Several new pedalboards were introduced during the past year, ranging from simple unpowered units to full-power, three-tier models capable of housing a couple of rack processors and plenty of pedals. The Furman SPB-8 ($349) falls roughly halfway between those extremes.

The unit is constructed from a rugged polycarbonate material with a steel chassis, and as many as eight pedals can be mounted onto its 12-by-25-inch Velcro surface. The heart of the unit is a simple but well-thought-out patch bay with ten ¼-inch jacks. The SPB-8 has a mono instrument input, a single To Pedal send and dual From Pedals returns, dual effects send and stereo returns, and right and left/mono outputs. The arrangement provides plenty of routing options. For example, the SPB-8 functions as a basic mono pedalboard, holding and powering as many as eight pedals daisy-chained together with a single input and output. It can also be operated in stereo, driving two amplifiers or mixer inputs, or the right output can feed a tuner. An outboard effects unit (with either mono or stereo returns) can be patched in through the effects loop.

POWER TO THE PEDAL

Furman's specialty is power supplies, and the SPB-8 uses a toroidal transformer for low-noise performance. Spike and surge suppression and EMI/RFI filtering ensure that funky power and pesky onstage noise sources can't find their way into the system. All power and signal jacks are insulated and isolated, thus eliminating noisy ground loops. The unit includes eight individually fused and protected 9 VDC (100 mA) outlets and three widely spaced 120 VAC (15A) outlets designed to accommodate odd-size wall warts. You connect the pedals using the ten provided power cords. The pedalboard comes with eight standard miniplug-to-DC cables, one miniplug-to-miniplug for pedals with miniplug DC inputs, and one miniplug-to-battery clip for pedals with no DC-power in jack. A 10-foot AC cord — which is long enough to actually reach those often oddly placed onstage power outlets — is also a nice touch.

Simple to understand and easy to operate, the SPB-8 can be set up in minutes and easily reconfigured. The first-rate power conditioning eliminates all but the most aggressive hums and buzzes. The unit slips effortlessly into and out of the provided travel case, which has a sturdy handle, a shoulder strap, and two zippered internal pouches that are handy for holding cables and other accessories. Those features, combined with the SPB-8's rugged construction, make it a roadworthy piece of gear. If a pedalboard is in your future, head straight to your local music store — and step on it!

▪ Rating (out of 5): 4

Furman Sound; tel. (707) 763-1010; e-mail info@furmansound.com; Web www.furmansound.com