Anyone build effects directly into guitar?

[Jaicen_solo]

What if the cable breaks?

[R.G.]

Same thing as when any other cable breaks. No sound.

"But - but  - but  - but  - but  - but  - but  a normal cable won't work. Then you're toast!"

Yep. And you do the same thing for fixing that as you do for normal cables. Carry a spare.

Make two, they're small.

[eclecticguitarman]

I used a relay in my Tilman-like pre-amp so that if the power source (battery) dies the relay opens up and the regular guitar path is restored. Using surface mount parts reduces the size of the PC board to around 1.75" x .75" which fits nicely into Les Pauls and strats. Mounting the pre-amp inside the guitar is not as difficult as you may expect. The only soldering may be three wires on the stereo jack that replaces the mono jack that most guitars use. A phone plug connects to the original mono jack inside the guitar. The modified guitar can be used with stereo cables to provide power to the pre-amp or in a pinch a regular guitar (mono) cable will still work but without the benefit of the pre-amp. Pictures are available at www.guitarpre-amp.com .

[LightSoundGeometry]

I had a few preamps I tried in my strat and all it did was mess up my GE pedals which seem to want to have nothing in front of them for best tone. I took em out

[Granny Gremlin]

I'm considering working on a project where I install a fuzz, boost, and tremelo directly into a guitar. I'm wondering if anyone has done this and/or has posted a thread detailing their results?

You mean besides Gibson, Burns, Kay and a few other "pros?"

An EBOF is a Gibson EBO bass with a Maerstro fuzz built in (they made a few other F version basses, but mostly as one off custom orders back in the 60s); they tried a few other things over the years (see the 'Artist' series; RD, Victory and Sonex - not the Standard or Custom but the Artist versions).

All I have personally added to any guitar is the run of the mill passive clipping diode thing.  I don't regret it but it isn't super useful.  It's good for adding extra hair to the sound you get from your dist pedal or amp but not so great all on its own.

The main thing, I find, about onboard anything is that you lose the stomp switches so you have to use your hand.  That's fine if you only turn things on or off in between songs, but you can't tell me you never wanna kick in a boost or dirt going in to a chorus from a busy verse.

So in my latest guitar build (inspired by the Gibson Low Z series, the LP Jumbo in particular - I had a coulple of those LoZ pups around as spares) I decided to not have any of the electronics in the guitar and will be putting them in a floor box; pup goes direct to jack.

Anyway, schems for the EB0F are readily available online if you want to see how that integration worked.  Kay and Burns did a few multi-effect models (Kay did this LP looking thing with Fuzz and tremelo at least if not a few other things) but I don't remember the model names and don't know if schems are around.

... here's the Kay: