Negative and Positive Ground Pedals Touching?

[Joe Hart]

If I had a negative ground pedal next to a positive ground pedal and they accidentally touched (metal to metal), nothing would happen, right? I mean, their grounds would be connected anyway through the patch cables, right? Or am I totally wrong and I need to isolate the jacks from one another? Thanks.
-Joe Hart

[asatbluesboy]

I asked myself the same thing and, as I am an idiot, I decided to get empirical. I thought "what could go wrong? Ground is ground is ground, right?" Well, yeah, ground is ground is ground. Nothing happened.

[R.G.]

Nothing would happen.

The choice of negative and positive ground as descriptive terms is unfortunate. We really ought to use positive supply and negative supply instead. That's what they are, as the grounds will be connected together, as asat notes. And it then becomes obvious when you think about what happens when you use one of each from the same power source.

[Paul Marossy]

The choice of negative and positive ground as descriptive terms is unfortunate. We really ought to use positive supply and negative supply instead.

Yes, that makes a whole lot more sense.

[MikeH]

I would like to use this thread as yet another platform to banish the term "Positive Ground" from the earth forever.

Since ground is technically meant to be 0V it can not be considered as negative or positive.  "Positive Ground" is a contradiction-in-terms and is therefore erroneous.  I second that we should refer to these designs as "Negative Supply" instead.  Or maybe "Bass Akwards Power".  Who's with me?

DIY'er 1: Check it out, I just built a Fuzz Face.
DIY'er 2: Oh yeah? Postitive or negative ground?
DIY'er 1: Bass Akwards power supply, man.

[Joe Hart]

Thanks for reassuring me that my thought process was correct. Apparently I'm just slightly less of an idiot than Asatbluesboy because I did not want to actually try it and possibly fry a couple pedals and/or a power supply! I figured I would simply ask. ;-)
-Joe Hart

[DougH]

If they do touch then every toilet in your house will probably flush in a counter-clockwise direction but otherwise I wouldn't worry about it...

[Joe Hart]

I can handle that! I was afraid that the nightly news would be about a blackout on the eastern seaboard that they were able to trace to some dude messing around with 9V positive and negative supply pedals. Do you like how I've assimilated the new terminology rather than "positive ground"
-Joe Hart

[Gurner]

If they do touch then every toilet in your house will probably flush in a counter-clockwise direction....

Mileage varies...my wife sponataneously combusted, which I can tell you made a terrible mess of the sofa.

[Joe Hart]

Do you like how I've assimilated the new terminology rather than "positive ground"

That was supposed to be three question marks in a row to express a "big question" not an emoticon that expresses confusion!
-Joe Hart

[Paul Marossy]

If they do touch then every toilet in your house will probably flush in a counter-clockwise direction but otherwise I wouldn't worry about it...

Or blow up the Death Sstar. Which wouldn't be such a bad thing... 

[wavley]

I found that when I put them together it created a 1.12 gigawatt ground loop and sent me back to the future.

[Paul Marossy]

I found that when I put them together it created a 1.12 gigawatt ground loop and sent me back to the future.

Ha! Good one! 

[asatbluesboy]

If they do touch then every toilet in your house will probably flush in a counter-clockwise direction but otherwise I wouldn't worry about it...

It does happen in my house!