true bypass

True bypass is a wiring scheme in which, when a pedal is bypassed or off, the signal path passes directly from the input jack to the output jack¹. It uses mechanical switching, often with 3PDT switches, so the signal does not travel through the pedal's circuitry when the effect is off²³. This means the guitar signal passes through the pedal unaltered, with no buffer in the signal path when the pedal is inactive⁴⁵. Because the input is hardwired to the output when the effect is off, the signal still passes through the pedal even if its power fails⁵. True bypass switching is commonly listed as a feature on pedals such as fuzz, envelope filter, and stereo units⁶⁷⁸.