Buffered vs True Bypass - Who Wins?

You may be sick of the question by now, but from my experience it is still valid. Should your guitars pedalboard be Buffered or True Bypass? Your choice here can have drastic results on your tone.
It seems that whoever you talk to there are two camps - The Buffered Camp (lets use buffers wherever possible) and the True Bypass Camp - Why buffer when you can keep that pristine guitar into amp sound?
Who is correct?
When running your guitar rig, you need to keep some key info in mind. Check out this video to see which approach will work better for your rig!
Timestamps
0:00 - Intro
0:46 - Why can a buffer help?
1:37 - What does a buffer do?
3:07 - Suggestions for buffer placement.
3:28 - Audio Example Explanation
4:09 - Audio Examples
4:34 - Overview Audio Examples

[@Gibsunday]

Looooove your vids and how easy you make these seem!

[@Muguseitu]

Just a note of thanks for doing these educational videos; I find them them very useful! Keep 'em coming.

[@GoodwoodAudio]

Thanks! I plan on it. Send me ideas for new vids when you have them - [e-mail]

[@StuartPeel]

Just subscribed. Great demo of why I need a buffer but never realised it! Thanks a lot - I'll be back!

[@GoodwoodAudio]

Thanks Stuart! Really appreciate it!

[@karannSingh01]

I got a custom looper made by Goodwood audio. Initially was sceptic about the transparency of the buffer. However, after doing a few test and checking the EQ cure on logic pro, I can say the tone and feel of the guitar stays intact. Goodwood makes some great buffers

[@GoodwoodAudio]

Thanks Karan!

[@dimosy]

I am always excited to see what y'all come up with each Friday! Also quick question so why does the interfacer and under facer have input and output buffers? Does it make a difference to have a buffer at the beginning AND the end of your pedal board?

[@GoodwoodAudio]

Great question. Having one early in the chain is pretty self explanatory. The one on the output section of both products is what we've noticed a lot of players like. Its also part of the circuitry needed to add all of the features (summing, mixing etc)

[@scottperrin9655]

Great video, very well explained. Thank you. I do have 1 question if you have the time to answer it. Would i put my buffer before my tuner (TU-2) in-between tuner and noise suppressor (NS-2) or after the noise suppressor?

[@GoodwoodAudio]

I'd start with buffer first and then AB the different options. See if you notice a difference between the three spots! In my opinion (others would disagree) I always lean towards trusting my ear... Lots of experiments. You learn a TON about your rig this way.

[@scottperrin9655]

@@GoodwoodAudio i certainly agree with trusting ears over cold hard "gotta be this way". I mean, ultimately it's our ears that we're trying to please, not our eyes right? Thank you so much for responding. Will follow your advice. Much appreciated!!

[@GoodwoodAudio]

@@scottperrin9655 I really like that... not our eyes we're trying to please... That comes into play in a ton of areas... amp and pedal settings - "Theres no way treble should be that high..." but often if I close my eyes and tweak settings, I would never go there because it "Looks wrong". I'm going to start using that way of describing it if you don't mind! Well put.

[@scottperrin9655]

@@GoodwoodAudio oh wow, thanks! Yes please by all means run with it!

[@frusciantegeartone]

So if I want an “all true bypass” board, but have an “always on” pedal (compressor), is it redundant to even have a true bypass board?

[@GoodwoodAudio]

Every buffer stage will add some 'colour', so not redundant. But I would also say that buffers are not bad. They are needed. But you're correct that your compressor will be buffering your signal at the outset.

[@silviolutti1522]

One thing I can't figure out: is the buffer (like in boss or ibanez pedals) active and only works when the powered pedal is off or is it always on even when it's on?

[@GoodwoodAudio]

always on

[@alanscharrer5255]

With true bypass pedal, how much relative cable length is added with each pedal?

[@GoodwoodAudio]

Basically you can just go with the length of the actual cables you're using (patch cables and instrument cables) to get a good idea. Thats a great place to start.

[@adonijahdriver1327]

Was this 70 ft of cable in one straight run? isn't it going to produce different results in a larger pedal board where each cable is nowhere near that long?

[@GoodwoodAudio]

In the vid it was patched into a few true bypass pedals. But even on a packed board with a bunch of individual cables, the results would differ slightly yes (more plugs to run through, more solder connections) but it would probably be even more extreme because of that, not better.