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  #1  
Old 09-12-2020, 08:35 PM
blue blue is offline
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Default Question for the pedal experts. Buffered pedal affecting a true by pass pedal

Scenario is running a Voodoo Labs Proctavia after a Boss dirt pedal. I had fallen "out of love" with the proctavia since rearranging my pedal board. I was finding the sweet spot for heavy fuzz and octave up, without heavy sputter and gating to be super narrow.

I took it off the board, and was considering selling it. Before putting it up I gave it one last try. Guitar to pedal to amp. It was the pedal I had originally fallen in love with again. Crazy hairy fuzz, strong octave, and a huge range of great sound instead of a 20 degree range (on the knob) of good sounds.

I put it in front of some buffered pedals and it sounded great. I have some other true bypass modulation type pedals, and some distortion pedals that aren't affected being after buffered pedals.

Is it the Proctavia's architecture? Is it octave fuzzes?

Really curious about this.
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  #2  
Old 09-13-2020, 06:09 AM
Dru Edwards Dru Edwards is offline
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A fuzz pedal should be the first pedal on your board, coming directly from your guitar. I think it's because it likes the high impedance signal from the guitar. If you put it after a buffered pedal it impacts the tone, as you found out.

Any reason why you don't want to keep it first in your chain?
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Old 09-13-2020, 07:49 AM
Paleolith54 Paleolith54 is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dru Edwards View Post
A fuzz pedal should be the first pedal on your board, coming directly from your guitar. I think it's because it likes the high impedance signal from the guitar. If you put it after a buffered pedal it impacts the tone, as you found out.

Any reason why you don't want to keep it first in your chain?
Quote:
Originally Posted by blue View Post
Scenario is running a Voodoo Labs Proctavia after a Boss dirt pedal. I had fallen "out of love" with the proctavia since rearranging my pedal board. I was finding the sweet spot for heavy fuzz and octave up, without heavy sputter and gating to be super narrow.

I took it off the board, and was considering selling it. Before putting it up I gave it one last try. Guitar to pedal to amp. It was the pedal I had originally fallen in love with again. Crazy hairy fuzz, strong octave, and a huge range of great sound instead of a 20 degree range (on the knob) of good sounds.

I put it in front of some buffered pedals and it sounded great. I have some other true bypass modulation type pedals, and some distortion pedals that aren't affected being after buffered pedals.

Is it the Proctavia's architecture? Is it octave fuzzes?

Really curious about this.
Strictly speaking, it's the Germanium fuzzes that need to be first in the chain, not necessarily all fuzzes. My Basic Audio Foxey Lady (a pre-Muff circuit), for example, works anywhere in the chain. Also, not all buffers are created equal. Although Boss buffers are actually usually quite good, they aren't consistent from model to model. The key to this is to experiment, which it sounds like you've done and found the solution; this fuzz on this board needs to be first in line.
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  #4  
Old 09-13-2020, 08:29 PM
ogradyboy ogradyboy is offline
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Check out the JHS Pedal Page on YT. He talks about pedal myths in one video and lots of pedal order stuff in another. It’s a place to start.
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  #5  
Old 09-14-2020, 09:26 AM
lkingston lkingston is offline
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Boss buffers can change the sound of a guitar significantly. On some guitars I don't even notice it, and on others, it just takes all the magic out of the tone.
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  #6  
Old 09-15-2020, 01:06 PM
blue blue is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dru Edwards View Post
A fuzz pedal should be the first pedal on your board, coming directly from your guitar. I think it's because it likes the high impedance signal from the guitar. If you put it after a buffered pedal it impacts the tone, as you found out.

Any reason why you don't want to keep it first in your chain?
Nope no reason at all to not put it first. I just haven't encountered this issue before in terms of types of architecture clashing. I have been following my "dirt before modulation" plan since the 80's , but that's been the only "rule" I've needed until now. And for all I know that one's wrong...
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Old 09-15-2020, 01:12 PM
Dru Edwards Dru Edwards is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by blue View Post
Nope no reason at all to not put it first. I just haven't encountered this issue before in terms of types of architecture clashing. I have been following my "dirt before modulation" plan since the 80's , but that's been the only "rule" I've needed until now. And for all I know that one's wrong...
lol, dirt before modulation is something we all follow, along with delay/chorus/reverb in the fx loop. But you never know, there might be a tone with the right set of pedals in a different order.
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  #8  
Old 09-16-2020, 02:18 PM
redir redir is offline
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I know people say that fuzz shoud be the first thing the picup see's but I like fuzz after wha so that's my order and I don't notice a difference. I've also never noticed that a Boss buffer changes the tone.

BTW if anything the lack of a buffer is probably worse for your tone then having all true bypass pedals. That's one good reason for using one of those Boss tuners. Then at least you have something to help push your signal through all the junk on the floor

I use a Sarno Steel Guitar Blackbox for that very reason. It's more of a line conditioner of sorts but it's essentially a buffer, something that helps preserve your guitar signal through a long chain.
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