*The* Pedalboard Thread
- Thread starter Andrew F
- Start date
So. Trying to make the underside of pedalboard neater/more organised....... its still a rats nest 
View attachment 37229
In other news - both Pinnacles are staying (the V2 replicates the V1 perfectly, and has a really good boost (modelled on a TS ? The V1 is just too cool to sell on.)
View attachment 37229
In other news - both Pinnacles are staying (the V2 replicates the V1 perfectly, and has a really good boost (modelled on a TS ? The V1 is just too cool to sell on.)
Its ok so far. I use it to power the-non digital pedals* as it has a shared ground** - but I've used it to power everything on the board (including the 300Ma Whammy, and 500mA GR-55 all at once and its been fine. As it was so cheap to buy (£20) I look at it as being disposable.
* When I had 'everything' connected to it there was hum. The whammy (fine running on 100mA), GR-55 (definitely need 500mA) and Hog (100Ma but needs a centre positive cable) are all bastards which put alot of noise to ground -the Hog putting noise to the ground and +9v line too for extra fun & hum. So they all get powered by wall warts hidden away in the rack - via really long DC cables.
** I have a DC to DC isolator ordered to maybe solve this - as i like the idea of having one power supply to the board. Plan is to run the isolator from the 18v DC output and use it for the 'problem children'. The Caline has enough oomph to do this - just need to combat the noise.
Try pulling each pedal out of the chain to see who the problem child is. If you have 2x.... I wonder if you're getting some kind of interaction between the 2x wall warts powering them as you'll have the ground being shared between them - like a ground loop -
* When I had 'everything' connected to it there was hum. The whammy (fine running on 100mA), GR-55 (definitely need 500mA) and Hog (100Ma but needs a centre positive cable) are all bastards which put alot of noise to ground -the Hog putting noise to the ground and +9v line too for extra fun & hum. So they all get powered by wall warts hidden away in the rack - via really long DC cables.
** I have a DC to DC isolator ordered to maybe solve this - as i like the idea of having one power supply to the board. Plan is to run the isolator from the 18v DC output and use it for the 'problem children'. The Caline has enough oomph to do this - just need to combat the noise.
Try pulling each pedal out of the chain to see who the problem child is. If you have 2x.... I wonder if you're getting some kind of interaction between the 2x wall warts powering them as you'll have the ground being shared between them - like a ground loop -
Last edited:
I use the friedman powergrid 10 for standard 9v 300ma pedals, and then I have a cioks dc7 for the funny voltage/high-power pedals - and I have them both connected to a Y split kettle lead - so the entire board runs off one mains socket.
Both PSUs are fully isolated and I don't get any noise from the pedals caused by power.
Both PSUs are fully isolated and I don't get any noise from the pedals caused by power.
The Caline 5 that Wade and I use has a common ground from the DC outputs to the DC input.
As the pedals all share a ground via the patch cables - this is fine. However with two of these power supplies -that ground is shared between both wall warts powering the the units. So a noisy pedal/bad connection shares its noise with everything - all of the other pedals, and both wall warts. Or if the ground of one of the wall warts (the DC side - not the AC side) is at a different voltage relative to the other wall wart - this could make hum - a ground loop.
Your power supplies are completely isolated - greatly reducing the chance of hum.
The Cioks units get good reviews - as do the Friedmans !.
As the pedals all share a ground via the patch cables - this is fine. However with two of these power supplies -that ground is shared between both wall warts powering the the units. So a noisy pedal/bad connection shares its noise with everything - all of the other pedals, and both wall warts. Or if the ground of one of the wall warts (the DC side - not the AC side) is at a different voltage relative to the other wall wart - this could make hum - a ground loop.
Your power supplies are completely isolated - greatly reducing the chance of hum.
The Cioks units get good reviews - as do the Friedmans !.
The latest incarnation. My amps are a Vox AC15 with pushing the internal speaker and a Peavey 112-6 set to a crunch, a JTM45 mkII pushing and open back Avatar 212 cab and a Fender Bandmaster closed back 212 set very clean.
Chain is Guitar ->Friedman Wah ->SUF Demogorgon ->JHS Morning Glory -> Radial ABY
From there output A goes to a Laney BCC Tony Iommi Boost into the Top Boost of the Vox AC15.
Output B goes Radial ABY ->RedRox ->Tate FX Booster ->Wraith Reverb ->MXR Micro Chorus ->Digitech DL-8 Delay.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Chain is Guitar ->Friedman Wah ->SUF Demogorgon ->JHS Morning Glory -> Radial ABY
From there output A goes to a Laney BCC Tony Iommi Boost into the Top Boost of the Vox AC15.
Output B goes Radial ABY ->RedRox ->Tate FX Booster ->Wraith Reverb ->MXR Micro Chorus ->Digitech DL-8 Delay.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
The latest incarnation. My amps are a Vox AC15 with pushing the internal speaker and a Peavey 112-6 set to a crunch, a JTM45 mkII pushing and open back Avatar 212 cab and a Fender Bandmaster closed back 212 set very clean.
Chain is Guitar ->Friedman Wah ->SUF Demogorgon ->JHS Morning Glory -> Radial ABY
From there output A goes to a Laney BCC Tony Iommi Boost into the Top Boost of the Vox AC15.
Output B goes Radial ABY ->RedRox ->Tate FX Booster ->Wraith Reverb ->MXR Micro Chorus ->Digitech DL-8 Delay.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Chain is Guitar ->Friedman Wah ->SUF Demogorgon ->JHS Morning Glory -> Radial ABY
From there output A goes to a Laney BCC Tony Iommi Boost into the Top Boost of the Vox AC15.
Output B goes Radial ABY ->RedRox ->Tate FX Booster ->Wraith Reverb ->MXR Micro Chorus ->Digitech DL-8 Delay.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I've been going back and forth on getting something like the Boss AC-3. I was even wondering about the MC Systems String Reviver, which I think is more or less an acoustic simulator at its heart. Although those look to be increasing in value lately and I missed the boat at a $40 one new.
I guess if you didn't like it it wouldn't be on your board. So, how MUCH do you like it is the question.
I guess if you didn't like it it wouldn't be on your board. So, how MUCH do you like it is the question.
I've been going back and forth on getting something like the Boss AC-3. I was even wondering about the MC Systems String Reviver, which I think is more or less an acoustic simulator at its heart. Although those look to be increasing in value lately and I missed the boat at a $40 one new.
I guess if you didn't like it it wouldn't be on your board. So, how MUCH do you like it is the question.
I guess if you didn't like it it wouldn't be on your board. So, how MUCH do you like it is the question.
1. Just to see what it was like (its ok)
2. To see if the COSM models it uses are better than the COSM models in the Roland (who make Boss) Gr-55. (ehhhhm maybe)
3. The thought of a 7 string floyd 'acoustic' mandolin [Whammy dude !!!!!] has to be investigated.
4. Richtone Music (of sheffield) is literally on my way home, and when interesting stuff appears in their used section..............
Its ok. Its very dependant on the sound you put into it - and what you play it through.- depending on the guitar you may prefer the neck or the bridge or......*shudder* the mid pickup. It sounds a bit better than the Gr55 acoustic models - which isn't hard. Its sound is .... on par with an average acoustic. If you play it through a guitar amp - it'll sound........ awful - in the same way a a piezo acoustic sounds 'sub par' through a marshall. Flat response is the way to go. I've been playing it through my Helix acoustic patches which are compression>vocal preamp> delay>reverb>room reverb>compression>>hifi amp.
What it does do - is make for an interesting combination with pitch shifting* and volume swells. Adding woody timbre makes for more interesting bass / strings sounds.
If you have a Helix - get the 'AcousticPZ' patch from Customtone - its a mile and a half better. But uses up the whole Helix. I'm interested in swapping it out for the Hotone OmniAc (when it starts appearing second hand) which looks like being fairly interesting.
*I have alot of pitch shifting on my board - an octave up into octave down sounds like a very very light chorus with a just perceptible bit of latency.
Verrrry interesting. Thanks for the thorough response. 
I'm not so much interested in achieving an acoustic tone that would trick the ear as much as I am a clean I can manipulate into something unique. So I might give one of these a shot soon. The Hotone does sound pretty good, if a bit canned on some of the settings.
Guess I'll just have to pick one and see what I can get out of it that works for me. Darn, more gear.
I'm not so much interested in achieving an acoustic tone that would trick the ear as much as I am a clean I can manipulate into something unique. So I might give one of these a shot soon. The Hotone does sound pretty good, if a bit canned on some of the settings.
Guess I'll just have to pick one and see what I can get out of it that works for me. Darn, more gear.
Verrrry interesting. Thanks for the thorough response.
I'm not so much interested in achieving an acoustic tone that would trick the ear as much as I am a clean I can manipulate into something unique. So I might give one of these a shot soon. The Hotone does sound pretty good, if a bit canned on some of the settings.
Guess I'll just have to pick one and see what I can get out of it that works for me. Darn, more gear.
I'm not so much interested in achieving an acoustic tone that would trick the ear as much as I am a clean I can manipulate into something unique. So I might give one of these a shot soon. The Hotone does sound pretty good, if a bit canned on some of the settings.
Guess I'll just have to pick one and see what I can get out of it that works for me. Darn, more gear.
Found an AC-2 at the used bookstore earlier today for $25. So, after some rekajiggering and a run to GC for a 1-foot angled cable, I've made things work pretty damn well.
I had to take the board outside because when I started boring the other holes, the wood got so hot and started to burn. Now I smell like a campfire.
But it works and everything is connected right and comes on. So, today is a win I guess. With the only cable I had left, a shorty, and that the inputs are all on top, I had to turn the FAB. But that actually works out great because I can see the knobs better that way.