Coral

Also known as: Coral Guitars, Coral by Danelectro

Unclaimed

5 Products · Used by 38 Artists

Coral Sitar Sitars

$799.00 - $2,100.00

6 available stores

5.0 (6)

^# 1

in Sitars Rank

29 artists using

Coral Electric Sitar Sitars

$799.00 - $2,100.00

7 available stores

^# 4

in Sitars Rank

3 artists using

Coral Sitar with Vinnie Bell pickguard Sitars

$2,100.00 - $3,650.00

2 available stores

^# 15

in Sitars Rank

1 artist using

Coral Teardrop Semi-Hollowbody Electric Guitars

1 artist using

Coral 3S19 Electric Sitar Sitars

5.0 (1)

7 artists using

Coral was a short-lived guitar and amplifier brand launched in 1967 by the Danelectro Corporation after MCA acquired Danelectro in 1966, with instruments built in Neptune City, New Jersey. Much of the line was shaped by session guitarist Vincent "Vinnie" Bell, whose design work produced the Coral Hornet and Scorpion solidbodies, the Bellzouki electric 12-string, the Longhorn hollow bodies, and the brand's most recognizable instrument, the Coral Electric Sitar. The Sitar paired six standard strings with thirteen sympathetic drone strings and a flat "buzz bridge" to approximate the timbre of an Indian sitar in a guitar-friendly form, capitalizing on the late-1960s interest in Eastern instrumentation popularized by Ravi Shankar and George Harrison.

Alongside guitars, Coral produced tube and solid-state combo amplifiers, heads, and PA units during its brief run. The brand was wound down around 1969 when Danelectro shut its doors under MCA, leaving only about two years of production. Despite the short window, the Electric Sitar in particular went on to appear on a wide range of pop, soul, R&B, and rock recordings of the era, and Danelectro itself later reissued the instrument in updated form.

Original Coral instruments — Hornets, Scorpions, Bellzoukis, and Sitars — are now collected as vintage oddities with a following among guitarists drawn to unusual textures and lipstick-pickup tones. Pete Townshend of The Who is among the players documented using a Coral Hornet during the late 1960s, and the Electric Sitar has remained the brand's enduring legacy on record.

Coral has 5 products cataloged on Equipboard, including Sitars and Semi-Hollowbody Electric Guitars. Their gear is featured by 38 artists, with the strongest followings in Rock, Funk / Soul, and Pop. Notable users include Andy Summers, Buddy Guy, and Steve Miller.