LSB
317 posts
Jan 12, 2019
1:04 PM
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9 volt batteries seem to be about 9.4 volts when new. Does anyone know at what voltage effects pedals using 9v batteries start showing a marked decline in performance? I imagine it depends on the type of pedal, but I’m just looking for a general idea, or at least a voltage range where pedals start to suffer sonically and/or outright quit.
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SuperBee
5747 posts
Jan 12, 2019
3:13 PM
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From memory my delay pedal battery measures 7.4 volts when the pedal becomes an oscillator.
That’s the one I’m most familiar with, probably because its the most demanding and one of the most commonly used.
My Harp Attack batteries were at 7.25 volts by the time i realised it was the batteries causing me grief. The pedal performance had been slowly declining for a while by then, but when it began it was fairly subtle decline in volume and i thought the band was playing louder so i started sliding the PA volume higher. Probably took 3 or 4 songs for me to catch on it was a problem with my output and then specifically my Harp Attack pedal. 7.25 volts is the measurement at the undeniable end of the decline, not the beginning.
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LSB
318 posts
Jan 12, 2019
4:21 PM
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Thanks for that.
Reason I asked is that for the last couple years I’ve been throwing away batteries from smoke detectors in my place when the low battery warning kicks in and they start chirping every minute or two. The batteries have to be replaced at this point but until recently I never thought to test the voltage of these used batteries before pitching them.
I did recently test the last two I replaced and it turns out the smoke detectors in my place will start signaling to replace the battery somewhere between 9.01 and 9.18 volts. So it would seem, based on your experience, they could still be useful for a bit in pedals. I replace 6-10 of these batteries a year so its probably worth saving them.
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ME.HarpDoc
348 posts
Jan 12, 2019
5:57 PM
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I'm embarrassed to ask this, but how do you measure the voltage on the battery?
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LSB
319 posts
Jan 12, 2019
6:07 PM
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Using a multimeter, they can be had for cheap, or expensive, your choice.
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LSC
789 posts
Jan 13, 2019
9:38 PM
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To answer your question, I'm not a technical guy but since the pedal is designed to have 9v of current and you've already heard from two people who state their experience was that the pedal died around 7.5 but was fading before that it would seem logical that maybe 8.5 would be your limit. Depending on how often you use your pedal and how often the battery would need changing it might be worthwhile to recycle but change them out long before you hear the pedal not performing.
A little insight. Several years ago I worked as a stagehand for a theatre. We had all sorts, plays, musicals, variety acts and occasionally musical acts such as Golden Earring (Radar Love)and Candy Dulfer. I noticed they all put fresh batteries in the wireless mics, and whatever else used a 9v, before every performance. Some of the bigger names had fresh batteries for soundcheck as well. They were throwing away batteries that had been used for max 2 hours. I started gathering them up. Within about six weeks I had so many I literally couldn't give them away. I tested the first dozen or two. Not one of them was below 9v.
I only use two pedals and one of those only occasionally but it wants 2x9v, but there are things one always seems to need a battery for, not to forget AA and AAA. I buy them all in bulk off of Ebay or Amazon now. I get fresh Duracell Pros at a really cheap price per battery. I do that maybe once a year. I check my batteries before every other gig or before every gig in the case of the KFB. Swap in new if it is below 9v, period. Anytime I need a fresh battery I just reach for the shelf and pop one out of the box. Never worry. Nothing ever fails in the middle of a gig. I don't have to deal with a power supply and yet another cable. I hate cables. Just a damn nuisance.
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LSC
Last Edited by LSC on Jan 13, 2019 9:51 PM
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