• Hardware
  • Isolating your effect pedals (DO IT)
2017/08/13 02:46:51
Mosvalve
I watched a video by That Pedal Show
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=846&v=6moy_pAW3jU 
about seting up a wet/dry amp system. It's pretty cool how it works and sounds great. In that video they pointed out that it is a must to isolate each pedal's power and they demostrated how with regular power supplies you can get ground loops, hum, buzz etc. Isolating each pedal applies to any pedal setup by the way. When they isolated the pedals the amps were dead quiet. I use an older Dunlop DC Brick and I always have some kind of hum and just try to manage it.

I checked out some of these isolation power supplies and they aren't cheap. Today I decided to take a ride to Guitar Center and pick one up. I got the Voodoo Power Pedal 2 plus. I bought this power supply with the hope it will actually do what it claims to do. (By the way I setup the wet/dry amps yesterday using my DC Brick) and the hum/buzz was  there like always. I'm using my Bugera V22 for the dry and my Fender HotRod Deluxe for the wet and I'm using the Radial Twin City ABY.  Today I connected the Power Pedal 2 and wouldn't you know it the amps were dead silent. Man am I a happy camper. I think the pedals even sound better IDK. I love it when a product does what it claims to do.

Give it a try it's worth the expense.
 
This is the video I learned about isolating pedals
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4XRCjHxaYkc
 
2017/08/13 23:35:45
wst3
I've been a big fan of isolated power supplies for large pedal boards forever. I have three PedalPower2s, a PedalPowerAC, and Pigtronix Isolated Power Supply powering my stuff, and I don't have to deal hum an buzz. If you have pedals that use higher voltages you might want to check out the Pigtronix, it covers all the bases, although for a very long time I just built my own series or parallel cables to get more current or higher voltages.

Like the OP says, they just work!
2017/08/15 03:43:27
tlw
I've had a Pedal Power and a T-Rex mini fuel tank for years. They can be life savers with some stuff. Generally I only worry about isolating pedals that object to being daisy-chained, many are quite happy sharing power (and power ground) with others, and some just aren't.

The other big noise inducer in pedals that I've come across more and more over the last few years are the switching supplies almost always built into modern wall warts. Some pedals really hate those things and emit all kinds of whines and buzzes when connected to them. Not just old pedals either :-( The switching supplies can also push out quite a bit of RFI and even be acoustically noisy. Not only cheap, no name Chinese ones either, I've a couple of noisy ones supplied by very reputable European synth makers.
2017/08/15 07:45:58
Pragi
Good info about isolating.
I´m using a simple but good DI box with ground lift in front of my pedal
board - nearly no noises.
Don´t know if I will spend 300 bucks or more for an isolated power supply
to remove the rest of the noises ?
Anyhow, thanks for the tip,Bob.
 
2017/08/17 14:42:51
batsbrew
2017/08/18 08:37:19
Pragi
Looks nice , your pedal board .
Good to know  that the mxr iso brick is
accurattely working .
Will go for one to elimate the "rest "-noises of my board.
 
regards
© 2024 APG vNext Commercial Version 5.1

Use My Existing Forum Account

Use My Social Media Account