Guitarists Should Buy a DC Stabilized Power Supply!

What is a Stabilized DC Power Supply?

Do you know what a stabilized DC power supply is? As the term implies, it is a power supply device that is capable of continuously supplying a “stable” DC voltage. If we interpret the definition faithfully, the DC adapters we use in our daily lives can be said to be a kind of DC regulated power supply.

• The output voltage can be set to any desired level by turning a knob.
• The upper limit of the current can be set.
• Real-time monitoring of output voltage and current.

In many cases, the term “stable power supply” refers to a power supply that has such functions as “the ability to monitor the output voltage and current in real time”. You may think, “Only people who do electronic work would buy such a thing,” but it is useful for other purposes as well.

Type with current display

Type without current display

More Equipment, More DC Adapters

One of the joys of playing the guitar is buying and collecting a wide variety of equipment. However, the issue is that as you buy more and more equipment, the number of power adapters increases along with it. Fortunately, most guitar effects are standardized with 5.5mm outer diameter, 2.1mm inner diameter, center minus 9V, but this is not the case with small amplifiers, which use different types of adapters. Some are 9V, some are 12V, some are 24V, and some are 6.5V. In addition, the polarity, plug size, and allowable power flow vary, and adapters of different standards cannot be diverted. Some people may choose to run things on dry cell batteries and not buy adapters, but in my case, I bought together every time I wanted to use things I wanted to sit down and use it without worrying about running out of batteries.

This is where a regulated DC power supply comes in. A DC regulated power supply can output any voltage within the range specified in the specifications, so it can flexibly respond to the voltage specifications of the amplifier. For example, the DC regulated power supply I have (the first image in the article) is a cheap one (one of the cheaper DC regulated power supplies) costing about 8,000 yen, but it can set voltage up to 30V and current up to 10A. Most equipment powered by power adapters operate at voltages of 24V or less, and current consumption of 10A or more is rare. In other words, this single unit can replace any power adapter.

Voltage and current are good enough, but what should we do about the diameter and polarity of the plug? As expected, there is nothing that can be done with the regulated DC power supply itself, but there is an item that is ideal for use with a regulated DC power supply. It is a plug like the one in the image below.

Removable power plug

Both 2.1mm and 2.5mm plugs are available in packs of four for about 500 yen, so they are easy on the wallet. When driving with the center plus, connect the +/- of the regulated DC power supply to the +/- of the power plug, and when driving with the center minus, connect the -/+ of the regulated DC power supply to the +/- of the power plug in reverse order. Now you no longer have to worry about changing the plug diameter and polarity.

Works well as a measuring instrument

There is no doubt that there are advantages to using a DC stabilized power supply in place of a power adapter, and in fact I run my amps and effects pedals at home with a DC regulated power supply, but to be honest, I would not recommend this alone to everyone.

First of all, the main unit costs close to 10,000 yen. Unless you are buying a lot of different kinds of small amplifiers, it is cheaper to buy batteries or a power adapter. In addition, a regulated DC power supply takes up more space than a regular power adapter, and it is a precision instrument that must be handled with care. They are so heavy and bulky that it would be a poor joke to take them out to the studio. Another reason why we recommend DC regulated power supplies in spite of this is that they can also be used for the main aspect of power supplies, namely, as measuring instruments.

For example, when buying a power supply for an effects pedal, the allowable current for each output port of the power supply must be greater than the current consumption of the effects pedal, and to make that determination, you need to know how much current is available for the effects pedal you are currently using. You may be able to find information on the Internet for standard effects pedals from well-known manufacturers, but this is not always the case. In such cases, a DC stabilized power supply can be useful.

While it is not impossible to use a tester just to measure current, a regulated DC power supply makes this task much easier. As I mentioned above, many regulated DC power supplies are able to monitor the output voltage and current in real time, and the current consumption is displayed simply by connecting the power supply to the equipment, making it much easier to measure current than with a tester. What would happen if you tried to measure current with a tester? You would have to insert the tester in order with the circuit, and you would need some kind of component that would allow you to break free somewhere in the middle of the wiring from the power supply to the equipment and expose the terminals. To measure the maximum current at which the equipment will operate, we need to check the current level while we are playing, so we need some kind of crocodile clip that allows the tester to remain connected to the wires even when we let go of it, and we need to be careful that it does not come off with the slightest vibration. You may feel that I am exaggerating the difficulty of the task, but based on my own experience, I can tell you that current measurement is a very tedious task. I sometimes measure the power consumption of gadgets as well as guitar equipment, but after I bought a DC stabilized power supply, I can see the current immediately after connecting it to the power supply without any trouble, and I even regretted not buying it earlier.

Also, a stabilized DC power supply is also very useful for reducing the time and effort it takes when measuring other electricity-related characteristics. For example, measuring the power consumption of a power supply and calculating its efficiency by supplying power from a stabilized DC power supply, or measuring a characteristic curve from the current value greatly reduces the time by applying a low voltage to a volume pot, making this item incredibly useful.

To summarize

I recently purchased a used Blackstar FLY3 and was about to test its operation when I realized that the power supply specification is 6.5V, and as I connected the DC stabilized power supply and played the sound, I thought, “If I didn't have this, I would not have been able to test the power adapter operation until the adapter arrived.” So, I wrote this article. I hope this article will be of some help to you in your musical life.

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