Truetone 1 SPOT Pro CS12 Guitar Effects Power Supply

The Truetone 1 Spot Pro CS12 is an isolated power supply for guitar effects pedals. It can be switched between 115 and 230 volts. This means you can use it in most countries. It is in fact one of the most comprehensive PSU's you can buy. Buy online today from Guitar.co.uk or visit our Glasgow shop, Merchant City Music. Fast European and UK delivery service.

The Truetone 1 SPOT Pro CS12 is an isolated power brick with switching technology.

For many years, Truetone has made musicians’ lives easier with the 1 SPOT, the original compact pedalboard power supply. It works so well that a lot of musicians never felt the need to get one of those brick-style power supplies, and at Truetone they didn’t see the need for those either, even though they were quite popular. Bob Weil, founder of Truetone, explains:

“A lot of people over the years had told us that we should make a power brick. Even some of my own staff urged me to do it, but I didn’t want to for two reasons. First, I knew the 1 SPOT could power just about every pedal out there, so I didn’t see the need. Second, I didn’t want to make just another knock-off of someone else’s power brick. If we were going to make one, we were going to do it our way and have features that nobody else could offer. As pedal designs changed and it became more common for digital pedals to require isolation and for others to need something other than 9Vdc, I finally saw a reason for us to design a power brick.”

“It took 3 years and lots of experimentation, but we were finally able to design a Truetone 1 SPOT Pro CS12, using our own proprietary technology to give musicians all the features they need for today’s pedalboards. The original 1 SPOT still works great for most musicians, but for those who need more power and versatility, the 1 SPOT Pro fills the need perfectly.”

Truetone 1 SPOT CS12 Technology… what does that mean and why should I care? Technically, it’s switching power supply technology, which is very different than what anyone has ever put inside a power brick. Normally, you would find just a big transformer and a handful of small electronic components inside a power brick… old tech that hasn’t changed in decades and has a lot of limitations. We took the same switching power supply technology found in our famous 1 SPOT and scaled it up to make the 1 SPOT Pro models. With much more space to work with, we were able to completely eliminate noise, provide total electrical isolation between outputs, create multiple voltages, and still give you the ability to use it anywhere in the world.

1 SPOT Technology.

A major benefit of using a switching power supply is that it can handle far more current (power being pulled out of it) than any transformer-based power supply. Although we had to put power rating labels on each output to satisfy certification agencies (yes, we actually certified these, unlike most companies), the outputs can generally handle far more than the label shows. For example, you can connect a 300mA pedal to a 200mA output, without causing any problems. With a transformer-based power supply, you can’t get away with that. The important thing is to not exceed the total of all the labels. With a CS12, the output labels add up to 1900mA total. That means the total current draw of all your pedals should be less than 1900mA. That total current rating is roughly double the current load of the most common power brick, for a lot less money.

9VAC output.

Another Truetone 1 SPOT Pro first. In the past, if you had a Line 6 or Digitech pedal that required 9VAC (not DC), you had to use their power supply and an extension cord or maybe a courtesy outlet on your power brick, if you could get to it. We put a 9VAC output right on the front panel of the CS12, so you can ditch the big wall-wart and keep things neat and simple. We did have to use a small toroidal transformer for this, as it’s not really feasible to create AC voltage with a switching power supply, but that small toroid is dedicated to just that one output… completely isolated.

Can the 1 SPOT Pro power my pedal?

That question can best be answered by looking at the following questions and notes…

Which output and settings do I use for my pedals?

It is important for you to know the power requirements for your pedal. For every pedal that you are going to power via the 1 SPOT Pro CS12, you need to know the following:

What is the voltage required by the pedal?
Does the pedal require AC or DC voltage?
What is the polarity of the pedal? (Centre pin positive or negative.)

These questions can usually be answered by:

• 1. Inspecting the pedal itself near the power jack.
• 2. Referring to the owner’s manual.
• 3. Checking online, or contacting the manufacturer
• 4. If your pedal can be powered by a 9Vdc battery, it can be powered by one of the 9Vdc outputs (exception being the Boss ACA pedals, see below).