Caline CP-205 Isolated Pedal Power Supply: Teardown and Review

Caline sent this to me free of charge in exchange for my honest review. A bit more brief of a video as much of the IC and circuit design is similar to their other models. I really like seeing true isolation between the outputs and as well the incoming wall power. Inherently this type of circuit design limits the mA rating of each output, but overall the rated currents will run 99% of all the pedals on the market. High current pedals would need their own PSU, or a more capable multi pedal PSU like the Cioks, Strymon, Voodoo Labs, etc.
Great budget unit, and construction is very well built! Any questions comments, issues, drop me a comment. Calines contact info is below. I am also in touch with them weekly on various issues to help the community!
/ @calinetechnology
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[@dancarter5517]

Just picked up one of these yesterday mainly based on your videos. Had a little time to hook it up today just to hear it. I couldn't hear it at all!!! Exactly what I needed! Nice and quiet psu powering my pedals, 5 on the board and 2 in the effects loop, plus a very cheap mini tuner that I never used because it made horrible noises even in bypass. Even though the tuner sux and is very inaccurate, at least it's quiet now.

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Appreciate you watching the videos! Glad to be of help!

[@twokatmew]

What are the dimensions of the CP-205? I'm interested in the height of it, as I want to attach it under a small pedal board. Amazon says all of these new models are 2.5" tall. This doesn't look right, nor would it fit under my pedal board. Thanks!

[@Bassguitarist1985]

The units are wrong on Amazon. They are in centimeters.16.6/5.8/2.5cm

[@WilliamCharlesShaver]

I wish you’d try to pull the rated amperage from each isolated output (including the hidden USB) to see how the unit behaves under worst case full load conditions. That small wall wart and the lack of heat sinks and ventilation makes me wonder how robust that unit would be…

[@Bassguitarist1985]

I've seen a video from Caline where they do exactly that, minus the USB. This is done to make sure that the power supply is fully functional. The fact is it's not a real world scenario where your pedal power supply will be supplying maximum amperage 100% of the time to your pedals. For example if your pedal is rated at 300 mA it may only draw 125 mA constantly with 300 being its peak amperage for short durations. As I mentioned in my other videos I would not recommend these power supplies for high current applications. A linear voltage regulator is simply not the right component for that. A DC to DC buck converter chip is what is necessary for high current but then you add a lot more complexity to the circuit with filtering components.

[@Gutierrez_Felipe]

I would like to run a multi FX from this power supply. It is a 9V 1A drawing. Is it ok to connect it to the 500mA + 2 others 300mA? Would it be noisy?

[@Bassguitarist1985]

It shouldn't be noisy no. Make sure your current doubler cables are sufficient wire gauge to handle the combined current. Usually 18 AWG is required. The normal size you find is about 22AWG and that limits the current and the length of wire.

[@jonathanderryl9600]

Hi I would like to run a valeton gpp200 that need 1000mA from this supply. Is it oke to connect the 500mA+300mA+300mA? So it'll be 1100mA?. Does the current tripler would works?

[@Bassguitarist1985]

I wouldn't recommend. The wires would need to be 18AWG instead of the standard 22AWG wire the current doubler Y adapters come in. That's a lot of current.

[@cole250]

Hi, I have a 206 and it has been working fine for 4 or 5 months. all of a sudden all of the output jacks in use are flashing blue and my pedals no longer have power. any ideas for me?

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Are those particular ports overloaded beyond the milliamp rating?

[@CleanTheWookie]

So I'm getting in a Boss DD-200 with the intent on running it on a smaller board with the Caline CP-205. The draw is 225 mA, but how risky would it be to run it through one of the 300mA channels? Everything else on the board will be sub 100 mA, so to be safe should I run it through the only 500 mA available on this Caline?

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Yes run on the 500mA line to be safe. The 300mA i don't think would be a problem either.

[@CleanTheWookie]

@@Bassguitarist1985 Cool, thank you!

[@Bassguitarist1985]

@@CleanTheWookie My pleasure

[@danielblack212]

@Bassguitarist1985 Hello, I am wanting to place a CP205 and a CP206 on a pedalboard, but power them both with a single desktop style power brick. I can order an 18V brick from mouser, but I have access to several laptop chargers. My only concern is that they are 18.5-19.5 volts. Looking at how the Caline supplies are made, with the linear regulators, I doubt this would be a problem, but I thought I'd get a second opinion. I already know I'll have to swap the polarity, but I'm cutting the end off to shorten it anyway. Thanks

[@Bassguitarist1985]

I don't see a problem with that voltage variance. I assume you will be parallel connecting the laptop power brick to both Caline PSUs? I'd say go for it and please post a video!

[@danielblack212]

@@Bassguitarist1985 Yeah, I planned on splitting it to both Calines. I'll probably just get some nice plugs and daisy chain them? I'll have to see what's available.

[@Bassguitarist1985]

@@danielblack212 definitely..make sure you use at least 18AWG wire and not 22AWG. Helps with voltage drop

[@GlennJimenez]

Any idea when this is available?

[@Bassguitarist1985]

I believe available now. Ill ask my contact

[@Whn1794]

Will it go under daddario xpnd 1 pedalboard?

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Its a slim form factor to fit under most pedal boards yes

[@boymindset2701]

I got one exactly like that and it gets really hot. Did you have the same experience with the power supply?

[@Bassguitarist1985]

@@boymindset2701 it does get warm during operation but not so hot it burns your hand

[@betterl8thannvr]

I have a 400ma pedal and the 500ma supply doesn't last more than a few minutes before it shuts down. I feel like they should have used the metal case to dissipate some heat. I may end up trying to modify mine to use some silicone insulated heat transfer pads to attach the 500ma transistors to the case via jumpers or something.

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Unfortunately as you approach full load the voltage drops below 8.7vdc. I've told Caline about this. There is an over current fuse inside in series with the output where should you short the output the heat goes to that resistor. That's what causes the voltage drop. If you short that it's a rock solid 9V but no protection which can cause failure of the whole circuit. You can try a parallel current doubler adapter for your pedal, split the current to keep the voltage from dropping. I'm working on another beta board of the 206 where they are trying to address the voltage drop and eliminate the LVR all together so higher current outputs can be made.

[@betterl8thannvr]

@@Bassguitarist1985 thanks, I had not taken it apart or attached it to any test equipment yet so that is a useful bit of information.

[@Bassguitarist1985]

@@betterl8thannvr yeah the engineers and I are working through the issue. The more complex the circuit gets the more expensive the power supply gets so that's the other issue.

[@betterl8thannvr]

@@Bassguitarist1985 true but they have a lot of room to go before they come close to the price of the next "better" options 😂

[@Bassguitarist1985]

@@betterl8thannvr I can assure you those companies are using the same exact components as the budget brands what you're paying for is the name and the R&D.

[@bobgrill4290]

Does it matter which pedal is plugged into which output? I see that some are 300Ma and some are 500Ma, with some versions having higher outputs ...

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Depends on the pedals draw. If your pedal draws 200mA, plug into the 300mA. If it draws 400mA, plug into the 500mA

[@bobgrill4290]

@@Bassguitarist1985 - thanks for such a quick response. I’m new to your channel and to pedals overall. I’m using the basics - Wah Wah pedal, acoustic simulator, overdrive, reverb, loop, distortion, tremolo, tuner Nothing too much honestly.

[@Bassguitarist1985]

@@bobgrill4290 much appreciated thank you for subscribing!

[@BudiPrasetyoHarsono]

Is this true isolation psu?

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Yes it is.

[@BudiPrasetyoHarsono]

@@Bassguitarist1985 cool! I'm looking a power supply to power my Hotone Ampero One on my pedalboard. Thank you

[@Bassguitarist1985]

@@BudiPrasetyoHarsono that pedal is 18v 500mA. This PSU will not run that.

[@BudiPrasetyoHarsono]

@@Bassguitarist1985 Ampero is the one with 18v power requirement while my Ampero One is 9v

[@Bassguitarist1985]

@@BudiPrasetyoHarsono how much current though?

[@Liberty-hw9dh]

Caline cp05 is NOT ISOLATED, BUT CALINE SELLER LIED.

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Correct CP-05 is not isolated, but CP-205 is isolated.

[@Liberty-hw9dh]

@@Bassguitarist1985 Thx.....I saw 05 04 204...I think they are not isolated too...hahaha....too many funny china products.....

[@Bassguitarist1985]

@@Liberty-hw9dh to be fair the CP-05 is an older model. They seem to be marketing more of the newer models that are truly isolated. They are not bad for budget options but they have their limitations.

[@Liberty-hw9dh]

@@Bassguitarist1985 yeah my self as Chinese ethnic, I know their RnD style, perhaps just better than DAISY CHAIN, lower noise? not isolated? hahaha....Thx bro.

[@Bassguitarist1985]

@@Liberty-hw9dh certainly better than a daisy chain, The circuitry design is sound it just doesn't always apply for everything out there. However for 90% of all the pedals on the market they should be just fine. On those really big power hungry pedals these power supplies are just not meant for that.