Powering the HX Stomp

Powering the HX Stomp

Since purchasing the HX Stomp I have learned a few things along the way that I thought I would document. If this post can help someone else, great - but it is likelier to serve as a reminder to myself a year down the line when I try to figure out why I made certain decisions.

Background: I have 2 basic usage scenarios for the Line 6 HX Stomp which in turn determines where it will be placed. Firstly, connected directly to my DAW, sitting on the same table my PC is. Secondly, connected to my pedalboard, in front of my amps (away from my PC). Whenever I change locations I simply disconnect the HX stomp and move it to its new locatoin.

Line 6 provides a power supply for the HX Stomp, and I could always just disconnect the that power supply and move it along with the unit when changing locations. However I do not like this as I tend to like cables/wires strapped down and in place, rather than hanging untidily. And one less thing to unplug/reinsert will save a lot of time in the long run.

I decided that I would leave the supplied Power Supply near my PC, ready to power the HX Stomp whenever needed. That would mean that I would have to find a way to power the HX Stomp when it was near my pedalboard. Now, if you don't have the HX Stomp, you might think this is simple enough, I've got pedal power supplies on my pedalboard - and this is where you may run in to the same surprises I did.

HX Stomp Current Draw

If you're anything like me, the first thing you'd look for is the label/print where the power plug is to see what the voltage and current draw is. You will see that it is labelled as 9V, 3Amps, centre negative pin.

And this is where you might throw your hands up and desist. 3A? None of my pedal power supplies can fulfil that! I've got a Voodoo Lab 4x4 and a Strymon Ojai on my board, and the high current ports only supply 400mA and 500mA respectively...with a current doubler cable, I would only be able to supply 1A.

However if you start looking a little deeper you will find that the HX Stomp only draws around 800mA of current. That means that with a current doubler I could use 2 ports of my Ojai to power the HX Stomp, hopefully with enough headroom.

The barrel plug

OK - that's good, we may be able to use the Ojai. Let's buy that current doubler cable and give it a shot. And this is where you'll stumble upon your second surprise: the barrel plug will likely not fit into the HX Stomp's power jack.

You will realise that most pedals receive a 2.1mm centre pin. Some others receive a 2.5mm centre pin. There is no standard, but GENERALLY 2.1mm pins are center negative, while 2.5mm are polarity reversed - they have the centre pin as positive. This is to make it so that you can't accidentally mix it up and fry your pedals.

The HX Stomp however, receives a 2.5mm centre negative pin. That means that you will have to purchase a 2.1mm to 2.5mm converter. Depending on where you reside, this can be difficult/expensive.

I'll go into the solution that I finally landed on, just with the things I already had available. I ended up connecting 2 reverse polarity cables I had (from the old One Spot and Voodoo Lab 4x4 set) with the current doubler cable that was newly purchased. This means that the polarity gets reversed twice (effectively doing nothing) before it gets to the HX Stomp.

And finally I'm pleased to report that everything is working absolutely fine with the current that is being supplied. I've had all the stomp switch lights on at once, and it seems to cope fine.

Happy stomping!