| Fender Duo-Sonic | |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Fender |
| Period | 1956-1969, 1994-1997 |
| Construction | |
| Body type | Solid |
| Neck joint | Bolt-on |
| Scale | 22. Fender Musical Instruments Corporation of Quincy Illinois is a manufacturer of stringed instruments such as solid-body Electric guitars including the 5" or 24" |
| Woods | |
| Body | Alder or Basswood |
| Neck | Maple |
| Fretboard | Rosewood |
| Hardware | |
| Bridge | fixed |
| Pickup(s) | 2 "vintage style" single coil |
| Colors available | |
| Sonic Blue, Dakota Red | |
The Fender Duo-Sonic guitar was introduced by Fender in 1956 as a “student” model guitar. Alder is the common name of a Genus of Flowering plants ( Alnus) belonging to the Birch family (Family Betulaceae) Tilia is a Genus of about 30 species of Trees native throughout most of the temperate Northern Hemisphere, in Asia (where the greatest Acer ( maple) is a Genus of Trees or Shrubs They are variously classified in a family of their own the Aceraceae, or A pickup device acts as a Transducer that captures mechanical vibrations (usually from suitably equipped Stringed instruments such as the Electric guitar A single coil pickup is a type of magnetic Transducer for the Electric guitar and the electric bass. Fender Musical Instruments Corporation of Quincy Illinois is a manufacturer of stringed instruments such as solid-body Electric guitars including the Year 1956 ( MCMLVI) was a Leap year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Like the Musicmaster introduced a few months earlier, it featured crude but effective construction and a 22. The Fender Musicmaster is an Electric guitar by Fender, and was the first of their 3/4 scale guitars 5 inch scale length (standard Fender guitars feature a 25. For the musical (rather than instrumental scale, see Pythagorean tuning. 5 inch scale). The “Duo-Sonic” features two pick-ups and a vertical (as opposed to Fender's standard blade-style) selector switch on the lower horn of the body.
In 1964 both models were redesigned based on the Fender Mustang that had recently been added to the student model line. Year 1964 ( MCMLXIV) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the 1964 Gregorian calendar. The Fender Mustang is an Electric guitar by the Fender Musical Instruments Corporation, introduced in 1964 as the basis of a major redesign of Fender's All three guitars now featured larger and slightly offset bodies, necks with larger headstocks and rosewood fingerboards and plastic pickguards with the volume and tone controls mounted on a separate metal plate. Pick-up selection was moved above the pick-ups on both the Duo-Sonic and the Mustang and utilized two 3-position on-off-on switches that allowed for in and out-of-phase sounds. The pickups were also reverse-wound/reverse-polarity, which made them into a functional Humbucker when both pick-ups were used simultaneously. A conventional humbucker (or Humbucking pickup) is a type of Electric guitar pickup that uses two coils both generating string signal Also added in this redesign was the option of a 24 inch scale neck in addition to the 22. 5 inch scale. This re-designed model was re-named Duo-Sonic II although decals with and without the II designation were used occasionally.
The Duo-Sonic lasted until 1969 when it was dropped most likely because the Mustang with its tremolo tail piece was far more popular. It was reissued in the middle of the 1990's, yet was again discontinued in 1997.
The Duo-Sonic is closely identified with Liz Phair though it was used by David Byrne of the Talking Heads early in their career as well as Jimi Hendrix (when he toured the under the name Jimmy James with The Isley Brothers). Liz Phair (born Elizabeth Clark Phair on April 17, 1967 in New Haven, Connecticut, USA) is an American Talking head Talking Heads was an American New Wave band formed in 1974 in New York City and active until 1991 James Marshall Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix) (November 27 1942 – September 18 1970 was an American Guitarist, Singer and Songwriter The Isley Brothers (ˈaɪzliː are a Grammy-winning American R&B / soul group Johnny Winter also used a modified Duo-Sonic during the late 1960s and early 1970s, particularly on his first few albums. John Dawson "Johnny" Winter III (born on 23 February, 1944 in Beaumont Texas, USA is an American Blues guitarist Patti Smith also plays a Duo-Sonic and has featured her guitar in song lyrics, for example in "Radio Ethiopia/Abyssinia" from the Radio Ethiopia LP. Tom Cummings from Human Condition uses the late 90's remake Duo-Sonic. The human condition encompasses all of the Experience of being Human.
The Duo-Sonic I and II are both considered rare and have displayed growing collector value. The Duo-Sonic II in particular is often seen as a desirable alternative to the more popular Mustang, since it negates the difficult-to-maintain tremolo bridge.
See also
- Fender Musicmaster for more history. The Fender Musicmaster is an Electric guitar by Fender, and was the first of their 3/4 scale guitars
- Fender Mustang for more history of the Duo-Sonic II. The Fender Mustang is an Electric guitar by the Fender Musical Instruments Corporation, introduced in 1964 as the basis of a major redesign of Fender's
- Fender Bronco. For the amplifier of the same name see Fender Bronco Amp The Fender Bronco was an Electric guitar model produced by the Fender
References
Fender's 3/4 Scale Guitars, a two-part article by Tim Pershing in 20th Century Guitar Magazine, December 1996 and January 1997.
External links
- Fender's 3/4 Scale Guitars
- Musicmaster/Duo-Sonic Gallery
- shortscale.org Fender Shortscale Discussion Forum
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