For Mr Grumpy: my current pedalboard configuration

Always volume before delay

Compressor goes up front

Noise gate goes after noise, so after the distortion. If the distortion is created by your preamp put it in the loop before your delay. If it is created by distortion pedals put it after the pedals.
 
Smitty pointed out to.me that the One Spot creates noise, but some other power supply devices do not.

I'm looking at a Snark SA-1 right now...
 
Non-isolated power supplies are noisy, depending on what pedals you combine on the board

You will also find this issue when you daisy chain pedals from one outlet on a power supply with isolated outputs, but at least you will have a choice of five (or more) outlets to connect pedals to. So if a pedal doesn't get along with another pedal then you could theoretically chain it with a different pedal that it likes better on a different outlet.
 
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Solved the problem with my reverb pedal .... it was the cable. Fixed my cable routing issues today by adding a patch box. It bumped the EQ from the board and the loop station snuck back in.

1uoLH3Q.jpg
 
Robert Herndon said:
Smitty pointed out to.me that the One Spot creates noise, but some other power supply devices do not.

I'm looking at a Snark SA-1 right now...
Click to expand...
Dave Sloven said:
Non-isolated power supplies are noisy, depending on what pedals you combine on the board

You will also find this issue when you daisy chain pedals from one outlet on a power supply with isolated outputs, but at least you will have a choice of five (or more) outlets to connect pedals to. So if a pedal doesn't get along with another pedal then you could theoretically chain it with a different pedal that it likes better on a different outlet.
Click to expand...

One of the issues with the One Spot is that it is a switching power supply (also called a Switched Mode Power Supply - SMPS), instead of a linear power supply like most of the wall warts we're used to using for guitar pedals.

Switching power supplies do have some good points. They can often be made smaller, produce less heat, and waste less electricity than the legacy-type linear power supplies. But, the action of the switching transistors in them can create electrical noise.

Here's a white paper from Strymon where they discuss their switching power supply, and what they've done to make it noise-free.

https://www.strymon.net/effects-pedal-power-supplies-white-paper/

Down in the section about switched-mode power supplies, they highlight the noise issues that can occur with them.

Here is one interesting statement from the white paper:

"The added efficiency of these supplies comes at a price. Compared to linear power supplies, SMPS are more complicated to design, especially for ultra-low-noise applications like high dynamic range audio processors, since they have the potential to generate significant amounts of noise."

I've confirmed this on my own, where I've plugged a One Spot into a pedal and gotten a hum, but not with a Boss power supply. The One Spot is a switched power supply; the Boss is linear.

Now, of course, there are pedals that probably work fine with a One Spot without noise. I'm not flat-out condemning them. If someone is using a One Spot without issues, I won't argue with success! But, if you have an odd hum that you can't eliminate, consider the power supply for your pedals. The "dirty power" may not be coming from the wall...it may be coming from the power supply, itself.
 
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smitty_p said:
One of the issues with the One Spot is that it is a switching power supply (also called a Switched Mode Power Supply - SMPS), instead of a linear power supply like most of the wall warts we're used to using for guitar pedals.

Switching power supplies do have some good points. They can often be made smaller, produce less heat, and waste less electricity than the legacy-type linear power supplies. But, the action of the switching transistors in them can create electrical noise.

Here's a white paper from Strymon where they discuss their switching power supply, and what they've done to make it noise-free.

https://www.strymon.net/effects-pedal-power-supplies-white-paper/

Down in the section about switched-mode power supplies, they highlight the noise issues that can occur with them.

Here is one interesting statement from the white paper:

"The added efficiency of these supplies comes at a price. Compared to linear power supplies, SMPS are more complicated to design, especially for ultra-low-noise applications like high dynamic range audio processors, since they have the potential to generate significant amounts of noise."

I've confirmed this on my own, where I've plugged a One Spot into a pedal and gotten a hum, but not with a Boss power supply. The One Spot is a switched power supply; the Boss is linear.

Now, of course, there are pedals that probably work fine with a One Spot without noise. I'm not flat-out condemning them. If someone is using a One Spot without issues, I won't argue with success! But, if you have an odd hum that you can't eliminate, consider the power supply for your pedals. The "dirty power" may not be coming from the wall...it may be coming from the power supply, itself.
Click to expand...

Great post!!!!
 
When ya'll mention the One Spot, are you describing the little wall wart or their newer brick-styles? I've been interested in their recent line of bricks. Choices come in 6, 7, and 12 outlets.

Check out this comparison chart:

1-SPOT-Pro-Competition-Chart-updated-2016-0914-1024x625.jpg

RVA said:
All this activity and no Mr. Grumpy! Calling Mr. G!!
Click to expand...
I sent him a PM last month, and he responded about three weeks ago with this:
"Hello Mate,

Everything is fine, just started my own company, and also working for another company in a senior position that takes lots of my time. I'm busy, I'm getting older and have decided to try to get some cash in the bank for my future!"
 
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syscokid said:
I sent him a PM last month, and he responded about three weeks ago with this:
"Hello Mate,

Everything is fine, just started my own company, and also working for another company in a senior position that takes lots of my time. I'm busy, I'm getting older and have decided to try to get some cash in the bank for my future!"
Click to expand...
There is no charge to post here if he finds the time. But that pesky GAS can be costly.
 
syscokid said:
When ya'll mention the One Spot, are you describing the little wall wart or their newer brick-styles? I've been interested in their recent line of bricks. Choices come in 6, 7, and 12 outlets.
Click to expand...

I’m specifically referring to the wall wart. But, One Spot makes a point of stating that their power supplies are switching power supplies.

This is not necessarily bad, if they’ve taken steps to deal with the noise, as Strymon has.

I’ve never tried their multi-outlet bricks. They may be very good. I just don’t have any personal experience with them.

However, I definitely have had some noise issues on some pedals with the One Spot wall wart that do not occur with a legacy linear power supply, like a Boss. Or, a battery!
 
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I'm sure people think I love nothing better than pulling my pedalboard apart and putting it back together but I was getting a volume drop yesterday so I pulled all of the pedals and power off of my board and started again, cleaning every jack in the process. I also put some insulating tape inside the G-String in case that helped. I am hoping that I don't have a bad cable in there somewhere. I know that there was an issue with power because I could hear a ground loop. Now I have to work out how I am going to connect 12 pedals to 10 outlets (one 150mA 18V, four 300mA 9V, and five 120mA 9V). I'm disconnecting my wah at this point in time. I don't think I need it for Saturday's gig. I just want everything to work. The chorus is off so there is one pedal less, and I've moved the pedals so that I am less likely to step on two at once by accident

PuZm3sv.jpg
 
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