Danelectro DC59M NOS+

OCTOBER 2019 TOTAL GUITAR
105
W
e’ve got ubiquitous Coke bottle
headstocks, Masonite builds
and bolt-on maple necks with
the most rudimentary of heel
joints throughout. The South
Korean factory has lost nothing in translation
in bringing a real feel of American rock ’n’ roll
to the collection. How to choose? Well, fi rst,
there is an obvious outlier, the 59XT12. It is a
specialist instrument, perhaps too weird for
the majority of players to consider for their
number-one guitar. We love having an
electric 12-string with both singlecoil and
humbucker voicings in the bridge; allied to
the neck pickup, there is a lot of room to play
with. This setup suits the ‘64XT well, too. And
this is the one if you are looking to cover all
bases, if you’re searching for a sound and
need the thicker growl from humbucking
pickups, and of course a tremolo. Danelectro
say it’s the best-sounding guitar they’ve got.
Maybe. But it is hard to see past the 60th
Anniversary DC69M. The NOS+ pickups are
incredible, with a voice that belies their size,
and this is exactly the kind of guitar that does
not hide anything from the player, the kind
that makes you a player better – and it will
handle rock of all ages. As with all Danelectro
models, if you see one you like, grab it,
because they often switch up their lineup.
That’s a bummer. But these are priced to
facilitate impulse purchases, and with rock ’n’
roll guitars it’s alway best to go with your gut.
TH
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FINAL VERDICT
Which Dano will you be grabbing by the shorthorns?
TH
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DANELECTRO
59X12
DANELECTRO
’64XT
DANELECTRO
DC59M NOS+
FEATURES
SOUND QUALITY
VALUE FOR MONEY
BUILD QUALITY
PLAYABILITY
OVERALL RATING
SUMMARY
FEATURES
SOUND QUALITY
VALUE FOR MONEY
BUILD QUALITY
PLAYABILITY
OVERALL RATING
SUMMARY
FEATURES
SOUND QUALITY
VALUE FOR MONEY
BUILD QUALITY
PLAYABILITY
OVERALL RATING
SUMMARY
BEST ALL-
ROUNDER
BEST FOR
ROCK
BEST FOR
60S PSYCH
TGR329.gear_test.indd 105 03/02/2020 11:36