Does a true bypass pedal drain batteries when off?

[mr_sooty]

I have a Vox Wah, and like many pedals, the battery is engaged whenever there's a jack plugged into the input. So if you left a guitar chord plugged into the input of the pedal, and didn't use it ever, the battery would still eventually run out.

I've modified my Vox Wah for True bypass, so I'm wondering, is this still the case? If my pedal's switched off, is my battery now bypassed? Can I now leave it plugged in without worrying about the battery? Or is this just wishful thinking?

[sumgai]

sooty,

Wishful thinking. The battery switch is integral to the jack, just as you noted. Changing other parts of the circuit, but not that jack, won't affect the battery's supply of juice.

Now if you had a 3PDT stompswitch......... But your problem then becomes one of easing the popping sound as the circuit is turned on or off. Plus, if you walk away, there's no visual indicator to tell you that the unit is either on, or in standby/off mode. Yet more parts are now needed, to install an LED and resistor.

Getting pretty complicated here, just to get out of having to bend over to remove a plug from a jack..........


sumgai

[mr_sooty]

Yes, as you say, the cure is probably more time consuming than the problem. My Wah is first on my pedal board anyway, so it's not a hassle to pull the jack out. My wah is actually currently running off an adaptor, but it makes a low growling electronic hum when it's on, so I'm thinking of reverting back to batteries for the wah, cos they last ages anyway. Plus I have another pedal coming, so I need the daisy chain plug for that!

[cheezor]

I was curious as to what power supply you were using with the wah.

Im not sure if this relates at all, but I used to power a Digitech delay pedal with a power supply that I got at Radioshack (if I didnt then it ate through batteries in an hour or two) and it had a horrible hum when it was engaged. So I ended up not using it for a couple years. Then when I bought a 1Spot power adaptor and the daisey chain plug for it I tried hooking the pedal back up for some reason. To my suprise the pedal was virtually silent. I will never use that Radioshack power supply again. Amazing. The whole time I thought that the Digitech pedal was crap and I had wasted my money, but in reality it was the power supply that was to blame.

Again, Im not sure if this is your problem, but it might be worth a shot to try out another power supply. I highly recommend the 1Spot (and almost everything that Visual Sound makes for that matter), but there are some others out there as well. I hope this helps.

[mr_sooty]

Thanks mate, I'm using a Godlyke Powerall. It's great for all the other pedals, no noise issues apart from the Wah. I have a friend who uses a 1spot and has the same Vox wah as me, and his hums with the 1spot too, so I don't think that's my answer. It's not reallly that bad, still useable. My best bet is to put up with it or get a battery I think. Batteries last ages in Wahs anyway, and as long as I keep the wah first in my chain, unplugging it isn't a hassle really.