Danelectro DC-1 Cool Cat Chorus

2 knobs, speed & chill (depth). Super easy.

It's really quite good. Very versatile, from lush 80's sounds to an excellent rendition of a rotary speaker... I mean reallllly excellent rendition. I haven't owned any other chorus's, I've never been an effects guy, but chorus's are almost a necessity. Listen to "Let It Loose" by the Stones... it get's that no problem. You can do a good approximation of an organ with this ala "You Make Me Feel Good" by the Zombies. It's sonic vibe is a welcome middle ground between the gruesomely 80's sounding BOSS chorus's, and the dehydrated sound of Electro Harmonix chorus's. I'm using this with a Fender Telecaster Deluxe (non-reissue, mwahahahaha), a G&L Legacy Special into a Peavey VTM and Fender Twin. It sounds real psychedelic with the Tele, and insanely soothing and lush with the G&L. Mixes well with distortion, but that will nullify the effect if used improperly. I find it sounds best with some nice warm tube overdrive. From my cited examples, you can probably tell what music I play - old stuff, but I also dig into Alice In Chains, Soundgarden, Collective Soul, Everclear, Goo Goo Dolls and a plethora of other rockers and alt-rockers. I write in the alt-rock vein, and this sounds great for my stuff. Sounds great with acoustics and basses too.

Dunno yet, but I'd assume most stuff would last if you treat it well and reasonably. It's heavy for sure, but the jacks are kinda shitty. Whatever, just get an adapter so you don't have to constantly rack up the miles on the jacks. Also, buy an adapter to save yourself money and time, as this fucker eats the batteries.

Couldn't say really.

It's a very good pedal that is widely liked and recognized for it's sound. If you want a good sounding chorus that you don't have to piss around with to get a good sound out of, then you'd be doing yourself a favor by getting the Cool Cat. Cheap used, and lots of 'em around.

It's very easy, just dial in the amount of chorus (Chill) you want. You can also tweak the amount of repeats (Speed), to go from a more lush sound to a Univibe style wild chorus. Whatever settings you use, it always sounds excellent, which is very nice.

I use the pedal with my Jackson DX7 and ENGL Powerball, and it sounds very good with this combo. Very Zakk Wylde-ish. That Type O Negative sound is also easy to get. The pedal isn't noisy at all, at any settings.

Mine is the older 1996 model with the DC 18V power connector, which I've heard sounds better than the new DC 9V model.

It seems sturdy, but hearing about all those jack problems, I can't comment on that yet, I'll do that a few years later, when I've used it more. So far it seems reliable enough to gig with.

Haven't dealt with them.

I mainly play metal and some stoner rock style stuff + jam along to Satriani. It's very good for all that I play. I've played electric since Jan 2000. If this pedal was stolen, I'd buy another one, but test out the DC 9V model too, as a power supply for this DC 18V is a bit difficult to find. I really like it how you can just turn it on and get a excellent sound at any settings. I was between two choices when I was looking out for a chorus pedal; this one and the Boss CH-1 Super Chorus. I spotted this for sale for a very nice price and I just went for it. It's also fun to play around with just jamming on for hours, playing classic stuff. Very nice pedal, all in all. For this price, it's perfect.

Two knobs,very easy to use.

I run this thing in the front of my amps and through the effects loop.when going in the effects loop,you loose a little depth,but thats ok because this thing is lush.Going through the front end it sounds amazing.I do sometimes hear the effect cutting out on the tail end but who cares, how many times are you going to let it decay that much anyway.This thing sounds as good as the reviewers say.

The box is built like a brick shit house.The connection are very flimsy.

Very good for the money.

it pretty easy, you have to play with it a little but thats with every pedal... if you know what you want it to sound like then it shouldnt take more that 2 or 3 minutes to pin down a sound you like. it runs on an 18v source so either use two batteries or get an 18v adapter.

my set up runs:

guitar > crybaby > danelectro daddy-o overdrive > danelectro dan-echo > cool cat > flanger > voodoo lab tremelo > pedal tuner > amp.

this is probably one of the best sounding choruses ive ever heard. it has a real vintage vibe to it and actually has a fairly wide range of sounds, from soft smooth chorus to a almost vibrato-like flange. it gets a little hard to hear the notes from the guitar with the speed knob up, but it all depends on what type of sound you want.

the chasis is built well, however the cool-cat is notorious for having problems. this is my second cool-cat (the first one was irrepairable) and there is something wrong with the adapter jack on the pedal, so i have to use 2 9v batteries to run it. if you come across one that works fine, you have a gold mine... but dont be suprised if it needs a little work.

overall its a great sounding pedal, when it works right. it doesnt have too many problems, but its definatelynot one i would try and tour with without having a major rebuild done. i recommend this pedal to everyone, it sounds wonderful, just understand how unstable they can sometimes be.

Super simple. Speed for cycle rate and chill for depth of chorus. I got it new for $70.00 and was prepared to buy an 18V adapter but this one (are all of the new ones this way?) runs off of my Dano 9V adapter. Pulled the Milkshake, plugged in the Cool Cat, and off I went. Way cool, Cat's!

I have this in the FX loop of my Tech 21 TM60. Love it clean with my MIM Tele. Also sounds good with my Hamer Stellar 1. Had a Milkshake Chorus. Milkshake put out an obnoxious swirling noise. Also only one setting that I really liked. Milkshake did not sound good with humbuckers. Cool Cat is quiet and has many good sound settings. This is one of (if not) the original chorus pedals and I have no dislikes for this pedal. It is probable not perfect so I'll deduct 1.

Big, heavy, metal casing. Seems rugged. I am very careful with all of my equipment so I anticipate not problems.

I will gig it without backup because I don't have enough jack to carry backups.

Don't know how to rate the reliablility. I have had no problems with Dano stuff, not even my mini pedals.

Don't know, never dealt with Dano. Always go thru my dealer and he takes care of me. He's too good to me. Love my uncle Jack!

I play blues, classic rock, some jazz, 60's-70's folk rock, spacey/jazzy pink floydesque type stuff. Cool Cat works well with what I use it for. Been playing off and on for 30+ years, use a Dan Echo (great echo pedal), Hash Browns Dano flanger (love this pedal) I use for rasta/ska type music, and a Dano Fish and Chips 7 band eq pedal (good eq for the price). Would certainly buy this pedal again.

3 plugs, 2 knobs and a stomp switch. If you can't figure that out, what the hell are you doing on a computer?

The chorus is very thick and lively. Depth ("chill") and speed ranges are acceptable, excellent for what I paid. I'm very pleased with the sound quality of this pedal.

And for Type O Negative fans: Yes, this pedal WILL get you what you what.

From the outside, this pedal almost looks boutique. But then when you open it up, you realize why it's only 30 bucks. There was loose flux and small solder dropping all over the board (which i later cleaned off with a wire brush). The step switch is built right on the board which is a big no-no. And, as mentioned many times, the jacks are ass and may have to be replaced some day. Good thing I'm handy with a soldering iron.

Even still, while the inside doesn't look too good, the fact that the case is made of metal and the rear plate is well made is good enough for me.

I didn't buy it new and I wouldn't suggest that anyone else do so either. A hundred bucks is pretty steep givin the build quality and country of origin (China).

Chances are, if you're considering a Cool Cat its becuz you're as poor as I am. I've been (and still am) skeptical of Danelectro products but this one they certainly got right.

If you can get one for less than 50 dollars and can live with the fact that the jacks will probably need replaced someday, go for it.

18v version.
the unit sounds wonderful, and i am not easy to please.
i am posting this only to help solve a couple of problems people might run into.
1. the radio shack adapter (#23-349) 18 volt battery charger works fine for this unit. it puts out 120 mA at the Ni-MH setting. you'll have to change the plug, however, to a Radio Shack "M" power plug. this will require cutting off the plug that is supplied and soldering the wire to the appropriate power plug adapter (bare leads to female). the tip is + polarity.
another solution woild be to use 2 9v adapters wired in series.
2. the output labeling on the back is confusing. it should have been labeled "L/mono" "R" instead of "output" "stereo". this gives the impression that the output labelled "stereo" requires a 1/4" stereo plug to a dual mono 1/4" splitter.
3. the jacks are indeed shitty, cheap plastic pcb jacks that cannot be easily replaced. however, the unit itself seems to be built well.

Pretty darned simple. You have a rate and a chill (which equates to depth). Brain-dead easy. Oh, and it's stereo, so you can get wild stereo chorus effects. Booyah.

I absolutely love the sound of this pedal. The best thing about it is that it has its own characteristics, IE it's not like some of the other Dano effects that try to emulate more popular versions of a particular effect. The Cool Cat has its own unique, subtle chorus that doesn't particularly sound like any other chorus. I've tried DOD, Boss, Electro Harmonix, and Danelectro, and they're all pretty unique in and of themselves. To me, though, the Dano was the one that most closely represented what I wanted in a chorus: subtle, with a good dynamic range in rate, and a depth that could be both ambiguous and prominent.

This pedal sounds awesome with rate all the way down and chill at 12 o'clock. You'll get an agonizingly slow and subtle chorus that adds an ambient flavor to what you're playing.

The orignial series Dano pedals (Cool Cat, Dan Echo, Daddy-O, Fab Tone) are pretty well built, compared to their other products. I had a Dan Echo for several years without a single problem.

erm...

This pedal is what I think of when I think of chorus. Subtle, effective, moody, and ambient. In my mind, this is the best chorus pedal out there, but then, this pedal was my first taste of chorus.

When I was 15, I was shopping for my first pedal, and I tried out the Cool Cat. This was when they had first arrived in the effects scene, and they hadn't made a big splash yet. Anyway, I loved the sound of it, but opted for something else that day.

Fast forward 7 years. I had to get one of these bad boys because I found out Dano was discontinuing them. So instead of hunting for a used one, I snapped up one of the ever-dwindling stock of new ones from Musician's Friend. Oh, and it came with the French Toast Octave Distortion pedal too, so that sweetened the deal pretty darned well.

Well, if you can't figure this out maybe you should check to see if your shoes are on the right feet! 2 controls, rate and speed - simple as can be.

Sounds fantastic - it's very quiet. GREAT sounding through a clean tube amp. I run a 75 Tele Deluxe through a 74 Twin (with new Vintage 30's). Its a great effect if you use it sparingly... in my opinion, people tend to overuse chorusing sometimes... if you use it minimally it just tends to really fatten your sound overall. It sounds pretty good with a little drive. I use a Jekyll / Hide OD and it sounds good with MINIMAL drive. Any more than that tends to really muddy the tone up.

It's built like a tank - as mentioned on other reviews, the 1/4" jacks are a little cheap, but nothing that you can't take care of yourself.

Never had to deal with them - I have a Daddy O that has been kickin strong for 7 years or so and I have never had a problem.

I play everything from The Police to Springsteen to the Cure... the Cool Cat really fattens those 80's pop tunes right up. Like I said, I use it minmally... I'm not trying to get the "come as you Are" Cobain sound out of it. For what I need, it does the job great. And for under 70 bucks new, I have no room to complain.

Pretty easy to use!

Strats into a Delta Blues!
Just a Real Nice warble to it...dreamy, kinda!
Use clean!
Do not intro dirt into this!

The jacks on these Danelectros crack and make life hell!
Those guys should install better components in that regard!

Pfffffffffffftttttttttttttt.........

Rock and Power Blues.........
Chorus and I are going separate ways for now............I like my Flangers instead and can get chorussy sounds with them and they react to dirt better than choruses........
Still............Damn fine sound!