Members nickt Posted April 26, 2006 Members Share Posted April 26, 2006 I've just bought a new Rocktron Xpression, and it was supplied from Thomann in Germany with a Euro Wall wart. Before getting a 2 pin adapter for use in UK, I tried the unit with a standard mains adapter I had at home, with switchable voltage. I dialled it at 9v, and the Xpression fired up, but with nothing visible on the screen. Now that I am using the "proper" adapter, it all fires up fine. Is this because there wasn't enough mA going through before to power the screen? Is it likely to have caused any damage? TIA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members dangerous dan Posted April 26, 2006 Members Share Posted April 26, 2006 There should be no damage to your pedal using a standard mains power supply, I've had similar problems with digital effects and cheap mains 9V power supplies. It's very unlikely you would source enough current to damage / kill it, most likely the voltage coming out of it is less than the 9V it needs. I'm suprised Thomann have supplied you with the wrong wall-wart, I'd contact them and complain. I get a lot of stuff from them, and know many people who do, and their customer service is spot on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members nickt Posted April 26, 2006 Author Members Share Posted April 26, 2006 cheers DD yeah, I've e-mailed them and complained, also the unit was obviously a return, as the power supply wasn't coiled properly, and the manual had been removed from it's bag. Are you saying that they normally supply with a UK adapter? They've told me that the supplied one will work, which it does, with a shaver adapter, but I'd rather have a UK one! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members andreas Posted April 26, 2006 Members Share Posted April 26, 2006 Well, Thomann is a German company... so I'm not surprised that they ship their gear with plugs that fit the sockets in their main market. What surprises me, though, is why you'd try a generic wall wart without knowing if it will work or not. If you're lucky, the only thing that gets damaged is the power supply. If you're unlucky, such manouvers can kill the unit being powered... In this particular case, the Xpression wants 9vAC voltage (and 1500mA of it), which means that the unit never really is in any danger of being damaged by a puny 9vDC power supply. But it's still not very wise to simply plug in without checking (and double-checking) that the supply matches. [End of rant] /Andreas Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members dangerous dan Posted April 26, 2006 Members Share Posted April 26, 2006 Originally posted by nickt cheers DDyeah, I've e-mailed them and complained, also the unit was obviously a return, as the power supply wasn't coiled properly, and the manual had been removed from it's bag.Are you saying that they normally supply with a UK adapter? They've told me that the supplied one will work, which it does, with a shaver adapter, but I'd rather have a UK one! I'm fairly certain they should supply a UK plug, its some BSI / EU directive (but thinking on this may only apply if you buy from a UK company !!). Also check the item description on their website and also the FAQ incase there is something in it about PSU's. Buts for teh decent cost saving you have got form Thomann a Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members nickt Posted April 26, 2006 Author Members Share Posted April 26, 2006 Originally posted by andreas Well, Thomann is a German company... so I'm not surprised that they ship their gear with plugs that fit the sockets in their main market. /Andreas Andreas, of course you make a very valid (if slightly patronising) point about trying the generic adapter. I guess that the red mist descended in my excitement and impatience to get the unit working. Yes Thomann are a German company, but they have a UK specific section on their site, with no mention in any FAQ or terms (that I can find) of UK buyers recieving Euro pin plugs. However Dan is right, the savings there are excellent and a quid or so for a shaver adapter is a small price to pay! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members andreas Posted April 26, 2006 Members Share Posted April 26, 2006 I'm sorry if I came off as patronizing - it's just that I've seen more than my fair share of pedals being blown by users grabbing the nearest adapter, without checking if it is even in the ballpark... /Andreas Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members nickt Posted April 27, 2006 Author Members Share Posted April 27, 2006 it's all cool. I appreciate your input! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members nickt Posted April 27, 2006 Author Members Share Posted April 27, 2006 btw Andreas, I've also got the Midimate controller to go with the unit. I got it off Ebay from the US, and of course it has a 120v 60Hz Input. It's outputting 9VAC 2000mA. I assume that I need a step down transformer? cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members andreas Posted April 27, 2006 Members Share Posted April 27, 2006 Yes, a 120v-spec adapter would need a step-down transformer to run off the 220-240 volts we have over here. Since the adapter doesn't use that much power, you should be able to get away with one of the smaller models (check Maplin for ideas) - amps require much bigger transformers to work properly, but this is slightly different. Also, with a 7-pin MIDI cable, you can use the "phantom power" input on the back of the Xpression to power the MIDImate. That way, you can leave the adapter for the pedalboard by the rack. /Andreas Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members nickt Posted April 27, 2006 Author Members Share Posted April 27, 2006 thanks Andreas. much appreciated! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members dangerous dan Posted April 27, 2006 Members Share Posted April 27, 2006 nickt - looks like your happy now. Everything OK ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members nickt Posted April 27, 2006 Author Members Share Posted April 27, 2006 yeah, looks good. Saved a packet on the midimate as well, so a Voltage converter at Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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