Or, how does ZVEX do it? I see he notes that all his effects are low on battery drainage. What makes an effect like his Hard On booster be able to provide so much boost but not eat batteries? And what makes some effects, analog delay comes to mind, be such a battery hog?
Thanks for any insight!

I guess often a simpler layout and lower part count often correlate with lower current draw. Boosters are usually simple circuits with a low parts count while delays usually have a much higher part count, more power-hungry ICs etc. Look at a Fuzz face - probably one of the simplest circuits out there - batteries last for ages.

Ask yourself what is it that drains a battery?

Quote from: DougH on November 15, 2007, 03:08:15 PM
Ask yourself what is it that drains a battery?

My daughter leaving the headlights on.

To be frank, I wonder why some engineers use 5-10 kOhm (or close) resistors as collector or drain resistors. 50-100 kOhm ones work good enough, and battery lives 10 times longer. That's the solution ;-)

Usually, higher resistance values bring more noise. That's why smaller values are used. It's a trade-off between noise and power drain.

Also, the LED that shows when the pedal is on or off can also drain the battery.