The Steel Guitar Forum

I've been going to a lot of rehearsals lately. It actually helps. Anyway I've been bringing a "practice rig". I've been using an old zoom multi-effects that I don't like too much. I'm looking for a decent sounding reverb pedal, but would like to run it off a battery rather than try and find an extra plug, so battery life is important. Some of the newer pedals take like 100mA, which really eats batteries.

I'd be curious about this too. Most digital pedals draw relatively high current, and sometimes it's inconvenient to find a place to plug in another wall wart.

Almost all modern reverb pedals are using chips that use so much current that they can't run on 9v batteries. I use a Caroline Meteore that works for a while on a battery, but it's distinctly and deliberately lo-fi, which may be awesome if you're me, but may be terrible if you're one of the players looking for a smooth, glossy, modern sound.

Another option is one of the pedalboard power supplies that can operate off of almost any power input, including a common lithium USB backup battery. I have one, and it can drive a lot of bigger pedals (although there's a limit to how many it can drive at once), because the USB battery can deliver a lot more current.

If you're using the MG-50 it's worth installing the effect manager and adding the Spring 63 patch to try out. It's much better than the standard one.

Otherwise, Dave makes a good point - reverb is a pretty processor heavy effect and will drain battery pretty fast on any normal unit.

May be worth considering a more basic analog delay to get in that neighborhood of filling out sound a little.

There are usb to 9v conversion cables which would allow you to use a power bank for the reverb pedal, but make sure you get it with centre negative.

I’ve been using these since they came out in the early 2000’s. I keep one with me on the road for tuning with headphones. The reverb sounds great, and battery life is very good.

There’s a bit of a cult following with them, sometimes they’re really expensive. Here’s a cheap one.

https://reverb.com/item/58666216-korg-t ... t=58666216

I have been using this battery pack for quite a while. Mostly to reduce noise but it's really convenient. Has USB out but I use the 9V barrel connectors to power both of my small pedal boards (pictured) and my Hilton VP. Usually 4 pedals on floor board. I get about 8 hours of playtime. Recharge time is 8 to 10 hours from empty. Essentially overnight prior to gig. Only downside is self-discharge. It will completely discharge itself (no load) in about a week.

I use the Danelectro spring king, I use it with a
Fender bassman head as well as a crate power block.
It has a small spring tank in the pedal.

Bruce Derr wrote:I'd be curious about this too. Most digital pedals draw relatively high current, and sometimes it's inconvenient to find a place to plug in another wall wart.

Yes, and they draw current even when the reverb is switched off. So whenever I'd use a battery reverb or delay when I was playing out, I'd unplug it between sets.