Yesterday, I finished up my little buffer box for my guitar rig. I had a specific need for this unit. I normally have a few buffers inline (mainly my Boss TU-2) at the end. Since I created my true bypass strip and split out loops for pedals, I’ve been playing around with some configurations. I have a Heavy Electronics Grind Fuzz, and I was really liking the sound of the pedal when there was a buffer in front of it. Made it more.. aggressive.. and nasty. But since I had my bypass set up the way it was, I wanted to get a dedicated buffer in loop with that pedal.

For those that don’t know what a buffer is/does. When you have a series of large cables or many pedals in line, you begin to create cable capacitance. This basically eats at your high end, and dulls your tone. By adding a buffer you can drive a hotter signal down the line and retain that high end and sparkle. If you have a chance, please read this post – Visual Sound (buffered bypass) and Route 808 -  (and watch the video). You really can see the buffer in action.

I picked up a small enclosure, and designed the circuit board for the buffer circuit. I wired it up and it’s working like a champ. No footswitch, basically the buffer is always on.

Here is a shot of the finished enclosure. Super bright blue LED indicator. No battery and powered by 9v adapter

I’ll be making a few more for some of guitar-nerd friends. If you’re interested in one of these, shoot me a email.

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This morning, I came across the MXR M-133 Micro Amp. Been wanting to talk about this for a while, but it always seems to slip through the cracks. I’m a fan of clean boost pedals. They’re simple and really effective to crush your preamp for sweet tone. This one is no exception, single gain knob. I like it. Also, in the video below it mentioned how it will “preserve the integrity of your signal when you use long cables”. Sounds like there is a built in high impedance buffer in there, which in my opinion, is a great thing.

Here is the official description:

The MXR M-133 Micro Amplifier Pedal adds a preset amount of gain, using a single control. With a guitar, this lets you boost your signal for lead work, adjust between 2 different guitars with unmatched output (i.e., humbucker to single coils), or it can supply a permanent boost in a long effects chain where signal drop-off is a problem. Power: Single 9-volt battery or Dunlop ECB-003 AC Adapter – Controls: Footswitch toggles amp on/bypass (red LED indicates on) Gain knob adjusts total output volume when the Micro Amp is engaged.

Here is a video by jimdunlopusa:

You can pick up the MXR M-133 Micro Amp for only $79.99 at Musician’s Friend!

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A few months ago I was very interested in buffers and how they can help your tone when your cables are long and you have many true-bypass pedals on the line. Basically, you create a capacitor which “muddies” your tone. By adding a buffer in there, you address this problem. There are a few pedals out there that have buffers in them, etc.

Tonight, I came across a cool install gadget by Creation Audio Labs called the Redeemer Circuit which looks to add a buffer to your input jack. Cool concept to avoid any signal issues by addressing the source vs. the line. Seems like a simple install as well.

Here is the official description:

The Redeemer is an innovative buffer circuit that eliminates tone loss caused by the interaction of instrument electronics and the loading effect of the cable, effects units and amplifier. The instrument is effectively insulated from the rest of the signal chain providing these benefits:

IMPROVED NOTE CLARITY
Individual notes within chords are heard with greater detail – harmonics jump right out!

QUICKER TRANSIENT ATTACK
The guitar becomes very responsive to the players picking velocity and strength… This is something you will feel!

ULTRA LINEAR AND TRANSPARENT
The timbre of the instrument stays consistent, especially when “rolling back” the volume controls! No loss of high frequencies when you turn down your instruments volume – It’s like having a master volume that keeps your tone the same at any volume level.

PLUG DIRECTLY INTO THE LINE INPUT ON A MIXER
Because the output impedance is less than 300ohms the circuit can easily drive a line input for going direct to a mixer.
This results in a clear, full range of tone that sounds better than using a direct box for live or recording applications.

Here is  a video by CreationAudioLabs:

Anyone have any personal experience with this? Looks like they’re selling it for $49.00, at their official store.

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