Gretsch - New Classic vs Catalina Jazz

[MRAT]

Hi guys
I play jazz.
I have a Sonor.
I love that retro look from The 60'. I really love jazz vintage drums.

So ... I'm considering to buy a new kit and Gretsch is my option.

I felt in love by the New Classic Bop Jazz (Ivory Marine Pearl). Just beautiful.

I noticed Catalina Jazz has the same look and the same configuration/sizes for HALF PRICE.

The diference is the wood. Mahagony vs Maple.

well ...Thats it?

Could somebody be more specific? sound characteristics, etc

[trkdrmr]

That sounds about right. The classic is a much better kit.

[TTNW]

The classic is definitely of higher quality. It sports the new lugs whereas the Cat Jazz has the Gretsch mini-lug. Also my Cat Jazz has a 5 lug 12" tom and I believe the New Classic has a 6 lug rack tom.

Of course they also sound very different. I've been playing my white pearl wrap kit for about a year and a half and it didn't have any quality control issues when I got it. The sound you want should be your primary consideration but they do have a different look and feel about them.

Side by side the New Classic looks like a higher quality kit.

The New Classic is the kind of kit you could keep forever and not be sorry. I want to get an old Gretsch BroadKaster one day or build my own custom bop.

Sound wise:

The New Classic sounds like a Gretsch maple kit. Warm, good attack, the drums tune up easily. The biggest difference in the kit's sound comparing a maple kit to a maple kit is that the bass drum sounds like your playing your 18" maple floor tom with a big fat mallet. I like 18s and 20s and with a slight muffling and leaving the reso side unported, you get a great thump and a round tone. The matching snare sounds great. Usually matching snares are somewhat of a disappointment on intermediate kits but I played it for about 10 minutes and left with the impression that it actually had quite a respectable snare sound and that with a little TLC could sound great. You get diecast hoops and a better tom mount with this kit than with the Cat Jazz.

The Cat Jazz kit sounds very different from the New Classic. The Philippine Mahogany (lauan or maybe meranti who knows?) seems to have a more noticeable and lower fundamental tone. I'm no expert but it could be also that it's just the absence of higher overtones that are more apparent. I use a single ply Emad on the kick and left the Gretsch reso unported. I like to rock out on this kit so I get a good thump and decent resonance. I like the big fat Danmar beater and it helps get a bigger sound out of the drum. The 14" floor tom tuned up like a dream. It sounds low and punchy with the Evans G1. As soon as the G1s are worn out, I'm going to try Emperors because the G1s sound a little plasticky to me.

The 12" tom took more to tune up. I actually had to reseat the head on it and work the 5 lug pattern carefully. Now I get a nice punchy and resonating note out of it. It's not a tom that performs well if any one of the lugs is looser than the others. That said, I can get a really big sound out of the kit and I think it sounds great when played quietly too. Mic'd up it also blows people away. I've played out with it mic'd up about 6 times and everytime people are amazed that a little kit can sound like it does. The snare is the rotten evil cousin of the New Classic' matching snare. It needs a lot of attention to sound good. I'm not partial to mahogany snares so I don't play it often.

[MRAT]

Thanks man
Many thanks for your accurate information. I'll go for New Classic i guess.