Danelectro D-4 Fab Chorus

Pretty easy. 3 knobs to regulate depth,speed and mix..turn them to you right(facing the holes for the jacks)to turn them up, and left to turn them down. After a few minutes you will be able to find any type of sound you can make out of it. I give it a nine just because they don't tell you how to turn the knobs and the manual doesn't help at all..

I have an Epiphone Les Paul100 with a Peavey Solo Amp. This pedal works great! It's wonderful! I compared to my friend's Boss Chorus Pedal and they sound the same! It always has a very clean,thick and rich sound! You can get the sound of all the artists that use chorus pedals. Try to turn all the knobs to max and you will get a cool sci-fi effect that they always used in 60's horror or sci-fi movies!(but that's not what most people need it for :D ) Usually I turn depth and mix to almost max and speed at half.

It's a have duty plastic. It's very resistant and it has a very solid metal plate under it. I would use it without a backup! If you compare to the Danelectro Mini DJ series you can tell that the fab are more resitant.

I never needed them because it works wonderfully.

I give it a 9..just because it's hard for me to rate 10 something..there is always something that you actually would like there to be..anyway, I'd buy one if someone had stolen it or if it broke! I really suggest buying this one!

OK, what's to say? This thing is as simple as corner of a house :). 100% look of a soap-bar is just funny, but we talk 'bout little overcheap effect stompbox, not 'bout serious rack device. Nevertheless we have 3 knobs (more than many much more expansive units can offere). All the knobs are usefull and work well. Almost miniature design and low weight proves that this baby will find the place in my guitar case with ease. Manual was written for 2-year child, I think, but device is quite self-explaning. It's all made of thick plastic, and have steel bottom. If not to jump on it, it will live, I suppose. Plastic footswitch is kinda strange, but who cares? For myself I found 2 useful patches - one mild chorus (less than middle for Mix and Rate while moderate Depth), enreaching the sound, and one extreme ski-fi FX (Mia and Rate knobs at max while Depth just stays moderate). One guy wrote here that he use 2 same pedals to obtain such a sounds in live. I have made some different thing (read below).

Of course, once you have so cheap unit, you just shouldn't expect it to sound superb. But the quality of sound quite good, fat and reach enough to make you wander - how it can be managed by simple 1-voice mono chorus. At least, it's analog, so (as for me) sounds better, then digital chorus in my Boss GT6. Pity, but bypass is hot, and really affects the quality of "dry" signal, decreasing it's brightness. When plugged, the pedal power is always on (in bypass mode too), so battery life's short through it.
But I bought this pedal at 20$ only, so I just have spent one evening to modify it (pissing of the warranty, I know :).
1. I've grounded inlay of pedal with the steel tape to eliminate noise pollution (but it wasn't so necessary because pedal isn't noisy a lot).
2. I've put hardwire bypass (with interhal 2-way miniswitch, switched on/off by lever of pedal's footswitch) in it.
3. I've put a power switch, which works simultaneousely with bypass switch, turning power off, when bypass mode. It will increase the lifetime of battery. Of course, both switches produce click sound when using, but it's hardwire.
4. I've placed a little 2-way thumbler switch, in front of the footswitch. It shortens the Mix and Rate controls to max values and gives me that ski-fy sound in one touch of my boot. No more need to use 2 pedals to achieve 2 different chorus patterns at live.
After this funny modification i really love this baby. 3 knobs, analog, hardwire bypass, long battery live, 2 patches avalable at live, good sounding, low-waight, small, and extreeeemely cheap... Just try to find something like that on a marker ;).

It looks not like die-cast pedal (due to it's plastic body). I have no clue about how it will be after the years of using, but suppose, that it will work untill i'll purchase some really great chorus for live and studio. In a small clubs and during the repititions i'll use it without backup because chorus is not the main part of my guitar sound. If it'll die during the concert, i'll simply turn it into bypass (of course, if pedal is modified, as described).

I've bought it with no expectations 'bout customer support. At this price much simplier to buy new one than to manage warranty repair.

I've playing 15 years, mostly hard/heavy staff like Jimi Hendrix, Zakk Wylde ets. The chorus effect is a good addition to drive sound, in my opinion. I'm lefty, so it's difficult for me to find good instrument. Now i'm using modified left-handed Ibanez SA260 through the Wylde Wah and 2-tube preamp stompbox. And, of course - this chorus. For extra-quality sound in a future I'm planning to use Danlop stereo-chorus, but this Dano's baby will be my favorite "always-with-me" backup pedal for a long time.
I'll took 2 from total 10 rating for myself (because of modification) :).

3 Knobs--pretty basic stuff here; playing within seconds of setting it up. Manual was basic, but it's more fun to tweak the knobs and come up with your own sound anyway.

I get very usable sounds out of this cheap pedal. Especially since I wasn't expecting much. I normally run it through an Epi So-Cal 50 Head w/ a Crate 4X12 cab. In my chain I have also a Dunlop Wah, Boss PH-3, Digitech Metal master through my fender Strat. I have not heard any negative sounds or signal degradation. Always turns on and off when I step on it. I've read complaints about the sound quality, but maybe that could have something to do with a player's rig (especially cables). I also run all of my power through a Furman power conditioner and use a 1 Spot adapter, so I can't speak on how it runs off of a 9-volt battery.

I have not had any problems with this pedal. I have gigged without a back-up, and plan on continuing to do so. It is plastic (So I give it an 8), but very sturdy, so I don't see an issue with it breaking. But if you are jumping on it with some Doc Martins and spilling beer on it, it probably won't hold up too well. Remember: If you take care of your stuff, it will take care of you.

Never dealt with them. If something happens to it, I won't waste my time contacting them either. For 15 bucks, I'll just get a new one.

This pedal is pretty freakin' good. I play mostly thrash and classic rock. I have been playing 20+ years and bought this as a short term replacement for a BOSS CE-2 that had been stolen from me, since I was pretty short on cash. Well, I'm very impressed with it, and it has now become my long-term solution. I get a very wide range out of this pedal, from the low-fi stuff of the seventies, to the over-produced sounds of the hair metal days, and everything in-between. If it were lost stolen, or broken, I would instantly replace it without hesitation. If you buy it and find problems, look into other things with you rig like I mentioned in the sound quality section. I give it an overall 9, just for the pedal being plastic, but really I don't think it will be a factor. Any questions, e-mail me. Thanks for reading.

This is a cheap and great sounding chorus. I've been out of music for a while and low-priced pedals like this are a new to me. The last chorus I owned was a Boss Ensemble from the mid 90s and that cost around $200 Australian and I don't remember it sounding as good or as extreme as this Fab Chorus does.

It's easy to dial in anything from spacious 12 string simulation to leslie-like rotary effects and even extreme and whacky sci-fi sounds. It has 3 knobs on the back: speed, depth and mix that kind of work in reverse to my intution. Facing the pedal, you turn the knob to your left to turn up the effect and turn the knobs to your right to turn then down. I was confused when I first used it 'cause I thought I had dimed all the knobs but had actually turned them all to zero and could thus not perceice the effect.

I'm playing a Custom Guitar Workshop Tele copy with GfS pickups through a Transtube Peavey Studio Pro 112.

The Fab probably sounds better on clean settings though I don't have a very distorted tone on my dirty channel so it works great for me. So far I have gone for leslie simulation effects, where I set the mix knob to about 1/2 and turn the speed up high and the depth down low. This is great for that rotary, or leslie type sound you hear in the Cream song Badge where it shifts to the lush D to Cadd9 B/G G progression. Very cool retro type sound.

You can also get a more spacious more subtle 12 string-like effect by turning up the the depth and turning down the speed.

If you dime all the knobs you have everything you need for abstract sci-fi flavoured soundscapes. Think of some of the corny dissonant stuff you hear in 1960s sci-fi shows. You get all that plus more. Stick this whacky stuff into a heavily feedbacked delay unit for total abstract bliss.

This pedal is a 10 for sound when considered in the context of its price range. But I reckoon it sounds as good as more expensive models.

Well...it has a plastic top and a solid metal bottom but it does seem very sturdy and I'd gig it and not worry about backup. 'Cause it's not made of metal I can't give it more than a 7, but it seems tough enough for me. I don't jump on my pedals anyway so for me it's fine. I can't really comment on the electronics yet but I have never had a pedal fail in this regard and I'm hoping that this one is no exception.

Can't comment here. But I like that they have sound samples on their website.

I play blusey rock and a bit of harder stuff, but love 60s and 70s guitar sounds. This pedal is great for that kind of stuff. It definitely has more character than my Boss Chorus Ensemble I used to own and it cost a fraction of the price. Unbelievable value. If it breaks I'll just buy another. I dont play with it on all the time but it sure does a good leslie sound and this one is staying in my pedal board. For this price it delivers cool sounds in spades. Bound to be a classic one day I reckon.

3 knobs, mix(level),speed(repeat),depth(space). very easy to use!

very rich,very quite,very analogue chorus.superb!

plastic...watchout..i hate the stompbutton too

bad...no warranty given when i bought it

best bang for the buck super chorus!...just take care of it...and it will last

Easy to set with straightforward controls. I only knock a couple points off because, for some reason, I find it hard to hit the footswitch with 100% accuracy. Manual is reasonably OK - but, if I didn't already know when the controls did, I don't think it would help much!

I play solo electric (Neil Young/Cat Power-ish). My guitars are an old Eko hollowbody and a mustang; amp either a Peavey Bandit or Fender Bassman. I use this to fill out some chords here and there and to add a little movement to some less rhythmic parts. I typically keep the depth low, the speed up about 70%, and the mix at about 80%. With these settings, I can get a subtle chorus that sits nicely with my tone and sounds very natural. By bringing the depth and mix up a bit, I can get those stereotypical '80s sounds. With everything cranked, it becomes a metallic vibrato. The tone overall is more similar to a BOSS or Ibanez box then an EH. Somewhat metallic, slightly sterile, but still quite usable when set conservatively. The reason I'm taking points off is because this thing is a TONE SUCKER! Whereas most pedals rob treble and volume when bypassed, the Fab steals bass and adds a little boost. I found the bypassed sound altered enough to be destracting, plus it destroyed the interaction between my guitar's volume knob and my amplifier. I still use the Fab, but I've moved it into the amp's effects loop to minimize the change.

Honestly, this thing is really solidly made. The plastic doesn't seem to flex at all, it's got some weight to it, and the knobs are clear of errant stomps. The footswitch does indeed use an unusual lever action to activate the switch (same switch Ibanez uses!), but you'd have to be trying to push it too far. The jacks are flimsy, but if yr gonna mount it on a board you should have no problem. I don't use it very often, so I wouldn't bother with a backup.

N/A

I bought this pedal because it was the absolute cheapest thing that would do the job. This pedal works well for what I do, and being able to mix in a clean signal keeps it from being too obtrusive. I feel bad giving it a low ranking, especially since it's a $15 pedal, but the bypassed sound is really troublesome. If they could put a better buffer in for the bypass, I think this would be an absolutely fantastic budget box. As is, it's just functional. It'll work fine until I get around to building my own chorus.

This is a no-frills chorus pedal, but it works perfectly and it's easy top get a nice chorus out of it. It will easily push beyond the normal usable chorus to really whacked out chorus sounds. You don't need a manual, it's not that difficult, but it comes with one anyway.

The sound quality isn't as thick and full as a Small Stone chorus, but it's easily as good as most digital effects floor units. Start with all knobs at 5 and adjust from there. Maybe pull back the rate a little and give it a little more depth. You can't really get a bad sound out of it.

It's made of plastic but it's a very heavy-duty plastic. I worry more about the switch. Especially mounted on my pedal board in the second row, it can be hard to use the switch. I would gig with it without a backup - A: it's pretty solid and simple, B: it's just a chorus, man.

I haven't had to deal with them on this but I've emailed them on a different pedal and they never responded. I'll give them low marks for that.

I play alternative/modern rock (over 15 years) semi-pro/pro and I have this pedal hooked up through a true-bypass loop switch so I can kick on multiple effects at once and not worry that they are sucking tone when I'm not using them. How can you go wrong with this pedal? It's 15 bucks and it works great. It's the best deal I've ever seen on a usable piece of music gear. Sure I'd love to see a metal true-bypass switch on it and maybe it could look a little cooler, but it's 15 bucks and I'm depending on it along side my boutique pedals.

I found my sound in maybe 4 minutes.

I just love the sound. It is always on when I play. It makes the sound much sweeter and richer. I am using Gretsch White Falcon -> D-4 ->TS-9 -> Fuzz Factory ->DM4 -> JCM-800

I have used it now for a year and I have had no problems at all.

I just realized that I must go and buy another one for a spare.

Well this little plastic piece of pedal is one of the best sounding chorus effects out there, un-frickin'belivable! Don't worry about the manual, cause chances are you won't need one...

the sound quality is wherer this pedal shines, it blows away the boss ch-1 out the gate! I just sold my ch-1 after I found this. I am running
a esp viper 400 w/ emg 81/85, into a powered johnson pedalboard:

rocktron metal planet
mxr m-109 eq
dano fab chorus
ibanez de-7 delay/tape echo
going into a randall rh200 halfstack
this pedal is very good for both high gain, and clean, it'll fatten up your overall tone if you don't over do it...(mix half way, speed low, depth high)
no unwanted noise at all from my setup!

Well it's plastic, but I take care of my equip. and yes, I would gig without a backup cause it's on my board.

Dano who? maybe if worked at their factory in China I would recive customer support,ha ha...

I play metal/hardcore/shred/classical/blues/folk/rock etc.
this pedal is good for all! especially for $15 bones, you can't go wrong. I wish it was made out of metal, but it would cost more, and I would toatally pay the extra. I gave boss up, you should too!

The Dano D-4 Fab Chorus is in a class all by itself...
First off, it's a mono-only chorus (not stereo) with just one output jack.
Secondly, it's very simple to use...after a few adjustments you can find a sound that will suit a clean or distorted guitar tone.
For those looking for a low priced chorus this could be the one for you!
The manual that's included is the basic layout of the dials and does not guide you through possible settings. But you can figure what each knob does by playing with it very quickly.

The D-4 isn't noisy at all...unlike some chorus pedals that make "swishing" sounds when not engaged the Dano is quiet when turned off.
Currently, I'm using a 70s re-issue Fender Stratocaster and a Peavey VK-112 amp with the D-4 and it works great!

For $15 bucks the D-4 is a steal...imagine how much we used to pay for chorus-effect pedals...this is a "no-brainer". For those who want a reasonable priced pedal this baby works well.
Dano products are in no way really versatile but what they do is cool.
Dano has "their sound" which you'll either love or hate. I personally like their limited (but useful) tones.
(I use mine without a backup.)

I've contacted Dano in the past and they did respond to my needs (after many emails) but that's OK.
For the price I paid, if it died, I would simply replace it.

I play a "mixed bag" of classic rock, blues, C& W, pop standards, etc...
so this pedal pretty much fits whenever I need it.
It's not "rocket-science" but it's simple operation will make you smile.