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Anyone else using the Pedal Jeanie?


kit_strong

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I usually stick to HCEG but I figured this might be interesting to some of you.

 

For about a year now I've been using the HD500 as my primary effects unit. But lately I've decided it would be nice to have a proper pedal board which I can use in combination with my HD500, my Mesa, or straight into the audio interface. One of the things I wanted was easy portability since I'm constantly moving back and forth between the living room and my "studio".

 

I've had a Korg Pitchblack Tuner and a Soundblox Multiwave Distortion pedal for quite some time but without a true board I almost never used them. My wife picked me up a VFE Fiery Red Horse so with that in hand and some extra cash in my gear-fund from selling off some unused gear I knew it was time to put something together.

 

For awhile I was considering using the Sanyo Pedal Juice in conjunction with either a PedalTrain or a DIY board. But with the TC Nova Delay and some Strymon pedals on my wish list I knew that wouldn't be up to the task. I had read about the Grid1 Pedal Jeanie before and decided to look into that. It looked up to the task, and the price really wasn't any more than a good power supply and board so I took the plunge and ordered a Pedal Jeanie Jr and the PGS exclusive ibModified TC Nova Delay.

 

PedalJeanie1.jpg

 

 

Housed underneath are 2 rechargeable batteries which power 10 individual barrel connectors. 8 of them being 9V capable of putting out 750mAmp each and 2 of them being 12V@1.5 amp. Yes, that's 750mAmps per pedal, much more than any power brick I'm aware of.

PedalJeanie2.jpg

 

A single 12V adapter charges up the unit while a single button turns the whole thing on and off. There's a built in carrying handle making for easy transport and fitted soft and hard cases are available as well.

PedalJeanie3.jpg

 

It ships with plenty of power chords and zip ties to easily fill up the board. And in no time I had my current small pedal collection mounted and ready to go. Well, everything but the power hungry (2 Amp) Damage Control Liquid Blues. The astute will notice that the Delay pedal is on but there is no AC chord attached to the unit.

PedalJeanie4.jpg

 

The whole rig can easily be carried in 1 hand

PedalJeanie5.jpg

 

I'm still in the early stages of testing the battery life. Manufacturer claims, which are supported by the few reviews I've found, state 50+ hours of runtime with a board full of analog pedals. With higher draw digital pedals that is obviously going to decrease but even with the addition of a Strymon or 2 on the board I still expect to get 10+ hours out of a single charge.

I ran my current setup for about 3.5 hours last night and the light is still green (it cycles through Green, Orange, and Red as the power level goes down). I'll refrain from recharging it for the next few days to see how long it takes to drain the batteries but with such a small setup I'm guessing it will easily last me through next week without a charge.

 

Anyway, just thought I'd share.

 

-Kit

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good idea, but a rechargeable battery for power? seems screwy - why wouldn't they just throw a power unit on there? seems like you're gonna be around power all the time if you're using an amp, right?

 

3 reasons come to mind.

1: It completely eliminates any possibility of AC noise.

2: Just because your amp is close to an outlet doesn't mean your pedal board is. Even in my living room my pedal board will often end up a good 15-20' from any outlet, not to mention that most of the outlets in the room are kind of a PITA the get to.

3: They also make a battery powered 40watt tube amp.

 

For me, I wanted to be able to move from room to room with out always having to find an outlet to plug into.

And considering that it doesn't cos any more (actually less) than a decent pedal board and a high end power brick whats the downside? And since you can still use it while charging you have the best of both worlds.

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for alllll that power... it's a pretty small board.... seems like it's waste to me... great idea though!

 

It's the jr. The larger one is a good 8" deeper.

 

The Pedal Jeanie is 23"x19", the Jr is 23"x11".

For me the Jr is a better fit because most of the time it will sit on a 14" console table next to my HD500. Combined with the fact that i don't want a massive pedal board it's just about the perfect size for my needs. Ultimately the Multiwave Distortion will probably come off to be replaced by a couple of more pedal-board friendly units.

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ruin it!? because it looks stupid with zip ties.
:mad:

i was hoping it was $50 or less.
:(

$50 or less. that seems pretty damn unreasonable, A Voodoo Labs P2+ and Pedaltrain Jr will costs more, doesn't provide as much power, and can't run unplugged so I fail to see why $250 isn't a reasonable price for something that provides the same functionality plus lets you play wherever you need to without worrying about running an extension cord across the room.

 

nice to see that the FX crowd is filled with luddites just like the guitar forums :)

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TL/DNR... i make my own pedal boards.


also, I thought for sure it was just spam.
:idk:

 

Nope, definitely not spam. For awhile I was thinking about going the DIY route. Then I started assessing my options for power supplies. I had thought about using a Sanyo Pedal Juice (Enerloop batteries are awesome) but those only handle 9V pedals so it was either going to limit my options or still necessitate a secondary power source for more power hungry pedals. So it seemed silly to have both. I was really leaning towards either going all out for a CLOX or taking a chance on the Blue Power 12 (which for $99 seems like an immensely capable power brick) but then I started comparing prices and for starting from scratch the Pedal Jeanie just seemed like a great overall solution.

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That's pretty slick man
:wave:

When plugged in to charge, will the power supply still output power to the pedals... If it does, is the power tapped from the wall outlet or does it depend on the battery still?

 

You know, I'm not really sure. I know that it can be used while charging but I'm not sure if the power is flowing through the batteries or not. GUess I'll find out when my battery dies.

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You know, I'm not really sure. I know that it can be used while charging but I'm not sure if the power is flowing through the batteries or not. GUess I'll find out when my battery dies.

 

Haha, nice... Trial by fire... I use the Pedal Juice and that's kind of a gripe I have with it... I've just been carrying a one spot along with me when I might need backup.

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  • 1 year later...
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Hi,

 

I bought one of these from my guitar teacher, but he did not supply any of the connections. I need 8 9V connectors, 2 12V connectors, 2 18V adapters, and a 9V reverse polarity adapter.

 

Do you have any ideas where online or in the Boston area I might find these cables? Guitar Center was a no-go.

 

Thanks!

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