Rechargeable batteries with active basses?

[surfmonkey]

Anyone use rechargeable batteries for their onboard pre-amps? I don't know anything about batteries, but I assume that rechargeable's don't hold their charge as long as a regular battery? Does it pump out the same voltage as a regular? Does it color your tone? I not going broke buying batteries for all my basses, but I just hate the all the waste of throwing them out.

[g.]

If I need batteries I get a big pack of 'em at Costco for great discount. Rechargables suck for this probably. I experimented with them for wireless and because they don't really come up to as high of a voltage they also drop to acceptable threshold a lot quicker.

[jeremy c]

rechargeable batteries have lower voltage than regular ones.

 

A "nine volt" rechargeable when fully charged puts out 7.5 volts. Why this is, is totally beyond me.

 

Plus, rechargeable batteries are ever so slightly larger than regular ones and don't always fit into the battery compartments.

 

Don't use them in your active bass or your effects pedals.

 

If you don't leave your bass plugged in all the time, a battery should last a year.

[_Sweet Willie_]

Originally posted by jeremyc:

If you don't leave your bass plugged in all the time, a battery should last a year.

I concur. I never used rechargeables w/ my basses.

 

And I use an adaptor for my pedals, which sometimes can rip thru batteries...well, except maybe for this one!

 

Peace.

[g.]

Stupid-ass battery power anyway. Smart design by bass manufacturers would have used low impedance pu'ps and/or supplied "phantom power" via cable from head/preamp as is done for condensor mic's. This would also maybe give us XLR connectors, no appreciable capacitance loss/loading, and way more depth in pu'p range.

 

The EBS preamps actually do have phantom power. Check it out.

[surfmonkey]

Originally posted by jeremyc:

[QBIf you don't leave your bass plugged in all the time, a battery should last a year.[/QB]

Really? I know that some basses have a feature that disconnects battery power when it is unplugged, but my Modulus eats a 9v about every 4 months or so.

[HypnoBassMan]

Just curious, I have a Fender Active Jazz (MIM) 5-string. I wonder how long the battery would last if I left it plugged in all the time. I guess I could give it a try and find out for myself, but I thought, why waist a battery if one of you have already tried it.

[prophetgtree]

I don't use rechargable batteries either. I just don't trust them. I could use them in my portable CD player, or things that don't really matter, but my bass?! It's like asking me to fake butter! "I can't believe it's not butter" "I can't believe it SUCKS!"

 

I am going to sleep...

[ClarkW]

Originally posted by jeremyc:

rechargeable batteries have lower voltage than regular ones.

 

A "nine volt" rechargeable when fully charged puts out 7.5 volts. Why this is, is totally beyond me.

 

Plus, rechargeable batteries are ever so slightly larger than regular ones and don't always fit into the battery compartments.

 

Don't use them in your active bass or your effects pedals.

 

If you don't leave your bass plugged in all the time, a battery should last a year.

I tested the Radio Shack Nickel Hydride rechargeables and they all came out at above 10 volts when freshly charged.

 

They are slightly larger than regular batteries, which posed a problem for me, but I've found that some of my effects pedals and ebow and some of my acoustic-electric instruments can fit them well enough.

 

I fit a pair in my Peavey Cirrus and they lasted for maybe 3 or 4 weeks before I needed to recharge them. If you don't mind religiously recharging them, then they might work for you. But there are also the dangers of leakage or overcharging (make sure to get a charger with auto-shutoff!)

[Banta]

I agree with greeenboy. Also, rechargeables don't hold charge as long as alkalines, and the more they are charged, the less charge they hold. Buying alkalines is a small price to pay in comparison to other things you must buy, like strings or tubes.

[g.]

Perhaps ClarkW is onto something. Besides the higher full-charge storage capability, I mean. When I tried rechargables, there were no advanced types such as lithium or nickel hydride - certainly not in "nine volt" packages.

 

I'd have to research it to see what there duty cycle is, and caveats on recharging time and temperature susceptibility.

[tnb]

How often do you need to change batteries on your bass? Twice a year, hardly seems worth the effort or expense.

[g.]

Pedals, however...

[61Pbass]

Originally posted by greenboy:

...Smart design by bass manufacturers would have used low impedance pu'ps and/or supplied "phantom power" via cable from head/preamp as is done for condensor mic's. This would also maybe give us XLR connectors, no appreciable capacitance loss/loading, and way more depth in pu'p range...

Like Alembic? Their high end basses have used outboard power supplies and XLRs for nearly 30 years. They also have 1/4" jacks and batteries as a backup.

[LizzyD]

Putting a fresh Duracell in a bass twice a year (at most) costs what, $10? And is pretty painless.

 

Worrying about my rechargables dying every month, possibly in the middle of playing, and having to remove them and recharge that often sounds like a real pain in the ass to me. That also would put a lot more wear and tear on your bass' battery compartment - whether you have a removable screw plate and a cheap plastic clip or a little slide out box. That stuff wears out with a lot of use, and would just cost you more $ and hassle in the long run if it needs repair or replacement.

 

For pedals I use a power supply. Never any worry about batteries there. And no, I don't notice any tone difference.

 

Does anyone make rechargeable strings?

[g.]

61pbass, yup, Alembic - and Les Paul and others around the same time. Bill Lawrence and I have talked a lot about the history of amplification; like VHS versus beta it seems ; }

[61Pbass]

I forgot about those mid to late 70's Les Paul Triumph basses (and whatever their guitar counterpart was) that had low-z pu's and xlr jacks. I had one in the early eighties but could never get past the extremely tiny scale. They had the exact same neck and body as a Les Paul guitar. As I recall the tone was NOT to die for either, but they were a great concept.

[61Pbass]

Originally posted by 61Pbass:

I forgot about those mid to late 70's Les Paul Triumph basses (and whatever their guitar counterpart was) that had low-z pu's and xlr jacks.

DUH!!!!! Just remembered...it didn't have an XLR on it originally. Just a balanced 1/4" out and a high/low impedance selector. I added an XLR to it. Wasn't the guitar version called the Les Paul Recording?

[Mr. Phil]

Originally posted by surfmonkey:

Originally posted by jeremyc:

[QBIf you don't leave your bass plugged in all the time, a battery should last a year.

Really? I know that some basses have a feature that disconnects battery power when it is unplugged, but my Modulus eats a 9v about every 4 months or so.[/QB]

That shouldn't happen. I would take a look inside the cavity to see whats up or take it to the repair shop.

[ModmanQ6]

Duracell makes a "Pro Cell" version in alkaline and lithium. They are not available in retail, but are marketed for industrial and medical use. You can find them for sale on the internet for varying prices. They are longer lasting than the consumer versions of their batteries.

Hope this helps!

[g.]

Hey Sheldon,

 

Meant to reply to this earlier but the forum ate another post of mine so I went on to playing my bass instead ; }

 

Ages ago I got real curious about tube amps and electric guitar history, bought a couple books, and read what I could get my hands on. But I'm pretty dim on specifics now. Anyway, I think Les Paul was pretty big on the low inpedance thing even before what we've talked about so far, and actually at some point in the late forties or was it the fifties, low impedance instruments and amps actually had a chance.

 

But I think Fender really swung it around to high impedance designs winning in the marketplace, and I think it was mainly cost-saving that pushed them into marketing the hell out of what was considered by engineers of the time to be a path of less quality and more liabilities.

 

Maybe I'll find some time to get back up to speed on the specifics, or just give Bill Lawrence a call and let him refresh my memory. The guy is in my book another one of the unsung greats of electric instrument evolution.

 

Not to slight Les Paul, who pretty much put multi-track recording and a lot of other technical innovations on the map and was one hell of a rock and pop pioneer and arranger as well. A hall of famer for anyone interested in electic music and studios.

[Fred TBP]

GRRR! They always burn out when you need them most, and they take too long to recharge. Been there, done that, I used Radio Shack, Millennium and Ever Ready, SOS! I keep a dozen in the freezer for routine changes and carry a voltmeter around to test them. Ditto for flashlights. Cell phones, at least the charge can last a few hours/days, but they are expensive. GRRR!