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Choosing PowerLines (P-Lines)

Definition of P-Line.

  


Power is Important

Good Resources

...Write it Down

If you need help, these links tell you exactly what you need to know to figure out your PLines.  (Pedal manufacturers make things difficult, so we have to make things easy). 

Using these articles as a guide, go to your rig and write it all down. You'll come away knowing so much more about your pedals (this is a good thing)!   If you still need help deciding what PedalSnake parts to buy, put this info in our Rig Questionnaire and email it to us. 

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Pedal Voltages

Every pedal has an operating voltage. The most popular operating voltage is 9VDC (pedals that take 9V batteries operate at 9VDC). 

The 2 common ways to supply the operating voltage are power supplies and batteries. A pedal's voltage is usually found printed on its power supply---look for something like "Output: 12VDC" (sometimes it is printed on the pedal too, saying "Input 12VDC"). Remember, "DC" voltage is different from "AC" voltage. 

You only need one PedalSnake PLine for each pedal voltage in your rig.
Use power-chains to provide power to all pedals (of a given voltage) from one PLine and one power supply.

Examples

  • If you have five (5) pedals, and they are all 9VDC, you can get
  • If you have five (5) 9VDC pedals and one (1) 18VDC pedal, you have these options, the best listed first:

"AC" is different from "DC"

  • DC and AC should not be mixed on a Dual PLine (use Dual-Isolated, or 2 Singles) 
    • If the printed info doesn't specify AC or DC (it just says "9V"), it is probably DC.
  • If you have five (5) 9VDC pedals and one (1) 9VAC pedal, you can get

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Voltage Polarities

The standard voltage polarity is center-negative (unfortunately).  The little diagram is usually printed on the power supply -->

If you use a standard center-negative supply, and you wish to power-chain it to a center-positive pedal, you will need a 21RP Reverse Polarity adapter for that pedal. 

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Supply Current Ratings

This is not how much current a pedal actually draws---that is usually only a fraction of the power supply's current rating.

You can usually see the current-rating printed on the power supply---look for something like "Output: ..200mA".  This tell you how much current the supply can safely deliver before it starts to hum or overheat (which can shorten its life expectancy). 

So, to not overload the supply when power-chaining pedals, it is good to know (or estimate) the real current draw of the pedals. To estimate use our Pedal Current Categories.  To know, you can try the Power List.

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Power Plug Sizes

2.1mm (x 5.5)  This is the standard size used by stompboxes from Boss, Dunlop, etc.  PedalSnake PLines, as well as most any power-chain cable, use the standard 2.1. 

  

2.5mm  (x 5.5)  2.5 is hard to tell from 2.1, but there are ways:

  • Check our Pedal Power Adapter List to see which power plug adapter your pedal (or supply) may need, or 
  • Do your own test with a 2.1 pedal and wall wart. 
    • The pin inside a 2.5 pedal's power-in jack won't fit into the hole of a 2.1 wall wart plug.
    • The hole in a wall wart's 2.5 plug fits easily over the pin inside a 2.1 pedal jack, but it makes little or no connection.
  • With PedalSnake, use 2125AR for 2.5 pedals, and 2521A for 2.5 power supplies (if you have a Line 6 Modeler, you may also need a 21RP). 
 

3.5mm  (1/8" mini-phone connector)  These are easy to see----the male plug is like the 1/8" miniphone plug on portable headphones, and unlike a female barrel connector, the 3.5 jack has no "pin" inside.

  • Wth PedalSnake, use 2135AR for 2.5 pedals, and 3521A for 2.5 supplies.
 

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Pedal Current Categories 

You can only put so much current (mA) on PLines and power-chains, so its good to know how much current each pedal uses. 

Some pedals draw as little as 1 mA, and some as many as 1000, but manufacturers rarely tell you this (they just give you the power supply's max "current rating").  So, to simplify things, PedalSnake breaks pedals into 4 "current categories".

(You can also find the actual real current draw of some pedals at The Power List.)

CATEGORY EXAMPLES

9V Battery Pedals

 Stompboxes from Boss, Dunlop, Ibanez, etc. that will accept a 9V battery inside, and draw very little current.
Low Current Pedals H&K's Tube Factor or the Radial Tone Bone.
Medium Current Pedals Line 6 Modelers or Yamaha's Magic Stomp.
High Current Pedals  Damage Control's Womanizer, or the Vox Tone Lab.

Line 6 M13/M9 Stompbox Modelers

Line 6 has stated these pedals have an actual current draw over 1000mA, which is the more than any other pedal we know of. PedalSnake’s Hi-Current P-Line is designed for up to 1000mA. Handling more current reliably depends upon the pedal. These pedals have worked fine for some PedalSnake customers, and shown problems with others.  But similar problems have also surfaced when not used with PedalSnake. As of February 2010, the cause of these problems seems unknown, so it is hard to say whether the problems relate to PedalSnake. We suggest M13/M9 owners who also have PedalSnake try using our Hi-Current P-Line, but be prepared to return to tradional power cabling if problems arise. Please let us know of your experiences, and we will try to keep everyone posted.

  • The charts below give conservative estimates...and they ARE estimates!
  • How we figure things:

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How many pedals can you power-chain on each PLine Pigtail type?
(estimates assume 24 foot BaseSnake)

 

 

Single

Dual

Dual "I" 

Hi-Current

9V Battery Pedal

Current Draw (mA)

MM1, MF1

MF2
(per side)

MM2-I, MF2-I
(per side)

MF1-H

* takes one 9V battery, or...
* 18VDC pedal taking two

min1 max65 avg20

20 or more

10 - 15

20 or more

40 or more

LOW Current Pedal

Current Draw (mA)

        

* won't take a 9V battery
* supply rated 325-775 mA

min60 max200 avg125

3 - 5

2 - 3

3 - 5

6 - 10

MEDIUM Current Pedal

Current Draw (mA)

        
supply rated 800-1575 mA

min150 max500 avg200

1 - 3

1

1 - 3

2 - 5

HIGH Current Pedal

Current Draw (mA)

        
supply rated 1600mA (& up)

min400 max1000 avg750 

none

none

none

1

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