[Harp-L] Re: Kinder AFB batteries

[Joe <abcdeasy@xxxxxxxxx>]

I have a friend who wants to convert AFB to external power.  I'm
looking into building a solution for him.  In speaking with Kinder
that unit only draws a few milliamps. That's a very low current
demand.   However it uses a bipolar power supply that is plus and
minus 9VDC.  That's why there are two 9V batteries.  The two 9VDC wall
wart approach works fine and is cheap and easy however its not a very
elegant solution.  Who wants two more wall warts to carry around and
take up more outlet space?

The better way to approach it is to build an external bipolar power
pack that uses one AC connection similar to a laptop power pack.  I'm
sure Kinder could have built an external supply but my guess is he
probably couldn't do it very cost effectively.  He also probably
figured that not too many people would want or need external power
since the unit can run for a very long time on a set of batteries.

Here is a complete bipolar supply solution that uses one 12VAC wall
wart.  All you need to do is populate the circuit board, put it in a
project box and wire it to the AFB using a three pin connector.
http://www.musicfromouterspace.com/analogsynth/WALLWARTSUPPLY/WALLWARTSUPPLY.php
Maybe $40 total for the entire project?

I'll build something similar to the above but without a wall wart.  It
will use a small transformer inside of the project box.

Anyway, its not a very big deal to build an external supply or use two
wall warts.

I also agree that the inside of the AFB is a real mess !  Not very mod
friendly and very tight on space.

Joe

On Jul 22, 8:28 am, "John Balding" <John.Bald...@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
wrote:
> If this is too long, at least read the first and last paragraph...
>
> John Kinder is a perfectionist. He is also a trained and experienced
> electronics expert. My feeling is that he knew an adapter would be
> convenient, but chose not to incorporate the ability to use one for a
> good reason; what that reason is I don't know. But it would have only
> cost him the price of a jack and some extra soldering time to equip the
> AFB+ with the means to run on an adapter, but he chose not to do so. It
> sure as heck wasn't to "save on the cost". The HarpKing amps have the
> same anti-feedback circuit in them and they are powered by wall current
> with a transformer ahead of the anti-feedback circuit. So, in practice,
> it has been done. But, because John did not incorporate that ability
> into the AFB+, it solidifies my belief that he made that decision based
> on some hard facts/evidence.
>
> The thing to consider about "converting" a Kinder AFB+ to be used with
> wall warts/adapters is the amp draw of the AFB+. 9-volt adapters can put
> out 9-volts at a very low amp rating. They can also put out quite a bit
> of juice at a higher rating (usually stated in milliamps). This is why
> you can't (shouldn't) hook up the adapter from your brand X delay pedal
> to your brand Y reverb pedal; even if the polarity and jack size is the
> same.
>
> Not knowing the amp draw of the unit and crafting a crude "link" to a
> parts-bin converter could lead to disaster. Jason Ricci probably got the
> advice of either John Kinder or a skilled tech; or maybe he just got
> lucky.
>
> I own an AFB+. The circuit board in these things is like something from
> the dashboard of the space shuttle (i.e. - not local amp tech-friendly
> if you screw it up). I wouldn't want to take the chance on frying that
> circuit. I don't know what the draw is for the AFB+. When I get home,
> I'll check the manual and see if it gives a rating.
>
> To me, it's just not worth blowing a $360 piece of equipment to save a
> couple of bucks on batteries; especially when good batteries (e.g. -
> Energizer Industrial) last for 165 hours. In other words, you could turn
> the unit on Sunday at midnight and it would not die until 9:00pm the
> following Sunday! At three hours of actual playing time per gig, that
> equates to 55 gigs. Even a professional musician, playing 20 gigs a
> month, could get almost three months out of a set of batteries. That
> means probably six months or more for the rest of us.
>
> John Balding
> Tallahassee, FL
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: harp-l-boun...@xxxxxxxxxx [mailto:harp-l-boun...@xxxxxxxxxx] On
>
> Behalf Of samblancato
> Sent: Tuesday, July 22, 2008 4:14 AM
> To: har...@xxxxxxxxxx
> Subject: [Harp-L] Kinder AFB batteries
>
> Jason Ricci plugs his AFB+ in via 2 9 volt wall warts from radio shack.
> Works
> great that way and no battery worries.Michael Peloquin
>
> What are wall warts?  Are they adapters?  I have two adapters for my
> Digitec
> Delay and a Boss Equalizer pedal I used to use.  These adapters have a
> plug
> the fits the pedals but I doubt that they make a male/female plug like
> the
> ones used to connect the 9v. batteries.  Can you enlighten me a little
> more
> about these wall warts?
>
> I've found that the battery life on my Kinder AFB+ is very inconsistent.
> It
> varies based on quality of the batteries I use.  Sometimes they last for
> weeks and sometimes they're shot after only a few playing sessions.  I
> tried
> the lithium batteries and they seemed to really suck - maybe too much
> power?
>
> That's the one criticism of the Kinder box I have; two actually.  Why he
> couldn't put power adapter plug(s) on it and maybe a on/off switch I
> don't
> know.  Having to always unplug the whole shebang is kind of stupid.
>
> Sam Blancato, Pittsburgh
>
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