Caline Pedal Power Supply: True Isolation? How They Compare To Other Brands?

Caline asked me to talk about how these pedal power supplies work. Seems many refute the fact that they are not true isolation. I can tell you that they are. I go over briefly how the circuit operates and how isolation is achieved. I then discuss how these budget friendly power supplies compare to the more expensive name brands like Cioks, Voodoo Labs, MXR, Onespot, Strymon, etc.
The main advantage the CIOKS for example has is the ability to switch each output voltage independently via DIP switches. This is because they use a DC/DC converter chip, very efficient, but more complex filtering. The LVR's used in the Caline is a more traditional technology, you cannot switch the voltage on the fly, but you can get more current to a pedal that requires it by using a Y adapter combining the outputs to handle it.
Overall great budget friendly pedal power supplies!
‪@CalineTechnology‬
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[@zvuksvetla]

Thank you very much for clarifying if Caline power supply is truly isolated. Now I know it is and I'm gonna get one. Regarding tech side, I think you're not too technical, I understand you perfectly, you even discovered to me what is the main difference between expensive and budget power supplies. Thank you very much, I wish you all the best!

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Glad you found the video helpful! Appreciate your support and thank you for watching!

[@whatissurge]

You saved me a ton of money. Thank you for this video. I have a Pure Sky and a Pegasus and they are amazing.

[@jordanfontaine8015]

Thanks! Nice to learn why things are so pricy vs affordable. I have the calines under my board and they do exactly what I need. All that saved cash went into more pedals.

[@danielmiller2886]

Thank you, thank you! This is the detailed information i have been trying to find.

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Glad to have helped out!

[@cm-kl2wx]

As someone new to pedals and power supplies I found your explanation excellent...it has given me valuable information and I can now purchase with confidence...thank you Sir!

[@thesaj1110]

Thank you kindly for the in-depth reviews of these Caline power supplies. budget friendly and they do the trick with a small footprint.

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Appreciate the kind words! Thank you for watching!

[@GROCK599]

Awesome, thanks for showing the internals

[@volksfriends9924]

Thank you for information.

[@i2k92]

Thanks a lot for your videos. It really help my decision to buy this psu.

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Thank you for supporting and watching the channel!!

[@guitarsofmark4334]

Just wanted to say I bought a 206 after watching your videos, and it powers my analog stuff as well as 2 uafx and a couple of boss digital ones with no discernible noise Although it gets warm and the wallwart gets warm, i have left it on with all effects on for a long time, and it still works great Thanks for doing the legwork

[@alexshackleford1065]

Awesome video! I'm away from my kit right now, I won't be home for a couple of weeks, and I was thinking about power supplies. I started questioning how true it is that my Voodoo Labs x4/x8 are actually "individually isolated". I started to think I probably got ripped off on a glorified daisy chain, because to be truly isolated, each output would need it's own transformer at least. so how could that possibly fit in something so small and light?! The way you talked through the circuit makes perfect sense, with each output having it's own secondary winding on a single transformer, amounting to the same thing. I couldn't find anyone who actually opened one of these up, so I was itching to get home and look for myself. But now, thanks to you, I don't have to. Thanks again for taking the time to make this great video.

[@Bassguitarist1985]

My pleasure! Be sure to check out my other videos on these power supplies. They are great for the money but if you are trying to use them to power high current pedals like the HX Stomp or a multi-effects Digitech pedal for example, then they would not be the best choice for that application. Other than that they check all the boxes for about 98% of all the pedals on the market these days!

[@almightytreegod]

Omg thank you so much. No one ever explains this! I’ve scoured the internet for so long and I don’t ever see any schematic explanations or anything. The only info on isolated DC power I could find that was technical enough was WAY too in-depth and wasn’t about pedal power or even audio, and any other info on it is so basic and they always say “make sure it’s isolated. A lot of brands say they are but they aren’t,” and then there’s NO EXPLANATION, like EVER. Very rarely I would see them say a transformer is on each output but that didn’t make sense to me for DC obviously, and would make them much bigger, not to mention the expense. This clarifies things very well. You are a godsend and I’m so glad I finally found this video. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU…

[@Bassguitarist1985]

You are very welcome thank you for watching and supporting the channel. Any further questions please let me know

[@almightytreegod]

@@Bassguitarist1985 now that you mention it… I’ve got a Joyo one that has a built-in rechargeable battery (not isolated). Do you think maybe the reason you don’t see any with true isolation plus battery is due to the heat?

[@Stewkeithmtb]

Thank you for the video, it's really helpful. I use my Caline with total confidence and it doesn't let me down. I might add that being a complete numpty I plugged the power in to the wrong end (ie one of the power outlets) and I can happily report that this doesn't work. At all. However when I realised my stupidity and plugged it in correctly everything worked just fine. So its idiot proof too.

[@johnnygreenway3579]

Thanks for this video. I'm strictly a novice trying to learn to play guitar. I currently have the Donner daisy chain power supply, but haven't used it yet since I only have one pedal(chorus) I've looked at the Donner DP 1 and 2 model power supply. Some say they are not truly isolated, but what I see on Amazon is a host of power supplies that look identical, with just a different name. If I ever used just a few pedals I think this brand would work fine. Like I said so many choices when it comes to power supplies

[@michaelwolff9207]

Great video

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Thank you sir!

[@reptarxjirx]

Thank you

[@Bassguitarist1985]

My pleasure!

[@musoseven8218]

Really helpful - thanks👍✌️😊 Ive been trying to get to the bottom of this issue - after reading reviews of cheaper RPS units. Celine seems ideal for the hobby/bedroom/weekly gigging musician👍✌️😊💜

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Exactly and as a matter of fact I'm testing a new version of the power supplies that actually has the DC to DC converter in them eliminating the linear voltage regulators. Still needs a little bit of tweaking but as a company Caline is listening to the customer base

[@musoseven8218]

@@Bassguitarist1985 Good to know. I may buy one soon, in the UK, great value, for something that works and is well specs✌️👍🤞💜😊

[@Bassguitarist1985]

@@musoseven8218 indeed! And the newer board version is better, but it needs some improvements before I can put my approval stamp on it.

[@SOMRHMusic]

Subscribed!! Great video! Great explanation. Quick question...Do you think one of these pedal power supply's could power an HX Stomp pedal? Thanks for any information.

[@Bassguitarist1985]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/d2SQYniapdiNoK8feature=shared

[@sparkyguitar0058]

I will say that I guess I got lucky cause Im using a Caline P-1 power unit for now about 4-5 yrs powering a 12 pedal board without problem. Enough of my pedals were bought used modded that I figured noise would always be a problem. Only real noisy is my Butler T Driver older 3 knob model thats bias knob modded by Fromel. I'm using a 12u tube and splitting the 18v between this and a silent modded 10 band EQ. Again works perfectly for yrs now. But I see in comments about my pwr unit noisy , breaks fast, doesnt work from the get-go. I planned my board out before putting it together and have used EBS Gold flat patch cables from day 1. I used this board for a few rock shows and worship service for a yr. And now it sits on my floor waiting to go to work again.

[@nal3544]

Great video! I've been thinking of upgrading from the Memteq Caline Power 5 to a the Caline SP - 207, especially after watch this vid. From your info, I'm understanding that the livery/cosmetics is the only difference, is this true? I've always been concerned that the Power 5 wasn't fully isolated.

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Thank you for watching! Not too familiar on the topology of the power 5 but yes as far as I know just the cosmetics for the CP series and yes the CP series is truly isolated.

[@WilDBeestMF]

It might be one of their oldest power supplies, but I can tell you that the CP-4 (the snake one), is NOT isolated. Noisy as anything. It was $25, it was worth a shot. Their newer units are reportedly doing well.

[@Defekcija]

I have 7 pedals that use 9V. From tuner to OD and distortion to reverb/delay. I see 100, 300 and 500mA and now I'm wondering which should go where? Does it even matter which one I plug and where? Great video, cheers!

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Match the outputs to your pedals current draw. For example if your pedal draws 30mA, then plug into a 100mA plug

[@ulisesdanielguerrerovelazq8359]

Great video, can I use the 12v output from the CP-207 to feed a Vintage Boss ACA pedal?

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Yes those pedals were originally designed to have unregulated 12 volts inputted but internal circuitry down converted to the proper 9 volts sometimes 6 volts internally. We're talking late '80s here until 1991 if I'm not mistaken, then boss went to the standardized PSA adapters

[@ulisesdanielguerrerovelazq8359]

@@Bassguitarist1985 Many thanks for your answer, I don't know much about this, but is there any problem if I power my ACA OD-2 with 12v DC instead of 12v AC?

[@Bassguitarist1985]

@@ulisesdanielguerrerovelazq8359 12VDC is what the original adapter outputted. Do not use 12VAC as that voltage may damage the pedal, or at the least make it malfunction.

[@greatestartist5905]

Thank so much for providing actual evidence, you saved me a lot of money, especially as a student. Reddit is cancer, "hur dur spend $200 on a psu, don't buy budget". No facts there, just pure herd mentality. I almost listened to them too.

[@Bassguitarist1985]

I was a broke college student once myself. I get it! Thanks for watching!

[@justindeguzman9408]

Would know if the Caline CP-02 isolated also? I'm planning to build a small pedalbord and it would be nice to use a compact power supply.

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Hey I am not sure I have not encountered that power supply from them yet. It looks very small physically so I'm not sure if it would be a true galvanic isolation with switch mode transformers. If you have it can you take it apart and see? If not I would recommend the 205 206 or 207 here in this video

[@sebastian.arancibia]

Nice review, as always. In your opinion, is there any mayor benefits between CP-206 and CP-207, besides of the increase of 2 more power ports? Are those two exactly the same?

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Yes they are exactly the same. You just get a little extra capacity overall. Thank you for watching!

[@sebastian.arancibia]

@@Bassguitarist1985 Thanks. I just bought a CP-207. I have serious noise issues to solve.

[@slowpoke7888]

@@sebastian.arancibia Did it solve your noise issue?

[@sebastian.arancibia]

@@slowpoke7888 Yes. I got the CP-207 and works like a charm. Totally recommend.

[@slowpoke7888]

@@sebastian.arancibia Thanks Seb. I think I will get one.

[@alv1174]

Is the Caline P1 also truly isolated in each separate slot?

[@Bassguitarist1985]

I believe so. Its a discontinued model so I cannot check.

[@eyetalic]

Do you get measurements of voltage output before putting them under load? I’m going to try your technique with 100 ohm resistors, but unloaded ports are at 10Vdc.

[@Bassguitarist1985]

I measured 9.01V no load

[@lobau2]

Pergunto: as saidas de todos os 3 modelos apresentados no vídeo são galvanicamento isoladas? (Meu entendimento da língua inglesa é pobre.)

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Los tres modelos están aislados galvánicamente.

[@crock2434]

Just got the cp205 last month..this month i have a new pedal added to my board....would using a voodoo labs type currint splitting y cable in the 300mah port be able to run two analog pedals with out any noise ,they have a current draw of +/- 147mah. its now a daisy chain scenerio right?

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Yes it would be a daisy chain type scenario however you may or may not experience any noise. If the pedals are well filtered internally you might be able to get away with this scenario.

[@crock2434]

@@Bassguitarist1985 I ordered the voodoo lab -y splitter cables. They are only grounded to one pedal..using the patch cable for ground(@ one less GND loop).this cp-205 is actually powering 10 pedals ,I took notice of where each transformer was and did a y in front and one y at the rear of the plug bus...and bamm 10 noiseless pedals and 3 are digital,and my green ringer is germanium transistors and diodes so it was a bit noisy , now I'm quiet and I'm only using one wall wart not 5. Awesome video .my experience with caline with the v1 stuff was terrible so I pwnd it off on CL, but watching your in depth video has saved my marriage 300-500$...I've got 40$ in the cp205. 10$ in the y cables (used)...

[@pedrocenturiongarzon9106]

Hi bro. Thx for your videos. I want to buy the cp206, because i have 10 pedals in my pedalboard (one of these requires 18V). Do you recomend this power supply? I'm from Colombia (i apologise my english) here we have 110-120V from wall. Thanks

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Hello! Long as your pedals do not need high current above 500mA yes this should be fine!

[@Tasjudoka]

So if I need an isolated 18v supply for my pigtronix rototron that I want to preserve and rum well... this should do it?

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Yes. That pedal needs a min of 100mA at 18V, but recommends 300mA at 18V for headroom according to the manual. Yes this should be no problem!

[@Tasjudoka]

@@Bassguitarist1985 Thx for your reply! Mostly I was a little concerned about how isolated the circuit was and I run almost all the 9v at the same time as this if there'd be any risk of damage but sounds unlikely... how do you think the extra headroom works? Is it likely to clip more with the 100mA out?

[@Bassguitarist1985]

@@Tasjudoka there is only one 18V output rated at 300mA, that should be plenty.

[@roryadam]

I found a power supply with 8 isolated outputs and it is powered by a type C port, the pedal is called pedal power and model number is PW1. Whats the likelihood of it being truly isolated, and seeing as how its using a type C port instead of a barrel jack would it still follow the same rules as what you've described in the video. It says the input is 5v at 2.1amps, but I know Type-C can do like 20v I think so I imagine they'd be doing something like that, i dunno lol

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Got a link to the product?

[@tylerladera]

Have you reviewed the cp 204? Is it anygood compared to the cp 205?

[@Bassguitarist1985]

No I haven't. The CP-204 is a non isolated mini PSU if I recall. Works for most applications except when you need isolation.

[@eurobroski33]

What are the two extra cords meant for that are in the box?

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Adapters for older and oddball pedals with different power adapters

[@eurobroski33]

@@Bassguitarist1985 thanks!!

[@m1goodwin]

Great video, however, can you explain why AC current is rectified to DC in the walwart, only to be flipped back to AC in the unit? Wouldn’t it be more efficient to bring low voltage AC from the wallwart into the unit, eliminating the two converters?

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Sure, the main reason is regulation. That circuitry exists inside the wall wart specifically. Stepping down AC voltage from the mains is done via a heavy transformer usually. Using a switch mode step-down buck converter that is lighter weight will take the mains voltage down to the regulated DC voltage first. The isolation will happen next with the conversion back to AC voltage. Finally the last stage rectifies it back to DC and filters any switch mode noise out.

[@garycrant4511]

I have earlier Caline P-5 and P-6 power supplies. Can you confirm they are also definitely Isolated ?.. cheers...

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Not 100% sure but I think they are.

[@garycrant4511]

@@Bassguitarist1985 Thanks for rapid reply. Your instructive video does give me more confidence to open one up for a more informed look inside. Btw.. just noticed Caline power supplies are no longer available on Amazon UK ???

[@Bassguitarist1985]

@@garycrant4511 Not sure why about that.

[@DaveElectric]

So what would a 1200watt multi channel isolated DC power supply (6 channels 200 watts per channel) look like.

[@Bassguitarist1985]

No idea. 1200W DC brick for pedal power would be insane!

[@DaveElectric]

@@Bassguitarist1985 It's for an application that has nothing to do with guitars.

[@Bassguitarist1985]

@@DaveElectric Cool. What application?

[@DaveElectric]

I'm sorry I meant 75 watts per channel. So I would prefer 450watts output capacity. I liked your Y-cable idea. That would at least give me 9 watts per channel on a 12 channel pedal power device (12x 9v 500mA >>> 6x 9v 1Amp (y-connection) or 4x 9v 1.5A (triple Y connection). The application is for balance/charging a 150v custom Lipo pack using only 6S standard balance chargers. Why you ask? Because the balance chargers are both a charging device and a balancing device at the same time. And they have a WAY higher balance current capacity than your typical BMS board. It's not like I got to buy an expensive BMS board and then buy an even more expensive charger that is capable of being controlled by that same BMS board. That type of system for our battery packs is $1800 system minimum. If I had a price for a 450 watt 6-channel isolated DC power supply I believe I can bring the price down by $1000. We also have a 100v custom Lipo pack which only need 300 watt system.

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Cool stuff. I'm not completely familiar with lipo technology specifically. I can only comment on its application as a pedal power supply. Thank you for sharing and for watching the video!

[@LukeryaPereprygova]

finally your video popped up in my feed! thank you! a question you maybe can help me with - i have a few analog and 3 digital pedals that i suspect give some hiss/noise/hum to my chain. i'm thinking towards getting something like vitoos with a rechargeable battery inside. if i run my chain in battery mode in my understanding i'm radically limiting any grid interference that might cause hum/noise? also, can my digital pedals still feed some kind of noise back into the power supply circuit and interfere with other pedals through the power supply?

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Running on batteries will definitely prevent any kind of grid interference as you say. However depending on the digital pedal if the power supply input internally to the pedal is not properly filtered then noise from inside the pedal can communicate back through the power supply. It's not often that happens it's usually very early digital pedals from like 30 years ago that have these kinds of issues. Look up the term heterodyning that is often the source of the noise. Best I can say is try it and see if you get any noise at all? I've heard of the Vito's PSUs, but have not had a chance to take one apart yet

[@randalljones4370]

Is there a reason why you did not show actual isolation with a multi-meter (or better yet, a mega-ohm meter), or perhaps run one tap with a heavy load near it's rating on a long/inductive lead then measure crosstalk noise through to an adjacent tap running a light load ? Just the appearance of transformers inside the chassis does not guarantee isolation. Even when a total of ten leads (assume two for AC-in and 8 for four +/-pairs does not guarantee the PCB layout and elements such as the panel-mount jacks maintain galvanic isolation. And these are areas where inexpensive power supplies have failed to maintain circuit isolation in the near-past. Also, those transformers : They do not appear to be toroidal designs. (they look a bit more like a flat E-frame). If so, they will be much more susceptible to crosstalk problems. These only show up under load (e.g. wide buss synchronous math processors such as found in DSP and ARM chips), and are particularly annoying when digital noise leaks from the tap supplying a e.g. large reverb multi-pedal and the noise shows up in an analog drive which has minimal filtering on the V+ and very low current draw. I also want to note that, even though the per-tap linear regulators appear to NOT share a common heatsink, they also do not appear to have any heatsink at all. As far as I can see, there are no air-ventilation slots in the chassis of the power supply. This means that the heat of each channel is radiated into a dead-air space in the power supply, and relies on radiated conduction to the chassis. From a thermal standpoint, this is a fairly inefficient method to get heat off the regulator's junctions and out of the device. And we all know that power supplies are often mounted to a pedal board via hook-n-loop materials, which are very poor conductors (in fact, they are great insulators). This little box has the potential to run quite hot (8 linear regulators and a relatively poor thermal conduction path.) I haven't done system design in 25+ years**, but this one presents some real concerns, to me. ** (not exactly true, as I did some design of non melt-blown filtering systems for PAPRs in the early 2020s.)

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Thank you for your comment and information! I have done an ohm test in other videos about these PSUs where it shows infinite ohms across the negative tips of the outputs. Unfortunately I don't have tools yet to properly measure cross talk noise. I do have the schematics for these and there is galvanic isolation from the wall adapter and the outputs. Multiple secondary windings isolate outputs from each other. I did not show the schematics out of respect for the manufacturer. I too agree with you that the lack of heat sinks for the linear voltage regulators is a bad design. The biggest issue that I have with these power supplies is that they are not a good choice for high current applications beyond 500 mA because of that. For a budget PSU it checks the box for over 90% of all the pedals on the market. The manufacturer monitors my videos and I have a direct link with their product specialist (CS/marketing) who helps translate my feedback to the engineering team in Shenzhen. It's been a great working relationship as a prosumer of their products and other companies. Thanks again for watching and for the knowledge!

[@stephenwhitney5576]

Will these handle any digital pedals at all?

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Yes within the given milliamp range. They are completely isolated from each other so if there's any perturbations or lack of filtering on older digital pedals for example this should take care of it.

[@Zane_Doe]

Are these PSUs grounded considering they use a 2 prong wall adapter?

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Yes, Class 2 wall wart PSUs use two prongs neutral and hot, but no earth ground. The neutral and earth ground are bonded at a residential main panel, but your amp because it has bare metal surfaces needs an earth lug to keep objectionable stray voltage potential off these metal parts. As a result a daisy chain with a class 2 PSU will create a loop between its neutral and the amps earth lug, acting like a huge antenna. Adapters like the One Spot add lowpass filters to reduce the noise this loop would generate, but cheap ones like the one I showed from Amazon, save the few cents and forgo those filtering components.

[@CleanTheWookie]

@@Bassguitarist1985 You're a wealth of excellent information, just found your channel! So in the above scenario you described where the Caline has two prongs vs a three prong ground, I think I understand why an amplifier would need it; but as an example, I also recently purchased purchased a Fender Engine Room LVL 12 in addition to the Caline CP-205. Why does the Engine Room require a 3 prong earth ground? Is it because it's providing 500mA on each of the isolated ports, in addition to two that can switch between 9v, 12v and 18v? Probably something basic I'm not aware of 🙂 As far as the Caline goes, I generally run my amplifiers and my power bricks first into a 3 prong power surge protector before plugging that into a wall - are there any additional benefits (other than protecting against surges) to a power supply like the Caline since it doesn't have an earth ground? Or does it literally not matter at all due to the reasons you highlighted above?

[@Bassguitarist1985]

@@CleanTheWookie no matter. The above comment still applies. Thank you for watching!

[@CleanTheWookie]

@@Bassguitarist1985 No probs, thank you for the response!

[@spn7594]

how about caline power 5/CP 05? it's more popular and cheaper than CP 200 series

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Its discontinued by Caline. They are selling off the last of their stock..not sure of the topology but it is popular. Heard good things

[@identifiesas65.wheresmyche95]

Is it possible for these to fail in such a way that they deliver AC power? An amazon review claims that happened and it fried half his pedals.

[@Bassguitarist1985]

No. The LVR would simply stop working all together

[@DavidRavenMoon]

The isolation is on the positive side. You can’t isolate grounds since all the pedal grounds are connected together. A ground loop is the result of two different AC ground circuits, like two different mains outlets, where one has a lower ground potential than the other.

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Audio grounds are common yes, but the DC ground even if common with analog ground are different. The LVRs are powered by a separate winding on the secondary side which is rectified. So you have an isolated positive and negative rail (virtual ground) for each LVR. I get what you are saying about audio grounds being common pedal to pedal, but it's important to note the DC grounds are isolated as well as the positive side.

[@rayzberg]

Hi! Thank you for your review. Looks like you know these units really well. I hope you could give me an advice. I just bought a CP-206 to power my HX Stomp, using 2x500mA outputs with a current doubler. For some reason it starts producing weird clicking noises after about a minute of use. I linked a video demo of this noise. Hope you could help me figure out what's the issue here. Thanks in advance! kzbin.info/www/bejne/j362eZ9jnct1ibM I should add that with the native Line 6 power supply it works fine. In this setup I'm also powering my Shure wireless unit from a 300mA output of the Caline. In the demo however I'm running it with a cable to eliminate the radio factor

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Hey! I would actually add more current. The HX Stomp takes 850-950mA constant current. Have you checked the volts with both outputs?

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Looks like the original PSU is rated at 3A or 3000mA! I dont think you have enough current and the voltage is dropping below usable levels. kzbin.info/www/bejne/epTGf4CVarN9qtU

[@rayzberg]

@@Bassguitarist1985 I haven't checked them with a tester but I assumed the 9v rating on them is correct. Do you suspect it might not be?

[@Bassguitarist1985]

@@rayzberg I think there is not enough current to drive that pedal and it is causing the voltage to drop too far below 9 volts. The original power supply is rated up to 3 amps at 9 volts and the Caline would be maxed out.

[@rayzberg]

@@Bassguitarist1985 That's unfortunate. I know that people use 2x500mA at 9V for their HX Stomps, using other power supplies. Even the CIOCS video you linked suggests that it shouldn't draw more than 900mA. I was very excited when I found this Caline at about a quarter of the price of Voodoo Labs or One Spot power bricks. Too bad Caline is not able to keep up

[@brokeassbitcharfarf]

hello sir, i know that you would probably not see this due to the video being quite old, but it the caline cp 204 isolated?

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Hello, no it is not isolated

[@perhapszacsucks]

Because you said that these power supplies “are much better than a daisy-chain”, I’d like to see you do a comparison of the one of these Caline power supplies and the TrueTone 1 Spot Daisy-Chain. kzbin.info/www/bejne/pmbKY2iFndl_fLc

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Thats a great idea! The video you sent was very interesting to watch too. There are instances where a daisy chain works perfectly fine. Its when you bet into digital pedals and pedals that have a step down or up converter for the voltages. Sometimes these circuits are not properly filtered and can cause noise to flow back on the shared ground of the daisy chain to the other pedals. Thats why isolated PSUs are superior to daisy chains, each output is its own supply and no influence on the other next to it.

[@Bassguitarist1985]

The pedals that make noise are due to inadequate filtering on the power supply. Digital pedals rely on an internal clock to run the DSP chips. This clock is running at a very high frequency beyond human hearing. If the circuit is not carefully designed/filtered to prevent a phenomena called "heterodyning," (which is the combining of two high frequency signals to produce a lower frequency, usually harmonic content bleeds down into the audible range) then you get the noise you demonstrated. It is also possible to get noise with pedals that take incoming 9VDC and convert up or down to a different voltage. Same issue with lack or improper designed filter components. This is why pedals like these need their own isolated/dedicated PSU to prevent these noises/perturbations from traveling on the incoming power lines to other pedals. There are also power line filters that go between the daisy chain and the pedal to reduce the noise traveling on the incoming power lines back through to the other pedals. It is a simple common mode choke designed to bleed any high frequencies to ground, reducing the noise, but some is still passed back through the lines at a reduced dbu level. I'm just a bass player with an affinity for electronics! 😄