Red Special pedal

I'm a nudnick!

I thought I'd get one cheap from the US, thinking smugly to myself 'well I'll worry about the different power supply later'.

Unfortunately, now is later, I have this pedal with a US power supply and I'm too scared to try anything.  What's the go, here?   I have an adaptor that doesn't seem to do much of anything (but then, with American plugs I don't even know which way is up and which way is down....) and I'm not sure if there's much else I can do.

I asked a friend in Europe about something similar, voltages and also frequencies in countries... not for a pedal though. I knew that somewhere in Europe they had this difference of voltage and frequencies, and he said that only UK has it by default. It seems that in UK they use 220V and 60 hz (or is it 50?) and everywhere else the standard is 110/127V (unless you've changed it in your house or in specific cities, not entire countries I think) and 50Hz (60?), plus the plugs are different.

Disregarding the plugs for now, if your power supply is 110/127V and it's not a bivolt thing that can switch automagically to the right voltage and you're in a 220V... it won't work and you'll get some smoke instead.

I don't know what this small frequency change does though but I think it isn't exactly meant to be used in a different frequency. Anyway, if the power supply isn't bivolt, it won't work so the frequency difference isn't really a problem, it won't interfere with the resulting smoke.

The adaptor and prongs aren't really a problem - there probably are some adaptors or you can even chop off the current plug and use another specifically made for your outlet, considering that the PS can work in both voltages. It should be done by a professional though, to avoid bad soldering for example and adding extra noises...

There probably are some power supply things that can be used with the pedal, but... some are poorly made and add lots of unwanted noises. In the last case you can always ask some electrician to make a custom one. It's easier than building a Red Special, I guess.

I'm not sure about the plug prong sizes but I think that I read somewhere that when they have different sizes it's to help with the AC, the bigger one is where the cycle starts or something, really not sure about that though.

I won't add my usfeul two cents here, as I'm a complete incompetent in this "power supplies-voltages-etc" matter, BUT:
 
I had the RS pedal as a present from my girlfriend one year ago .... and she bought a US one (why? oh, Lord, why? I live in Europe ..), so I had to face this problem. Bought and adaptor from ebay and .... it works pretty well

My US power supply says Input : 120V ~ 60hz 18W
                                       Output : 9V~ 1.3 A

When I saw this I unplugged it from the adaptor right away, figuring that 240V couldn't be good for it.... nothing smoked and nothing smelled like fire, so I'm hoping the pedal itself hasn't been fucked up already!

What do you guys reckon would be better ... do I get a step down transformer, or do I sell this thing to an American and try to find another one in Australia?

Hey Zebonka

all you have to worry about is the Output , the input doesn't matter because the adapter does the conversion for you.
Nip down to dick smiths or hardly normal and buy yourself an Aussie adapter that gives the same output levels and all will be sweet.

You just need an AC adaptor that is 9v and 1000ma (or 1 amp). You can go higher with the amps on the adaptor but not under as that will cause problems. My Aussie adaptor came from Proline and was sold with the pedal so maybe you could buy it separately from them ..... though any adaptor with those specs should do the trick.

Jesus Christ! Does that thing gobble up 1000mamps?!!! The biggest power-drainer I have (Marshall Regenerator) only gets to about 120!

Cheers for the comments guys!  I'm just hoping I haven't already fried it...

You could try a few places for a genuine Digitech PSU
[/QUOTE]www.stringsdirect.co.uk[/QUOTE]www.dv247.com[/QUOTE]www.gak.co.uk[/QUOTE]
[/QUOTE]etc[/QUOTE]
[/QUOTE]Or maybe try a 'Godlyke' PSU that claim to be compatible with anything[/QUOTE]
[/QUOTE]Hope this helps...[/QUOTE]
[/QUOTE]BTW, it's a KILLER pedal - I love mine!!! [img=/images/smiley/msn/shades_smile.gif][/img] [/QUOTE]

I had a bad relationship with the thing from the very beginning.
I did certainly NOT like a couple of the sounds, and after only half a year of very minimal use the footswitch already died. Heelposition does not work anymore.  A complaint I saw with a number of other users as well.

[QUOTE]
so I'm hoping the pedal itself hasn't been fucked up already!
[/QUOTE]

No, It's a Digitech.  It came from the factory that way.

[QUOTE]

[b]Micrówave wrote: [/b]

[QUOTE]
so I'm hoping the pedal itself hasn't been fucked up already!
[/QUOTE]

No, It's a Digitech.  It came from the factory that way.  [/QUOTE]
I've still got an RP50 multi effect lying about, and it's quite good (particularly the ring modulator and the amp simulations). Not absolute heaven, but definitely as good as a Korg or Boss multi.

My Red Special pedal came from the US as well - I thought I'd chuck a standard battery in it like any other pedal.

Solution was [url=http://www.thomann.de]www.thomann.de[/url] - a German company who happily sold me a UK charger.  And a tuner.  And some gold strings. And a new cable.  Damn, credit card takes another spanking.

[QUOTE]

[b]scallyuk wrote: [/b]

Hey Zebonka

all you have to worry about is the Output , the input doesn't matter because the adapter does the conversion for you. [/QUOTE]
I wouldn't be that sure. Usually bigger stuff like whole pedalboards might be bi-volt and switch automatically, but stand alone power supplies...

[QUOTE]You just need an AC adaptor that is 9v and 1000ma (or 1 amp).[/QUOTE]

Pretty much like that. Not sure if you might need all these amperes, but better be safe than sorry. If the PS is supposed to work giving power to other stuff when the pedal is connected in line with others, maybe this is why it needs more amperage but probably it's all just for it.

Getting a transformer just to cut the voltage is much more expensive than it should be and not really necessary if you can find a 240V power supply with the same required amperage.

I LOVE my Red Special Pedal!! It was worth every penny for me. I hope you find what you're looking for Zebonka!!