D Angelico Guitars of America Excel-DC

Bought new in late 2006 from the manufacturer's website. $800 plus shipping with a medium quality hardshell case.

There are other sources for the features. I would note that the back is very nice book matched flamed maple.

The pickup configuration will hum when the volume is partly down. I understand it's not a flaw, but a wiring choice which allows the pickups to be blended. There's another way to wire pickups which will avoid this, but it's not so easy on an f-hole guitar.

It sounded very good with a Polytone. Not as good with a JC55. I find the highs to be a little screechy with the JC55. If I turn the treble down it sounds a little like a wah pedal held in the middle. Same problem with a Fender Twin and a Yamaha JX40.

Unfortunately, I don't own and don't want a Polytone. My next step will be to try some Tomastiks. If it works, I'll revise my rating.

One positive is that the high E, an 11, really sings. No thinness.

The factory setup was okay at first. After a week or so in this climate, it started to buzz at the first fret. The neck was perfectly straight, so I put a little bit of relief in it and raised the action a hair (I like it a little higher than the factory) and the buzz went away.

I'm going to have a luthier look at the nut. I found the strings to be too high at the first fret. Also, it looks like there's a bit of room to separate them more, and I could use wider spacing.

That aside, there were no flaws in the finish. The wood is beautiful and the hardware is perfect.

The lustre of the finish is not as fine as the Heritage or Eastman 335 types I recently saw in a store. But those were $1400 and this was $800.

Everything looks and feels like it will last.

The company appears to be one guy, Kyle. I've heard that he's fine, but very busy. I'm hoping that I won't need anything from him. I'll find it easier to have the nut fixed locally than ship the guitar back.

42 years. I've had various guitars. There is much to like about this one. The neck feels great. The trapeze tailpiece affects string tension in a way I like (open string tension, obviously, is the same as with a stop tailpiece for a given string gauge, but it's different when you apply pressure). The overall fit and feel of the body works for me. It sings out in the upper register better than my last three solid bodies and it sustains better than an archtop.

I'm still not in love with the sound, although partly that's because the one amp it sounded really good with is the one I don't own.

If it was stolen I might not replace it, but I'm not sorry I bought it. I needed another guitar, I love the way it looks and feels, and I figure that sooner or later I'll get the sound I want, somehow.

I think the price was reasonable. I don't think it's an absolute steal. I'd guess that those Eastmans might actually sell for something less than the $1400 asking price, and they looked a good deal better than this guitar.

all the features as found on the site...so no explanation needed..
see the web site

it suits my all styles. (rnb,jazz(classic and smooth)rock (classic and more modern styles).except maybe metal or really harsh punk etc..but for most stuff it fill the void.

I use it with a hot-rod deville (4x10) and Tech 21 powerengine thru an line6 PODXT-live..

it's very quiet..

it has a rich full sound..smooth..it's get pretty bright but not as bright as an anderson guitar (if you have an anderson you know what I mean) it gets briight in a Motown way..not a Police or Knofler way
more like SRV..clarity.

factory setup was good but it had 13 or 14 and the G was plain i change it to round wound..(11 tom-k infields bebops) and re adjusted the truss rod.to 4/64 at the 22 fret..so now it's great (my personal taste setup not their general setup)..

The pickups were adjusted well but I had to re adjust the G pole it was over powering initally until i change the g to r wound.

the top was fine ,,the bridge fine..

the finish had a few flaws on the neck from fret tangs( dis coloration).but you need a magnifying glass and a really bright light to see them..no big deal..i am a player not a collector..

built like a tank..

gold plated hardware is questionable over time..it usually goes on all my guitars..

the hardware seems like it will last..except for the 3 selector switch...but time will tell..

The strap buttons are solid...but I change all my guitars to straplocks..

I think i can depend on it..

a Local gig yes..15min to replace

a Out of state gig..(or arena ).I carry replacements 3..

pre december it sucked..3 weeks to get someone...post christmas..
no problem..management change.

i think the warrany is standard one year..structural lifetime..

they were okay and friendly..but slow...they didn't have all the information...depending on who answered the phone..

confusion on what the factory specs(setup) were or string shipped with the guitar ..

30+ years...a lot 56 tele, 92 PRS Custom 24 (bird), anderson classic,
lowden O22, Cordoba gyspy king, Heritage kenny burell archtop..amps from the major players..gibson,fender,tech21, mesa, galien, crate,

if stolen.. i would get another one.

compared to 68 es-335 . the dc is built better overall..but the dc sounds a little smoother with the tone controls...the dc is probably a little heavy compared to the 335..and the neck is a little more curved...like C instead of a ( but it plays like butter..

my favorite feature is the neck and overall feel and balance..it's a real comfortable guitar to play..and it sounds great..and great to look at.

Hate ?...I hate the case it came in..its okay...but i am upgrading to a SBK 335..I don't think factory case holds the guitar well..just my opinion..

The D'Angelico Excel-DC is a double cutaway semi-hollow body electric guitar. Flamed maple back and sides with a spruce top and gold plated hardware. Two vintage humbuckers by Kent Armstrong with individual passive volume and tone controls. It has an ebony fretboard with mother of pearl markers at 24.75" scale with 22 frets. The neck is maple. The bridge is a fully adjustable tune-o-matic type. It has Grover tuners.
This is a beautiful Korean made guitar. The Koreans used to make furniture, now they make guitars. I found a few very minor finish flaws in the binding at the neck join and around the f hole on the top. They are very minor. The quality of this guitar meets or beats the Gibson ES335 for less than half the price. I took a point off for the minor flaws. This guitar has all the features you expect for this type of instrument.
I've been told that D'Angelico will soon move all manufacturing to Japan, so expect a price increase on new models.

I play all kinds of music: mostly rock, blue and pop. But lately I'm leaning toward jazz and have been looking at Gibson's ES-335. I fell in love with a few used 335's I saw at a local store, but couldn't afford them right now. Then I learned about the D'Angelico.
The sound of the Excel-DC was exactly what I was searching for. I can move from a smooth as silk muted jazz tone up through a warm, but clear bluesy solo and all the way into a growly rock lead. But I didn't buy this for rock. I have other solid-body guitars for that. I love the well rounded mellow tones this guitar produces. My one complaint is that I wish it had a little more brightness - but that may be the practice amps I've run it through to date (a small Fender, Roland's Micro Cube, and aq Crate). But I am happy!
The guitar has a nice acoustic sound to go with the electric sound. This is not always the case (but it should be).

The guitar was set up by my local music shop. This store does a great job of setting up all their guitars and takes pride in it. I was told the guitar didn't come that way from the factory. The set up was great. Very smooth and fast action with a set of 13s.
Overall, the fit and finish is very good. I suspect it is polyurethane. I noted two small imperfections above. The flame maple back is nicely book matched, but appears slightly blurred under the thick finish.
I have other guitars that are finished better, but I can't fault this one too much for the price.

I haven't taken this out on stage yet, but it is very solid. I'm sure it will easily withstand the rigors of live playing. I'm surprised by the weight of it. I don't think I'll be swinging it around.
The finish seems good enough to last my lifetime and probably longer. I can't vouch for the gold plating. My sweat will probably take care of that in a few years.
I would be tempted to use it without a backup, but I'd never do that.

I've not had this long enough to need any customer support. I do wish I'd bought it direct though. That would have cut my cost.

I've been playing for about forty years and have tried and played a ton of guitars. The list includes Gretsch, Fender, Gibson, Rickenbacker, Mosrite, Jackson, Warrior, Godin, Ibanez, Taylor, Martin, Guild, and Larrivee. I won't say the D'Angelico is the best guitar I've played, but it rates pretty highly.
D'Angelico has a long history. The guitars you buy today are not the same as the historical ones that sell for big money. There's no guarantee that these guitars will become collectibles, so I wouldn't consider them for that. Buy a D'Angelico if you want a good, solid, playable guitar.
I love the tone, playability, aesthetics, and fit of this guitar. I also love the quirky starstep art deco design. (Check the D'Angelico site to see waht I mean.)
I wish I'd checked out a few other sources for this guitar before I handed over the credit card. I might have saved a little cash. But I'm happy with my purchse. If it were stolen, I'd replace it. But I may want to search for other options first - including a used D'Angelico Excel-DC.
If you're looking at an ES-335, give the D'angelico a try. You might find it an equal or better value for the money. But, it's not a Gibson - of that's important to you.

2005, Japan made, all the characteristics of this axe i am not going to name. You can go to the webiste for that, I'm more interesting in telling you a personal story behind this guitar.

The guitar sings, period. Plugged into a shitty amp, a tube amp, a polytone, it sings. I ususally use a Fender Delux tube amp going through Boss GT3 pedal for volume and sustain plus delay. The tone is so incredible on this axe. I play jazz as my many genre, and its great for that. My primary axe is a George Benson 10, that guitar is better for the tone, but this is pretty damn close.

Beautiful finish, the D'angelico headstock is excellent. The inlays are beautiful, the kent Armstrong pickups are neatto.

It feels great, the main thing that you notice right away with this axe is how durable it feels. It just feels solid, there is no other way to explain that.

The Excel Double Cut is a new model from D'Angeilco which incorporates the usual look and features of a D'Angelicio guitar with a double cut design similar to a Gibson 335. It features two humbuckers,which are made by Kent Armstrong. The volume and tone controls are similar to a 335. All hardware is gold, with three ply binding. The fretboard is ebony and the body has a highly figured maple back and sides and a spruce top. The guitar is made in Korea.

This guitar is made for jazzers and bluesers who want to rock out. The humbuckers give this guitar a real growl but it can be tamed for jazz. It sounds the best clean but can take some overdrive. The guitar which is a simi hollowbody sustains well. The guitar is very quiet.

Set up was perfect. Action was very low. It came with D'Angelico 11 flat wound stainless steel strings. Some may want to change those out but I am enjoying them so far. The fit andd fiinisha ree first rate andd the figured maple back is to die for as are the inlays which gives it the look of a classic D'Angelico

Everyhing is very solid about it's construction. I don't knnoww if thhe gold will last that is always iffy about a guitar's hardware.

Here is where it gets interesting. I ordered the guitar over the internet directly from D'Angelcio. After some periood of time I got no response and tried to contact them to see when the guitar might come. No answer on their phone or by ee-mail. Then worried aaout my money which I had already charged to my credit card I contacted both paypal and my credit card company to kill the order. A few days later I got a very apologitic call from the company. They are quite small and the available voice mail boxes all went to people who were out. They asked if I still wanted the guitar and offered to pick out one of the best for me. It arrived in short order along with a t-shirt, four packs of extra strings, picks, a strap aand several other goodies. They more than made up for their initial lack of communication.

Great guitar and great company to deal with. I looked at a Gibsosn 335 and was disappointed. This is a much better deal at a much bettter price