Hello,
I just bought the NC. I’m really happy with the sounds and the form factor is excellent for me. I know that it runs at 9v 600mA, but few power supplies have these requirements (I’m talking about power supplies with multiple inputs and outputs). The vas majority has 9v 500 mA. Is that enough to feed the NC?
Thank you!
The Nano uses 9-12v @ 600mA. I would try your power supply as long as its center negative. You can also power the Nano using USB-C, I had mine running off a battery early on without any issues.
Thank you for answer. A silly question, can’t giving it less amperage damage the device?
Giving any device less than the required power rating will affect performance. We’re dealing with low voltage equipment, so no it won’t damage it per se but you could experience other issues related to insufficient power supply. Plug a 40w lightbulb into a socket that used to have a 60w bulb… will it work? I mean, yeah… but the room isn’t as bright, right? Similar concept here.
In my experience, it’s always worth making sure the accoutrements for your devices provide the required power. I already have thunderbolt 4 cables, so power over USB is covered. But for an adapter, there’s plenty of options that will have you covered and are cost effective.
Having a supply with a higher mA that operates at 9V is just fine, though. It will still give you more than enough ceiling - I use a Truetone 1SPOT for my Nano Cortex, and it provides 1700mA, so the unit is only going to take what it needs and is a happy camper. Gator also makes a wall-wart that’s the same idea, the GTR-PWR-1. All relatively inexpensive, and a surefire way to have your unit operate under nominal conditions.
Those are my two cents! Hope that helps.
*edit: kijiji is your friend 
lots of people getting rid of old pedals and power supplies for cheap! Also, myVolts.com is a great place to find dedicated, approved power supplies AND cables to get clever with step-up power and so on 
Excellent points!
Wow, thank you so much! A very interesting point of view. I’m actually using a Boss PSB-1U to feed the NC (9v 2A) but I want to buy a power supply for all my pedals. The 1Spot that you have is similar to my Boss power adaptor. The Gator power supply that you recommend has outputs of 9v and 250mA…
The Gator supply is specifically recommended by Sweetwater in one of their bundles, so you can rest assured knowing it will work… it can accommodate up to 1700mA: Pedalboard Power Supply; Wall-Wart 1700Ma-GTR-PWR-1 - Gator Cases
You can find loads of info on this forum about power supplies, and Cioks makes some great offerings, like their new Sol and DC7. Have never played either, but the consensus around the community is very positive for building pedalboards with these supplies. I hope this is helpful!
Thank you so much. I’m going to investigate different options.
This is my take and one that I find most consistently online:
“When a device doesn’t receive adequate amperage, it can strain the power supply, causing it to overheat. This overheating can damage both the power supply and the device, and in extreme cases, it can pose a fire hazard. Prolonged use of an underpowered supply can also degrade the internal components of the device, leading to expensive repairs or replacements.”
Bottom line: If you value your gear, I wouldn’t do it. It is NOT the same as using a drained battery for a desired effect. Batteries deliver the necessary amps at the expense of voltage. AC adapters providing DC current do not operate that way.
Amen to that. Power requirements exist for a reason
If I’m using the NC on its own (not on my pedal board), I power it with a One Spot (true tone I think). Seems to work with no issues.
I was unable to get the device using a cheap DC adapter set on either 9v or 12v despite the output rating being 2,000mA.
However it is quite happy with via a Strymon Ojai which states 500mA.
USB power works well too.
I use the 1SPOT as well. Verified it with their tech support too, so the 1SPOT is a good option for sure! Glad you found something that works too
First off welcome Bnjiman!
Power over USB is a great way to go! I’m glad that application works well for you.
I would respectfully caution you in using the Strymon. You state it’s 400mA, but the product literature states 500mA per input… and the NC requires “at least 600mA” per the manual. See the above discussion chain for thoughts and options, but please consider that giving any unit less than it’s required power will affect its intended performance.
It may seem to operate fine without the suboptimal power requirement for now, but you are indeed using an insufficient power supply, and this could have ramifications on your gear. You certainly don’t need to shell out a million bucks for an external power supply (and the Strymon is a solid piece of gear, at that!)… just ensure you perform the due diligence to match the power supplied to the power required. There’s no sense in having a great piece of gear ruined because of improper power being supplied. I wouldn’t put under-inflated tires on my car… yeah, it might get me from point A to point B but there’s a huge risk in doing so that can affect more than just the tires!
Lots to consider and read up on, but welcome to the community all the same 
I use one 9v 500mA out from my Truetone CS6, no issues whatsoever, but Truetone does say their PS’s supply more current per output than what’s printed.
Thanks Keith,
500mA is correct. Updated original post.
Good points. I think I have a current doubler cable which would allow me to use two of the Ojai outputs making 1000mA combined. However I’m hoping to find another PSU in future for travel use which is a more simple setup ie one adapter/one cable.
Thanks for the feedback:)
Cheers
Ben
Cool, sounds like a great setup then. I can recommend the 1SPOT if you’re looking for a 1-to-1 solution, or this gem from myvolts: US 9V Power Adaptor for the Neural DSP Nano Cortex Effects pedal by myVolts
Cheers!
And what about to use the Nano Cortex with a Roland PSB 230 (9v and 2000mA)? Can I use it with a daisy chain to feed the NC and another pedals?
Caronte, I find that many folks want the simple answer, but if you want the “why” behind the “what,” then keep reading.
Short answer if you don’t want to read any further: yes, that power supply will work.
Now for the “why”: as long as the sum of the power consumption is less than 2000mA, you can daisy chain away my friend. I’ll give an example: I want to run three pedals in line: from my guitar, I do my Nano Cortex, then a drive and delay. Let’s say I want to use my favourite drive (a Horizon Devices Precision Drive for example, which is 9V, 16mA), and then my favourite delay (a TC Electronic Nova Repeater for example, which is 9V, 300mA)… with all of these devices power consumption ratings added together, I get just under 1000mA. That’s well under the 2000mA the power supply gives, therefore the pedals in the chain will be operating nominally because they can draw their full requirements. And as long as the power supply is plugged into a grounded source, I should experience an exceptionally low noise floor (if at all noticeable). The result? Something musician’s love… a quiet pedalboard!
Now, there are some caveats however. Because when you add more devices to your chain, then more power is required. This can in turn raise the noise floor because more devices are in the path of the guitar’s original signal. This is why many players opt for a power supply that provides isolated inputs, like the Cioks DC7 or a host of others with this feature (by the way, an ‘isolated input’ is essentially where each outlet on the power supply is electronically separate from each other… think of it like each outlet is it’s own power supply, so to speak). Having isolated inputs minimizes interference, which is a prime culprit behind high noise floors.
So in summation, here’s the long and short of it:
Cheers and all the best!
