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by Jim Button September 02, 2021 2 min read
You'll see it written in a lot of our product descriptions - "true bypass". But what does it mean?
Even if you have pedals on your pedalboard turned off, the signal from your guitar has to go through them on its way to the amp.
And it's HOW the signal goes through a pedal that determines whether it will degrade before it reaches the end of the route.
With true bypass pedals, the use of a DPDT (dual pole dual throw) switch allows the signal to take a route around a pedal's circuitry when it's turned off, rather than having to go through it like it would when the pedal is activated. This avoids the internals of a pedal 'sucking tone' from the signal.
In many situations - such as if you're playing at home where a long guitar cable isn't necessary, or if you only gig with three or four pedals - true bypass pedals are the perfect choice for preserving your guitar's tone before it reaches the amp.
If, however, you need a longer cable for stage use or you have more than a handful of pedals on your board, you can run into trouble with true bypass pedals.
Impedance is the enemy of tone, and long cable runs (either a long guitar cable, or multiple patch cables between pedals) can seriously affect your signal, whether or not your pedals bypass their internal circuitry.
The key is to include a buffer in your setup - this can either be a pedal which is not true bypass (these are known as buffer bypass because they amplifiy or 'buffer' the signal to help it through a pedal's internal circuitry with minimal loss), or a standalone buffer/signal conditioner.
Strengthening the signal in this way enables longer cable runs to be used without losing treble or clarity in your tone, and most people place them at the beginning of their pedal routing.
So, to conclude...
Don't let the terms true bypass and buffer bypass put you off buying a pedal. Yes, true bypass is a great feature but having too much of a good thing can be detrimental to your tone. Use a dedicated signal conditioner or a buffer bypass pedal along with your true bypass pedals for the best of both worlds - pure, clean signal reaching your amp is the key, after all.
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An awesome pedal from an awesome pedal maker. It was shipped fast and packaged well. Thanks again.
I spent an obsessive amount of time checking out univibe pedals. I'm so glad that I purchased this one from Boost. It is simply fantastic! If you don't believe me, then check out some video demos. Thanks Jim! + JG
This is a fantastic drive pedal. There’s plenty of Plexi style pedals out there and I’ve owned a few, this one stood out for the switchable A/B-B/A switch. The boost side is nice and simple, much like an LPB-1. Not overly clean but a perfect partner to the drive side. The Plexi side is again nothing revolutionary but very good all the same and sounds great, on a par with far more expensive pedals.
The build quality is also top end, very neat and tidy. Squeezed into the single enclosure and with a lifetime warrantee I couldn’t ask for more. I don’t think this’ll be leaving my pedal board any time soon!
I’m only just starting to scratch the surface of the KMA MACHINES Cirrus, but absolutely loving it so far. Very responsive to pick attack which means can really control the “ambience” with playing style. Really looking forward to exploring further.
Great vibe pedal, the best I’ve tried so far
Best prices on the net, in stock and fast delivery. Would buy again. Great sounding pedal and exactly as I had hoped. This one should be on my board for a while!
Really like this pedal. Good fun and easy to use and well made. It has a really hypnotic tone and feel to it. It is very reminiscent of old tape echo units.
Really personable service with exemplary communication and swift shipping.
Had a few vibes, absolutely loving this one, check the YT demos, lovely satisfying vibe with all the swirly goodness you could hope for. Beautifully made and reasonably priced. Highly recommended - and Jim at Boost is a top guy
I came across the Formula B Fuzz Rangers via online demos on Youtube, and they all sounded so good that I had to get one. Looking online I found the Boost Guitar Pedals website via the Formula B website as a listed UK stockist. Jim was excellent and the pedal arrived when he said it would and it was perfectly packaged. I would have no hesitation in buying any other product from Boost.
As for the Fuzz Rangers, it is a great pedal. I had to work at it a touch to get the sounds I liked from it, but it seems to react really well to different guitars and different amps with adjustments to volume and tone on the guitar and different amp settings. I found it works best into a slightly cranked amp, and volume roll-off on the guitar offers a great variety of sounds from clean to classic fuzz. Thoroughly enjoying the pedal. Well done Jim, great website and a great selection of interesting brands and pedals..... Which one next????
Having used a number of univibe clones over the years this one truly nails the sound for me, it comes with some clever additions in a pedal board friendly size and is excellent value for money. If you want the true sound of the original this pedal delivers.Special thanks to boost Guitar Pedals for putting this deal together so quickly..
I'm still working my way through all the sounds, but so far I'm loving them all.
Each time I think I've got a fav sound I flip the diode switch and there's another one. Great value for a four-in-one fuzz pedal!!
Not writing a long review but this is the best vibe I’ve owned. Do yourself a favour and get one on your board
Both modes really useable. The first can get a wooly or starved/wolly sound or more nasally raw sound depending on how you dial it in.
Mode two can be more mid focused and with both switches down it's just a real nice deep, warm wall of fuzz. Great stuff.
Awesome pedal. Does everything from short slaps, to long endless delays, or echo-verb. The infinite delay feature on the button hold is interesting, though if you need a certain sound out of it like that, you have to be okay with the sound that those settings create when the infinite hold feature is off. I’m sure it will be great for recording some interesting textures, but I don’t think I’d use it live, as the infinite hold sounds glitchy and cuts off very quickly at some of the shorter, more subtle delay settings that I use. The art on the pedal is nice, and the build quality is solid. Comes with a carry bag, for some reason, but I can’t complain. A great unit by any standard, but especially good quality and features for the ticket price.