In this episode of Ask Zac, we take a deep dive into an unusual vintage instrument: the 1960 Danelectro 3923 Double Neck. From the early history of Danelectro to playing demos, modding options, and the famous Stevie Ray Vaughan connection, here is a full breakdown of this unique guitar/bass hybrid.
1. Danelectro History & Engineering Innovation Founded by Nate Daniel, Danelectro started by building amplifiers for major department store catalogs like Sears and Montgomery Ward. When Fender and Gibson revolutionized the market with solid-body guitars in the early 1950s, Daniel approached guitar design from an engineer's perspective, launching the iconic U2 model in 1956 for just $60, roughly a third of the cost of a Fender Telecaster at the time.
Key construction features included:
Necks & Nuts: Poplar necks with Brazilian rosewood fretboards and non-adjustable twin steel rods to prevent warping, topped with a metal nut screwed straight into place.
Body Construction: Masonite front and back panels built over a hollowed poplar/pine frame with internal wooden support blocks under the bridges.
Lipstick Pickups: Bar magnets wrapped in wire inside metal lipstick tubes, yielding a clean, lower-output tone with less noise.
2. The 1960 Danelectro 3923 Double Neck Introduced around 1959 for $175 (plus $30 for the case), the Model 3923 featured a double-cutaway body equipped with two distinct necks: a 6-string guitar neck and a 4-string bass neck.
Unlike most double necks of the era, which usually paired a standard guitar with a 12-string or high-octave neck to replicate Les Paul's multi-track studio effects, a guitar/bass hybrid was a strange practical match for live players. For decades, it was often treated as a novelty or comedy stage prop, appearing on album covers like gospel duo Stan and Dan or featured in 1960s TV shows like The Beverly Hillbillies.
3. The Stevie Ray Vaughan & Steve Soest Connection The instrument's reputation shifted in the 1980s when Stevie Ray Vaughan sought out a vintage Danelectro double neck. SRV recruited legendary California luthier and Danelectro expert Steve Soest to convert the 4-string bass neck into a 6-string bass.
The conversion was popular because Danelectro's modular headstocks and bridges easily accommodated two extra tuners and a 6-string saddle setup. Stevie used this modded setup on stage and featured it prominently in magazine shoots, such as the post-humous Guitar Player tribute cover.
4. Special Mods on the Featured Instrument & Playthrough The specific 1960 model demonstrated in this video has been upgraded beyond the original factory specs:
Added Pickups: Factory 3923 models came with only one pickup per neck. This unit features an added vintage bridge pickup on both the guitar and bass sides.
Upgraded Electronics: Features a dedicated neck-selector switch (Guitar / Both / Bass) plus a secondary pickup selector switch that operates both necks simultaneously.
Sympathetic Reverb Effect: When both necks are active at the same time, playing notes on one neck causes the strings on the idle neck to vibrate sympathetically, creating a natural acoustic reverb effect through the amp.
Mentioned Links & References Book: Guitars from Neptune: The Illustrated History of Danelectro by Paul Bechtold and Doug Tulloch
Video Clip: Stevie Ray Vaughan performing on his modded Danelectro double neck alongside Santana and The Fabulous Thunderbirds
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