pearl mcx vs. pearl sessions vs. ludwig accent vs. gretsch catilana

[cksmith]

I have been playing the drums for about 7 years, and I got my first "real" set 3 years ago, a pearl forum. (my parents also made me bay for some of it, which hampered my ability to get a nicer set) Well, I now need a new drumset, and I need recomendations. I am considering getting either a pearl session (if I can find one), a ludwig accent cs custom (appears to be the best deal for the $$$), a gretsch catilana maple, or possibly a pearl masters mcx (a long shot due to the cost). Here are me questions about those kits:
1) Is the ludwig a big enough step up from the forum (note: this will be the last kit that my parents will help me buy, and i will need to use it for my whole high school career-4 years at this point. I also will be traveling with it to various shows).
2) Is the gretsch set 100% maple?
3)Is the session (sbx) close to the quality of the masters MCX?
4) Is one kit in peticular a better deal for the money than the other?
5) Your recomendation/other kits that you would recomend to me
Sorry for all the questions

[shoedaddy]

All of those kits have their plusses and minuses, but I think they're all a step up from what you currently have. In my opinion, the best is definitely the Master's MCX (I'm not quite sure where Sessions kits fit in the Pearl lineup). 100% maple plus high quality lugs, etc. Great sound. Obviously, it's the most expensive. Of the Gretsch and the Ludwig, the Catalina Maple is 100% maple (they also have an ash kit). The Ludwig is 100% birch. I owned an Accent CS Custom before and thought it was a great-sounding kit.

For the money, I'd give the nod to the Ludwig for a couple of reasons. The quality of the tom mounts, lugs, and floor tom stands that come with it is, I think, better. Usually, if you hear someone complain about the Catalinas, it's about that. Also, on the Ludwig, the snare and the bass drum both come with 10 lugs instead of 8 on the Gretsch, giving you a better tuning range. Second, the Ludwigs come with a hardware pack of good quality hardware (I kept that when I traded in the rest of the kit) making it a better value. A hardware pack is easily going to run you $200-$300. Currently, I'm playing a Ludwig Centennial that's 100% maple and a step up from the Accent series. A four-piece kit will run about $1000, not including any hardware.

Don't get me wrong--I love Gretsch and owned a great Renown kit before, but of the two you mentioned, I think the Ludwig is the best value. Yes, I think it is enough of a step up from the Pearl you have. But look around. GC is selling a 3-piece Master's kit (13", 16", plus 24" bass drum) for $899 as a closeout. That's a great kit and would be the best value of all (apparently, they bought a whole bunch of them), but you only have one choice of set up and finish. But it's pro-level versus intermediate for the other two and sounds fantastic.

[Frankierocker]

Hi CK,
The Ludwig is a big enough step up from the Forum in my opinion. I have played it and thought it sounded very good (100% birch, nice finish, decent hardware). However, I have played the Gretsch set extensively, and it sounds amazing. Additionally, you can now pick up a 10,12,14,16,22, and snare shell pack for $500us which is a fabulous deal. Just swap out the stock heads, and you will be very satisfied. So the Gretsch is my pick going in. To answer your other questions about the Pearl kits, the session uses the same shells as the MCX, but is fitted with 2.3mm hoops rather than die cast. Also the bass drum spurs are different I believe. They sound very close to each other, maple to maple (SMX vs MCX). The birch Session (SBX) will sound different from the MCX because it is made of birch wood. I would buy a session over an MCX without a doubt and have seen them on ebay for great prices. The only thing you have to consider here is kit expansion. If you want to add toms to your session, you have to order them and usually wait months because they have been discontinued. The cost of say an add on floor tom will also be about 50% of what you paid for your entire kit on ebay (Pearl will charge near original price for the toms that were not cheap). So I say, buy the Gretsch with some new heads and have a blast with it. It is what I would have suggested had you not listed it to begin with.

[cksmith]

Thanks for the advice, but I have one last question-is it worth the extra money to buy the centennial over the gretsch?

[Frankierocker]

I honestly do not think so. Both are foreign made maple kits with decent hardware and well made shells. For $500 clams you can get a 10, 12, 14, 16, 22 Gretsch with a snare. I believe the Luds are about double that for 1-2 fewer toms. So we're talking about $1,000 for the Luds + the cost of 1-2 additional toms (if you wanted them). Spend the extra money on cymbals or new heads (which you will have to put on either kit). I have played the Gretsch and it is awesome, don't hesitate.