TC Electronic Bonafide Buffer Amp

[paulgshaw]

Hi All, Just acquired one of these form Guitar Guitar.....all metal, well built and reasonably priced....£53 delivered....

Quite surprised that is does make more difference than I expected.....

Tried it with my full stage pedalboard, which is the most complex signal route and then with a simple pair of 5 metre leads....

In both cases the guitar sounds clearer and cleaner with the amp in circuit....brings out all the higher frequencies and harmonics....

It is easy to do an A/B comparison as the Bonafide defaults to true bypass if you cut off its power supply.....

So, I had expected to be sending it back thinking what a waste of money, but just the opposite, it is staying as it helps squeeze that last

bit of quality out of your sound.....impressed.....

Paul.....

[RayL]

Out of interest, what is the length of the cable you use between the guitar and the buffer amp? And the length of cable between the buffer amp and the pedal board?

[paulgshaw]

Hi Ray....varies, on stage I used a digital radio system , no longer as I don't gig, in the home studio I use 2m to the recording gear and also the pedalboard, if I am using it, from the board to the amp etc....

Using a top quality short lead straight into any of my amps via the TC does show a difference in the overall clarity of tone, not massive but it's there...

If I deliberately create a long route using 6 metre cables and several pedals then the difference is a lot more noticeable...

Not an essential purchase for most people probably, but it's not that expensive and if you record a lot and want to get the best then it helps in certain circumstances...

Certainly better value than the Boss RC-3 Looper which I bought and can't find any practical use for it...

Cheers, Paul...

[RayL]

Paul,

All powered pedals will have a high impedance input and a low impedance output i.e. they act as a buffer in addition to whatever else they do.

The official TC electronic video (at http://www.tcelectronic.com/bonafide-buffer/) uses 100m of cable to exaggerate the difference between using and not using the buffer, but does at least admit that any powered pedal will also act as a buffer.

What it carefully avoids is the explanation that, to be effective, the cable between the guitar and the Bonafide buffer has to be very short. It's the cable from the Bonafide to the amp or to the pedalboard that can be very long. Hang on, though, the whole point of a long guitar cable is so that you can roam around the stage. You don't want to have a little black buffer pedal kicking around at your feet and dragging around on the cable when you move.

So there is a contradiction here. The Bonafide allows you to use a long cable either a)direct to the amp, or b)to a pedalboard and then to the amp, BUT you have to have the Bonafide pedal very close to the guitar and, since it is designed for floor use, kicking around at your feet. Surely, to be useful in this situation the buffer should be in a small, light box that can attach to the guitar strap? Like a, err, wireless transmitter - but then you wouldn't need either a long cable or a Bonafide buffer . . . . .

Ray

[paulgshaw]

Hi Ray, I fully understand all the technical aspects of this subject, I am a retired electronics engineer, but for my home studio use, using a 2 m cable into my gear the Bonafide does make a slight improvement in the overall sound and quality of the perceived guitar sound.....and for £53 it is worth the money to me....obviously other players in different scenarios will have different needs and requirements. You are correct when you say effects pedals have a buffer amp, but for most it is when they are switched on, in true bypass mode the pedal is the same as a piece of wire so any buffering effect will be lost.....the purpose of the unit isn't to give you freedom of movement with a long lead from your guitar, it is to remove the deterioration of signal quality from effects pedals and long leads to your amp. I agree that a radio system is best, that was what I had when I gigged, if you want the best sound quality and the ability to run around the stage

sound on sound review gives an insight into usage...
http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/mar16/a ... nafide.htm

....Cheers, Paul....