This is my first Danelectro and my first electric 12 string guitar (although I have owned several acoustic 12 strings in the past..) and I’ve been very pleased with its sound and playability.
The Danelectro DC 59 12 String is very light and remarkably well finished for a guitar in this price range although with its heritage as a budget brand it has a slightly quirky retro look which may not be to everyone’s taste.
Out the box, the factory set up was good although it benefited from a few tweaks to the truss rod and the (metal) nut. The intonation was pretty much spot on from the word go, with the well designed bridge enabling adjustment of each individual string.
The neck is not too wide and quite shallow, the strings are decently spaced which makes fretting relatively easy, although I’d perhaps prefer a slightly chunkier neck.
Most importantly the guitar sounds great! Unplugged the hollow body makes for a lot or resonance, although its realistically too quiet to play without amplification. Plugged in it has the classic 12-string jangle with the middle position sounding particularly full. Initially there was some disparity between the volume of the two pickups, but this was easily addressed by slightly raising the treble side of the bridge pickup using the screws on the back of the guitar.
In conclusion this guitar is certainly recommended for someone looking to add a 12-String electric guitar to their arsenal at a decent price point with great sound and playability with that Classic 12-String Jangle!