I'm looking to go out and buy my first electric, and I'm hoping to keep the spending to a minimum :wink: . I've played around with my brother's Squire strat, but it's pretty tiring to see all the "standard" body styles on guitars- it seems like everyone either has a tele, strat, or LP body.
I really like the look of those old Danelectro (I've also seen Dan Electro. . . :?: ) guitars- I think they are called the DC-59. I think they were sold by Sears, and a lot of soon-to-be-big guitar players used them. I know Jimmy Page used one for his White Summer solos and for slide guitar, and I have the first Pink Floyd CD with Syd Barrett holding one for a picture, and I've heard they also turned Jerry Garcia on to guitar. Now they seem tough to find because they're not made anymore
I'm mainly into classic/psychedelic rock and blues (and the aforementioned musicians seem to fit that style pretty well). I know they were cheaply made, but I don't mind- I'm just looking for a cheap, simple, guitar that looks unique and doesn't play TOO bad- the number of pickups/knobs isn't important to me- I'm more interested in durability. Does anyone here have any experience with these guitars?
"All I see is draining me on my Plastic Fantastic Lover!"
See if you can find any user reviews at Harmony Central's User Reviews. DanElectro also used to make an electric sitar, if you can imagine that!
Well we all shine on--like the moon and the stars and the sun.
-- John Lennon
Wes should be along at some point, I think he got one of the earlier reissues.
http://elderly.com/brand/30N_DANELECTRO.html
I hear Mark Knopfler's using an original for slide on his latest album/tour.
"Things may get a whole lot worse/ Before suddenly falling apart"
Steely Dan
"Look at me coyote, don't let a little road dust put you off" Knopfler
If can't find that guitar, Danelectro makes one guitar model currently.... its called the D-56, thats probably what you are thinking of... here it is: http://www.danelectro.com/guitars1.htm
Stairway to Freebird!
Oops... Primeta posted a link on that guitar already.... :oops:
Stairway to Freebird!
BrianK
I own a Danelecto 56 U2 Reissue. My brother gave it to me about 2 months ago. It's looks exactly like this one on E-Bay, even the same color.
I really like this guitar. It has a beautiful tone even unplugged. That is always a good sign for any electric. It is somewhere between a Strat and a Gibson SG tone-wise.
It is a pretty simple guitar, but the quality is good. There are no fret burrs or uneven frets at all. I did have to loosen the truss rod when I got it because I was getting a little fret buzz on the A string from frets 1-3. When you get buzz through frets 1-5 it usually means the truss rod is too tight. The neck is actually convex (the headstock bowed downwards). But after loosing the truss rod about 1/2 turn it is fine. I have very low action with no buzz anywhere. Oh, you have to take the neck off to adjust the truss rod. It is at the neck pickup end of the neck, but the adjustment screw is underneath the deck of the guitar. I didn't have any problems with it though.
The bridge is very old fashioned. The strings just hook over the very end of the bridge. You cannot adjust the saddles at all, but I found the intonation to be perfect. The bridge rests on top of two screws with one that holds the bridge in the back. So this is how you adjust the string height or action.
The tuning pegs are pretty good. There are no scratches in the tone or volume controls.
The tone and volume controls are stacked on top of each other. It takes a little while to get used to remembering which is the tone and which is the volume. But they work perfectly.
The color is definitely '50's. I love the color. It is cool. The guitar is very light.
But the tone of this guitar is outstanding really. It rocks with clean or distortion. It has a very fast neck.
So, if you want a really cool retro guitar, go for the Danelectro. For the low price it is a great guitar. Heh, Jimmy Page recorded Kashmir on a Danelectro, that ought to tell you something right there. And that song has awesome guitar tone.
I hope this has been a help.
Wes
If you know something better than Rock and Roll, I'd like to hear it - Jerry Lee Lewis
I like that DC-56 (I'm actually just keeping an eye out on ebay at several "Dano's"), but I like the more unique-looking DC-59. From Harmony Central's reviews, it seems that all Danelectros share common traits- cheap, simple, but very distinctive tone.
What does "stacked" mean in terms of knobs? Should I be wary of neck and strap button problems? Are these guitars easy to fix up if I pick up an old, beat-up one, like this http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=33036&item=7328562890&rd=1 ?
And what is a "baritone" guitar?
"All I see is draining me on my Plastic Fantastic Lover!"
Strap button problems arent humongus, but the neck problems might make you regret your purchase... a baritone guitar is a guitar with a very longg scale, aka longer neck than usual, more than 24 or so frets, etc..
Stairway to Freebird!
BrianK
When I said the tone and volume are stacked I meant the tone knob is on top of the volume. If you look at the guitar on e-bay, the outer brown knob is volume. The white knob on top of it is tone. You just have to remember which is which.
You would probably want to replace the strap buttons. They are rounded, so a strap might slip off easily.
I have not had any problems with the neck on mine other than the truss rod adjustment. The guitar stays in tune nicely and has a very "fast" feel to it.
If you know something better than Rock and Roll, I'd like to hear it - Jerry Lee Lewis
