PROS: durable, simple.
CONS: none.
PRICE: $169
Pedalboards have come a long way; in the past two or three simple stompboxes would do just fine. Now the average boards are almost as complicated as the multi-effects rack systems from the 1980s. A decent pedalboard needs a decent power supply. Walrus Audio has brought their “A” game with their Aetos Power supply.
It’s quite simple, a standard IEC power connection and a standard 120V outlet on one side. On the front: (6) 9V-100mA connection points followed by (2) 9V-250mA connections. The included cables are a 5’ power cord, 8 standard power cables and 2 special cables meant for the 250mA connections. It’s all housed in a durable case that should survive anything thrown at it.
Why the different outputs? Well, most standard single function pedals work fine at 100mA, but certain pedals such as the Line 6 modelers, and the Boss twin pedals have higher power requirements. The two 250mA outputs are there for just that reason.
So what makes this worth its $169 price tag? The power outputs are completely isolated from each other, which eliminates any “cross talk” between the pedals, such as ground hum and other extraneous noise. Pedals that use higher current also suffer from this, especially when underpowered. Load up a pedalboard using a “wall wart” converter, and a daisy chain power cable, and it’s a world of noise. With a properly grounded and isolated power supply, it’s super clean and noise free, which is the case here with the Aetos.
This can easily clean up any pedalboard’s power requirements as well as the signal strength throughout. Even if only using half of the power connections, for a small amount of pedals, it’s worth getting one of these.