About the polarity of the sustain pedal

What is sustain pedal?

When playing a keyboard instrument, this is a pedal that extends the sound of the key you pressed while depressing the pedal. Also called a damper pedal, it is an essential element in playing a keyboard that can enrich the sound and connect the sound smoothly.

Pedal polarity

If you change equipment in the studio or change the keyboard in the studio, you may have experienced the wonderful experience of "the sound is loud even though you didn't step on the pedal". This is a phenomenon in which the opposite action to the original function occurs due to the different polarity of the connected equipment and the pedal.
Sustain pedals for keyboards have two types of polarity called normally open and normally closed, and the corresponding polarity differs depending on the manufacturer and model. Pedals from major manufacturers such as YAMAHA and ROLAND are normally closed, and KORG is normally open. If the polarity is the same, different manufacturers may be used without problems, but basically it is recommended to use the manufacturer's recommended products. (Even if they are from the same manufacturer, they may not be available depending on the model and time of manufacture)

If the polarity is different

If the polarity of the keyboard and pedal is different, please try the following.

Check to see if the equipment has a pedal polarity switching function.
Some recent equipment have a pedal polarity switching function. Let's check the user manual.
With the pedal depressed, turn on the equipment.
Depending on the type of equipment, there are specifications that can switch the polarity by this operation.

In addition, more versatile sustain pedals with a polarity switching functions like M-AUDIO/SP-2 are also available on the market.