Pretty sure I know the answer to this, but how unwise is it to use Nimh rechargeable batteries with older music equipment? After a bucket of batteries over the past 3 years, I’m really sick of alkaline. It’s my understanding that older gear like 80’s/90’s Roland stuff wouldn’t have the proper detection ability for Nimh and therefore it would be very unwise?
I have a few guinea pig pieces, like a PMA-5 that are running off Nimh and the battery life is greatly improved over alkaline, so i’d love to feel good about continuing to use them lol.
I even wonder about size C batteries for 606 and 202…
It shouldn’t make any difference as long as the voltage and current (mAh) ratings are the same. Voltage will likely have to be the same (you might get away with subbing 1.2v for 1.5 but that would depend on the instrument. Lower voltages than specced would only mimic a failing battery anyway. Never go to a higher voltage)but as long as your new battery can supply at least the same current as the old one you should be fine. A higher current rating would be fine too; the circuit will only draw the current from the battery it requires…only time this would be an issue would be in the event of a fault in the circuit. That could cause excessive current to be drawn and if you’ve got a higher current battery in use that extra current could damage something.
Not sure what you mean by sensing? That’s usually related to rechargeable batteries. Never exchange a standard alkaline in a rechargeable circuit!
Sorry if you know this stuff but it’s worth mentioning for safety’s sake.
A good way to think about voltage, current and resistance is the water analogy. If you imagine a pipe with a tap on the end and think about the water in the pipe. The force of the water trying to get out of the tap is pressure which you can think of as voltage in a circuit. When you open the tap some water will flow. That’s the current. That flow is controlled by the tap which would be the resistance. A low resistance (open tap) would allow more current to flow while a high resistance (almost closed) would only allow a small current to flow.
For the mathematically inclined Ohms law can be applied.
V= I x r.
The other handy equation is the power triangle. P is power in Watts, V is voltage in volts and I is current in amps.
Thanks, that is helpful, but I must warn you, I’m pretty dense and don’t absorb too much info… “sensing” was a borrowed term, as many of the online commentary on this matter stated that older devices lacked the detection software to “sense” the power levels of the battery.
So, if I’m understanding you correctly, a device that is intended for 1.5v alkaline AA batteries should be safe to use with 2300-2800mAh Nimh batteries? Items such as the Roland PMA-5 and MS-1?
The main issue I am having is figuring out how alkaline compare to Nimh as neither share similar rating systems on the labels.