're not going to do that, then all of your DIY hours are going to result in something just as good or worse than the $35 Donner unit.


 
can you get by with just one transformer, but an individual secondary (and rectifier, filter, regulator) for each output?

I’ve seen diy projects both ways, just wondering if there is actually a difference.


----------



## Big Monk (Aug 30, 2021)

mnemonic said:


> can you get by with just one transformer, but an individual secondary (and rectifier, filter, regulator) for each output?
> 
> I’ve seen diy projects both ways, just wondering if there is actually a difference.



That works as well. Weber sells a pedalboard power supply transformer like that.


----------



## music6000 (Aug 30, 2021)

From the man himself:


----------



## daeg (Aug 31, 2021)

mnemonic said:


> can you get by with just one transformer, but an individual secondary (and rectifier, filter, regulator) for each output?
> 
> I’ve seen diy projects both ways, just wondering if there is actually a difference.


That's a good question. I'd think you'd need a transformer with multiple secondaries, _rather than multiple taps_, for ground isolation. That's _probably_ how the pro / truly isolated units are designed.

Like this:


----------



## Big Monk (Aug 31, 2021)

daeg said:


> That's a good question. I'd think you'd need a transformer with multiple secondaries, _rather than multiple taps_, for ground isolation. That's _probably_ how the pro / truly isolated units are designed.
> 
> Like this:
> View attachment 15522








						WPDLXFMR-1 Transformer – Weber Speakers
					






					www.tedweber.com
				









						WPDLXFMR-2 Transformer – Weber Speakers
					






					www.tedweber.com


----------

