Jangely Rhythm Guitar: Rickenbacker 330 or Coronado II?

[sirspens]

I have been looking for a chimey semi-hollow body guitar for a while for an light and jangely rhythm guitar (light as in tone, not weight).

My main two contenders right now are a Rickenbacker 330 or Coronado II. If I get a new Rick, I will probably have to replace the pickups. If I go vintage I am probably more likely to get that jangely sound, but will be out quite a bit more money.

My experience with semi-hollows is pretty limited and pretty disappointing. But I know they are capable of what I am looking for. I am looking for your help in finding the right guitar.

Thanks for all your help!

[UlricvonCatalyst]

No experience with Coronados, but wouldn't a Danelectro fit the bill without breaking the bank? I like the DC59 best, but any of their semi-hollows should jangle.

[sirspens]

No experience with Coronados, but wouldn't a Danelectro fit the bill without breaking the bank? I like the DC59 best, but any of their semi-hollows should jangle.

Yeah. I should have added that I have owned several Danos over the years. I have always wanted to love them. But the only one I have ever gotten along with is my Dead On. I wish I could put my finger on the problem, but I always found playing them to be a chore. Part of it is build quality, I think, but i don't know what the rest is.

The other part of the reason I am asking this is because I am looking for a non-humbucker semi-hollow, and they are fairly rare, so I can't exactly run out and sample them.

[DarnWeight]

Maybe something with mini humbuckers? They definitely do very good jangle tones, and you'll probably have more luck finding a semi with minhums.

[Fuzzbuzz]

Rickenbacker 330’s are fantastic guitars. I’m not sure why you would have to replace the pickups however? The stock pickups do a great job at capturing the woody tone of the semi-hollowbody and maintain a supremely jangly tone. Especially if you are playing through a low wattage tube amp!

On the flip side, Coronado’s are cool guitars. But I personally prefer and enjoy the neck and tone of a Rickenbacker

[jakeisjake]

you can find a 330 with toasters in it, if you look hard enough. i had one and sold it last year...definitely jangled!

[sirspens]

Maybe something with mini humbuckers? They definitely do very good jangle tones, and you'll probably have more luck finding a semi with minhums.

You know, In 20+ years of playing guitar, I have never played a mini-humbucker. I am going to visit some guitar shops today and try to remedy that.

Rickenbacker 330’s are fantastic guitars. I’m not sure why you would have to replace the pickups however?

I've only ever played 330s with toasters. Do the high gains provide plenty of jangle?

I also don't play through a tube amp. I do play through a series of compressor, very light OD to add sparkle and sometimes very light chorus and very light reverb (at least for a jangely sound).

you can find a 330 with toasters in it, if you look hard enough. i had one and sold it last year...definitely jangled!

Yep. And I have enjoyed the ones I have played. Didn't necessarily enjoy the price tag, but you know.

[wproffitt]

There’s a Yamaha SA 15 in the FS forum right now that might scratch this itch for you for a very reasonable price! My SA 30 does the jangle thing and has the neck I always wished a RIC would have. The pickups are sort of like mini-hums, and with ceramic magnets. You wouldn’t think this would be a recipe for tonal delight, but I adore them. Anybody else want to chime* in here?

*joke intended

[marqueemoon]

I like the Ric sound, but I just can’t get down with most Ric necks. Vintage Coronados are still pretty affordable all things considered and play really nicely when properly set up.

If you can deal with a Ric neck look at old Harmony hollowbodies. My first decent guitar was a 60’s Rocket with two mustache gold foil pickups. It was a jangle machine.

[cestlamort]

One thing to note about Rickenbackers is that the toasters changed depending on the era. The vintage ones are lower output, but the reissue toasters up until the 2000s (I don't remember the dates anymore) were basically just high gains with toaster covers (hot toasters) until they switched to the current scatter wound toasters (closer to the 60s ones). So, depending on the guitar, the "toasters" might have basically just been higains.

[UlricvonCatalyst]

No experience with Coronados, but wouldn't a Danelectro fit the bill without breaking the bank? I like the DC59 best, but any of their semi-hollows should jangle.

Yeah. I should have added that I have owned several Danos over the years. I have always wanted to love them. But the only one I have ever gotten along with is my Dead On. I wish I could put my finger on the problem, but I always found playing them to be a chore. Part of it is build quality, I think, but i don't know what the rest is.

The other part of the reason I am asking this is because I am looking for a non-humbucker semi-hollow, and they are fairly rare, so I can't exactly run out and sample them.

Are you aware that the first run Korean reissue Dano pickups have a lower output than the newer reissue ones? If you found the Dead On okay, you could certainly factor in a pickup swap and still have enough left over for a Janglebox compared to Ric prices (no idea how much a Coronado costs). Just a thought.

Just another thought: a janglebox (or other compressor and/or Eq pedals) and a nice single coil-equipped electric of your choice. 'Jangle' is one of those terms that has become increasingly hard to pin down over the years (it always meant something like the sound of a 12-string Ric to me); hell, I've read people talking about their Strat jangling in the neck position, so maybe I never really knew what 'jangle' meant after all.

[sirspens]

If you can deal with a Ric neck look at old Harmony hollowbodies. My first decent guitar was a 60’s Rocket with two mustache gold foil pickups. It was a jangle machine.

I really like the Ric necks, and a Harmony Rocket with the mustache gold foils is one of the guitars on my list. I'm glad to hear it get an endorsement.

Thank you!

[sirspens]

'Jangle' is one of those terms that has become increasingly hard to pin down over the years (it always meant something like the sound of a 12-string Ric to me); hell, I've read people talking about their Strat jangling in the neck position, so maybe I never really knew what 'jangle' meant after all.

You aren't wrong. I'm looking for indie pop jangle, originating from influences such as the Kinks middle years of Ray-dominated saccharine sweet sarcastic pop. (I know Ray and Dave switched around playing a Harmony Rocket during that period, but never played a 12-string so far as I know. Dave rocked an early Flying V prototype at times, but not the sound I am looking for.) A Strat neck pickup is 100% useless to me.

I had a 90s (?) Korea '59 for a long time, my second longest owned guitar. But it had higher gain than my 2003-ish U2 reissue. It wasn't ever the pickups I didn't like. I enjoyed the pickups. It was playing the guitars themselves that were a chore.

[UlricvonCatalyst]

I thought Ray mainly played acoustic during the middle years (assuming you mean Face To Face - Village Green). The Fender one with the Strat-style headstock.



Edit: and when asking the question which guitar can do it all? the answer's always Telecaster-shaped. Good enough for Johnny Marr and Peter Buck (okay, his was a deLuxe in their earliest years, but I'm sure he played a standard one too). If those two guitarists aren't the apotheosis of Indie jangle I don't know who is.

[sirspens]

I thought Ray mainly played acoustic during the middle years (assuming you mean Face To Face - Village Green). The Fender one with the Strat-style headstock.

Sometimes. And sometimes a Telecaster. And sometimes the Rocket. There aren't a lot of good videos from this era, or pictures to know what song is being played.

And I've already got several Telecaster-shaped guitars. haha.