The New Way to Power Guitar Pedals
When blues guitar player, Brad Giampaoli of Chicago was assembling his custom pedal board he realized he needed a more organized and conscious way of keeping his board powered. After searching for the perfect product with no luck, he created it himself. Now, he is making it available to other musicians with similar woes.
“In creating a 6″ x 16″ board, I realized I could get five battery-powered pedals or three pedals and my 12-year-old pedal power unit on the board. I went with the five battery powered pedals and I was changing batteries a lot. I confess, I wasn’t properly disposing of all those batteries and to top it off, they’re expensive. I was testing and changing batteries every few gigs to make sure one wouldn’t go dead in the middle of a righteous solo!” Shared, Giampaoli
The goal was to design a practical and cost efficient product that would make pedal boards less of a “bird’s nest” of wires. Thus, Black Dragon Powers was born.
Black Dragon Powers is a single battery unit for your guitar pedals that can be charged with a USB phone charger. If connected to a daisy chain rig, it can charge ALL of your 9v pedals for an entire gig or band practice. If the user currently uses a One Spot brand, or generic unit that plugs in, they can now have cordless power. Using this product is similar to using internal batteries, now without the waste.
This custom power bank is being sold for only $22 with free shipping. Not only is this product inexpensive but there’s no hidden fees and it’s made of aluminum alloy, making it sturdy. The product measures about 1 inch wide by 5 inches long — it’s cordless and sustainable. Black Dragon Powers is a step towards cutting down on waste and becoming a more eco-conscious musician.
“It hits on so many marks,” said Giampaoli. “Theoretically, it can power 22 pedals, but that’s probably too many for a daisy chain rig.”
It is important to note that the majority of pedals out there are 9v, but a few require 12v or 18v. If the musician has either of those they’ll also need to use a proprietary power supply just for those pedals.
The battery and cable can be found on Blackdragonpowers.com and Reverb.com.
keeps himself readily available and active online to answer questions before and after a purchase. A future project for him includes a daisy chain wire with shorter leads. Necessity is truly the mother of invention.
By: Alycia Grace
