Mike, are the switches in Ibanez, Boss, and MXR pedals true on/off bypass?
The Ibanez and Boss signals do not go straight through a wire when they are off, they go through some components (op amps and/or transistors). You can tell effects of this type because you will get no signal through when the battery is out. Also they do not use a stomp on/off switch, but a momentary contact switch which switches the signal electronically rather than mechanically like the old stomp switches. Although they are not “true bypass”, this type of effect, if properly designed, will not load or affect your signal much when the effect is OFF. They can actually HELP your signal when off, (for example if you use a long patch cord), by acting as a signal buffer. Most MXR and many EH pedals are not true bypass either, but do use a direct wire to bypass the signal when they are off (they will pass the signal in the OFF position without a battery). But nearly all MXR and EH effects use a Single Pole, Double throw (SPDT) switch with only three terminals, as it is cheaper than the 6 ter
