Furman SPB-8 and SPB-8C Pedalboards

Furman may not be as widely talked about name as those of guitar and amp makers, but their products are found in countless touring rigs and home studios of major artists, from Jimmy Buffett to Slayer.

Furman is probably most widely regarded for their power conditioning and voltage regulators, two types of products that are often overlooked yet very important in live and home recording situations. Voltage regulators ensure that a constant level of voltage is being provided to equipment, which can vary and fluctuate in older buildings. Power conditioning protects you from power surges and cuts in power that might fry gear, as well as providing RFI filtering for reducing hum.

Furman has entered the pedalboard market with the SPB-8 and SPB-8C, which feature a built-in power supply combined with their power conditioning technology.

The SPB series is manufactured in China and is made of a ¼” polycarbonate platform attached to a steel chassis. The SPB-8 has a platform area of 12” X 25” and has a Velcro surface for attaching pedals. The power supply offers eight 9V DC fuse-protected outlets for powering pedals, as well as three 120 VAC outlets, rated at 15 A, for “wall-wart” pedals.

The power and signal jacks are isolated, helping to reduce background noise and hum that can happen with other power solutions. This allows the rest of the fuse-protected outlets to continue operating should one of other outlets malfunction. The SPB-8 comes with a padded case, eight 9V DC power cords and a 10’ AC cord.

Probably the most unique thing about the SPB-8 is the stereo wiring capability. The stereo patch bay has 10¼” jacks in two stereo loops, offering the ability for the use of stereo effects boxes as well as using a stereo amp setup.

The SPB-8C features the same power conditioning but has a few specification changes. The area of the SPB-8C is 13.75” X 26.75” and the SPB-8C also offers four 120 VAC outlets. The SPB-8C has eight ¼” jacks for stereo abilities and comes in a hard shell case. The SPB-8C also comes with 10 9V DC power cords and a 4” X 24” strip of Velcro for attaching pedals to the board’s surface.

The SPB-8 has a street price of about $199.99. The SPB-8C has a street price of about $379.99. Both come with a three-year warranty. Unfortunately, as of this time, Furman has ended production of the SPB-8 and SPB-8C.