sixdegrees Posted September 6, 2012 Share Posted September 6, 2012 Does anyone know if you can overload or damage a pedal with too high a rating on the mA front? I've got a Morley Bass Wah that requires 300 mA, so powering it off a daisy-chained Boss PSU (200 mA) doesn't give it the power it needs. Would a 9v DC PSU rated at 500 mA be ok? From what I understand, pedals will only draw what they require from the PSU but will suffer from loss of power/tone/volume if they don't get enough. Am I right, or a meringue? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cheddatom Posted September 6, 2012 Share Posted September 6, 2012 you can't have too much, the more the better Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flyfisher Posted September 6, 2012 Share Posted September 6, 2012 [quote name='sixdegrees' timestamp='1346930819' post='1794903'] From what I understand, pedals will only draw what they require from the PSU but will suffer from loss of power/tone/volume if they don't get enough. Am I right, or a meringue? [/quote] You're right. If the PSU can't provide enough power then things won't work properly for a variety of reasons - a fuse may blow or (most likely with low voltage PSUs) the voltage is reduced to limit the total power that can be drawn. A lower voltage obviously messes things up and all sorts of unwanted stuff can happen. The basic rules are to ensure the PSU voltage rating is correct and that the current capability (milliamps) is AT LEAST the rating of the device being powered. A higher current [u]capability [/u]doesn't matter - the device will only draw what it needs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahpook Posted September 6, 2012 Share Posted September 6, 2012 [quote name='flyfisher' timestamp='1346933899' post='1794965'] The basic rules are to ensure the PSU voltage rating is correct and that the current capability (milliamps) is AT LEAST the rating of the device being powered. A higher current [u]capability [/u]doesn't matter - the device will only draw what it needs. [/quote] that's the nub of it - well said. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gafbass02 Posted September 6, 2012 Share Posted September 6, 2012 Interesting stuff, I've noticed my Boss psu will power a few boss pedals and my zoom 506, but the 506 on its own should be more than it can handle, but it does work, I'm assuming that I still shouldn't do it though in case something untoward happens, like perhaps cutting out on a transient or similar? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cheddatom Posted September 7, 2012 Share Posted September 7, 2012 I think it depends what you're doing with the zoom. Obviously the rating on the back is it's maximum current draw, maybe if it's doing less processing it's not drawing as much current? I'm totally guessing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gafbass02 Posted September 7, 2012 Share Posted September 7, 2012 cheers, prob not worth the risk gigging i guess Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cheddatom Posted September 7, 2012 Share Posted September 7, 2012 well, I used to do exactly that daisy chaining my zoom B2.1u with other pedals. The total was about 300 ma above the maximum capacity of the PSU but it never cut out or even sounded weird. If it works for practise... But yeh just get a decent PSU Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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