Maschine+ Power Bank guide
Hi.
Power bank info is scattered around a lot so consolidating all info in one thread might help new M+ users. I'll only cover the PD Option so this guide doesn't get huge, other options are in Post #2. This is not an official NI guide, just my findings and recommendations.
If there are any mistakes or suggestions let me know and I'll edit this thread, this will be continuously updated.
Options:
- ✅ PD USB-C Power Bank. (Recommended + cheapest option)
- ✅ DC Out Power bank. (Works but it’s more expensive, see post #2)
- ❌ RipCord (can work but it's not recommended as its underpowered, see post #2)
Specs required:
- 15 V
- 2.66 A
- Connector size: 5.5 x 2.5 mm
- Positive polarity as per the icon below:
1 - PD USB-C Power Bank + 15V PD Cable
PD is a feature where the USB-C cable that connects the device to the power bank has a chip that tells it what voltage to use, in this case, we specifically need a 15V cable, for Amps we don't need to worry as 15V Power Banks always support 3A (afaik). The power bank also has to support the required voltage, so you need to buy both things... PD Powerbank + PD trigger cable.
The rule is: The amperage can be higher as the device only pulls what it needs but the voltage has to match exactly!
⚪️ Power Bank:
When searching for which Power Bank to buy check in the specs if the USB-C output can do 15V, often this info is not disclosed on websites like amazon, they tend to use Watts instead of Voltage and focus on phones so it takes some digging… USB-C PD Power Banks advertised as 60W+ usually support 15V so that's a nice search term can you can use on google or whatever web store you like: "power bank PD 65W USB-C "
Some examples (I personally verified that meet the specs):
- https://www.amazon.co.uk/Charmast-23800mAh-Delivery-Portable-Compatible/dp/B08ML1PHB2
⚪️ 15V PD Cable:
For the cable you need a PD USB-C to 5.5x2.5mm barrel connector as stated in the specs, this can be tricky to find as it’s very specific, here are some options:
1 - Direct USB-C to DC 5.5x2.5mm:
- US Amazon - https://www.amazon.com/5-5mm-compatible-Charger-Portable-outdoor/dp/B0D86T4RMX/?th=1
- EU - https://www.amazon.de/DSD-TECH-MagicConn-SH-CP15A-dalimentation/dp/B0B9FTJHGV?th=1
2- Birdcord PD15v:
- Note that this is an extender cable, so you will also need another cable with USB-C connectors on both ends to connect to it. It’s a bit more hassle but easy to find/deal with shipping customs and a company worth supporting IMHO: Use this option as a last resort if you can't source a USB-C to barrel direct cable (1).
Notes:
- Do any of this at your own risk, I am not responsible for anyone blowing up their devices.
- For many of the above options, you have to specifically pick the 15V version!
- None of the above cables have the locking mechanism that the original M+ power cable has, from my experience it's not a big deal since I never had the cable randomly come out.
- If you're tech-savvy enough to mod the cable here's a link to the locking connector Native Instruments uses for the M+: PPW01009 -
- Regarding the polarity: I never heard of anyone getting a cable with the wrong polarity and frying their M+, but it might be worth checking 1st ? Proceed at your own risk. 😬
FAQ:
Q: How long does XYZ Power Bank last?
A: Mine is one of the old DC Out ones with 20000mAh and lasts for like 9 hours of continuous playing a project with 75% CPU usage.
Comments
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Option 2 - DC Out Power Bank.
This is a class of power banks that has a DC-Out barrel connector, the advantage is that they allow the user to change the output Voltage, so you can use them for more devices besides your M+, the disadvantages are:
- The price, they generally around 150$ or more, about 2x the amount for an equivalent USB-C one.
- Brands don't tend to list all the barrel connector sizes that come with it so you might have to buy one separately.
- These power banks are harder to find.
@badaz Shared this one: https://www.amazon.es/dp/B07PY8516W the price is decent at around 90Eur as DC-Out tends to be more expensive.
Option 3 - RipCord 15V cable + older USB-2 Power Bank:
Users have reported that using a 15V RipCord with a cheap USB Power bank technically works, this cable converts the low voltage of USB (5V) to 15V but it’s also designed for devices that require less amperage, 0.6A VS the officially required 2.66A of the M+ so even tho it works it doesn't seem like a good idea especially if the user is connecting other devices that require power such as MIDI Controllers or Audio interfaces to their M+.
7 -
Wow, this is really helpful! 🤗👌
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Hey thanks for the guide im just gonna throw out my setup here for anyone that wants some more options. Here’s what I use to power my Maschine+ and a full charge lasts for 4+ hours without any hiccups. I can also power the Maschine plus and a Roland Sp404 MK2 at the same time off the same battery.
USB-C to 5.5mm adapter cable: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09X3V58M4?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share
60W PD battery pack:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B252GCL5?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share
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Thanks. Hum... Did you buy that exact cable? 😱
I think you might have lucked out, that's a 20V PD cable, your power bank must only be capable of 12V or you could have fried your M+... (not sure it has over voltage protection, it should but I'm not sure)
If you buy a more powerful power bank, do not use that cable... 😬
2 -
Oh yep, thank you for pointing that out, definitely don’t use that same cable if your battery’s port is providing more than 15V. The cable is rated to supply up to 20V but the battery is only providing 15V through the USB-C so it should be good. I think I went with that cable because it’s cheap and I wanted to use a USB-C PD port without a ripcord.
I power the M+ through the USB-C port because that has PD and the correct voltage and then I power my SP404 MK2 via a ripcord plugged into the regular USB port. If you wanna make sure your battery can power multiple devices, make sure it can provide sufficient voltage and amperage as well as the total power in watts (power = volts x amps), in my case the combined power required for both devices is less than 60W so I’m good.
In my experience, you definitely wanna get the voltage right but amperage is something that can vary but typically the more the better (a circuit only draws as much current as it’s needs). Your M+ might turn on and seem normal when operating on less than 2.66 amps but there’s no telling how that affects the device’s performance (e.g. the processor might run at a lower frequency because there’s less power).
0 -
I think I covered all that in the guide.
You're right at the limit with a 60W power bank, at 65W+ they start to have the ability to provide 15V and 20V, hence using the correct cable in those instances is important because it's the chip in the cable that tells the power bank how much juice to give.
This 65W Power Bank for example can def deliver 15V and 20V if using a 15/20V PD cable.
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Superb resource 👌🏻
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I bought this PD one from Amazon France for 89,90€ and I'm quite happy with it. I did not measure the autonomy, but I'd say approximately several hours xD !
It has a screen with adjustable voltage, battery percentage, it turns off when consumption goes under a certain threshold (which means you don't have to turn it off after turning off the Maschine+ as it will do it on its own after 5s) and it has a set of adapters to fit all kinds of devices.
XTPower XT-20000QC3 PowerBank Batterie Moderne DC/USB QC3 avec 20100mAh - 1x USB, 1x USB QC3 et Connexion DC de 12V, 15V, 16.5V, 19V, 20V, 24V 65W Max. https://amzn.eu/d/fboiwTv
0 -
Thanks for sharing.
That's a DC-Out power bank tho, not PD. The price is very good for DC tho, I'll add it to the 1st post. Cheers.
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Thanks. Love your plugin btw. :D
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DC you're right, sorry about that ;)
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Thanks for this usefull post !
On my side i've bough:
--> BirdCord PD cable: https://www.songbirdfx.com/products/birdcord-pd15v/
--> And this BASEUS battery with USB-C out: https://www.amazon.fr/gp/product/B08XQ2LM7L/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
All is working perfectly with my Maschine+ with no outage or no performance lost !
2 -
Thank you! I was just looking for all this.
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Thanks bro! Awesome to hear <3
0 -
Excellent post - thank you VERY much! Motivated me to get this done myself finally.
I can confirm the combination below works and seems safe (I tested with the PD cable/battery connected to a load first, since sometimes power supplies misbehave when unloaded, and measured the voltage at 15V, same as the NI power adapter output, before connecting to the actual Maschine+).
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B0B9FTJHGV/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B0B252GCL5/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o03_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1
5
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