Would you? Potential trade

CYP47

Member
I like my DW Performance series but Im just looking for a different tone so I have them up for sale/trade. I have a trade offer or a Gretch Renown kit, that will for sure give me the different sound I am looking for but I feel like Im taking a slight step backwards. They are the older renowns so all North American rock maple, no mixing but I just feel like its a step down for some reason so I am looking for your thoughts.

Both kits have the same amount of shells, slightly different configurations.

Thank You!
 
You may have to learn to let that feeling roll right off you like water off a duck's back. Almost anything different...you will probably feel the same way.

It's nothing but a mental obstacle, nothing more. If you find a tone that inspires you more than your DW's do now....it's not a step backwards. This is an area where money/value/resale concerns have no place, the pursuit of tones that inspire. Wherever you can find tones that inspire...that's the right place, no matter the cost or any monetary perceptions surrounding it.
 
To me it seems like a pretty equitable trade, but only you can really decide whether or not it's a direction you want to go.
 
I'm with Uncle Larry. If the sound warms your soul, go for it.

When indecisive about a purchase/decision, my wife always asks me "Will it make you happy?". If the answer is yes, I'll do it. If anything else than yes, I keep looking.

So, will the trade make you happy?
 
the Performance series are US made, where the Renowns are made in Asia. That's pretty much the only negative differentiators I can think of, but negative to whom? Renowns are killer drums. I wanted a set of DWs something fierce for years and years. To me, the Performance series sounded better than the collectors, so that was nice, since for once, I actually preferred something in the lower price point. I was all ready to pull the trigger on a used set of Performance, when I saw a Renown set next to them. I just couldn't get into the Performance tone at all. Years of wanting and longing shattered on the spot. I saved up a bit more and went with the Brooklyn instead, but the Renowns would have been just as satisfying.

I was lookin at the older Renowns with DC hoops and not the newer ones with 302 hoops. Either generation are great drums with a signature Gretsch sound. Like others, I'd say go for the trade if it makes you happy. That's the only thing that matters is how they sound and inspire you. Nothing wrong with the DW, but if they aren't the sound you're looking for, it's best to move on.
 
You know, it's interesting - I've never wanted a set of DW drums. Do you know what I do want? I want a 2005-2008 era Pearl MMX in Sunrise Fade. The Pearl MMX series sounded great.
 
Thanks all, I guess I'm going to mull it over a little more and do a little more research on the Renowns tuning range.
 
Renowns—especially the original Renowns with die cast hoops and 100% North American rock maple—are definitely NOT a step down from the DW Performance series. Don't let the mid-level price and Taiwanese manufacturing fool you into thinking they are lesser tier in any way. These are essentially USA Customs for those who don't want to spend $3-4k. I've A/B'ed mine against USAs, and the differences are astonishingly small. I have a great ear for drum tones, and I was struggling to even hear a difference.
 
Part of the problem comes from the exchange/trade format, I think. If you sold your drums, then you'd have cash in hand. Then you'd have the freedom to go out and buy new drums (maybe a used kit, but new to you). There might be 1000 drum sets on eBay right now .... within your given price range, if you had cash.

You get into a "trade" arrangement, and you've suddenly shrunk your prospects. A lot. So far ..... to 1 guy with a Renown kit.
 
Renowns have 5 lug tuning on the rack toms. Your drums have 6 lug tuning. Just so you aren't surprised in case you didn't know.

I would also call the Renowns a lateral move, not a step down from the Performance series.
 
Renowns have 5 lug tuning on the rack toms. Your drums have 6 lug tuning. Just so you aren't surprised in case you didn't know.

I would also call the Renowns a lateral move, not a step down from the Performance series.
I thought I would hate the 5 lug thing. It was a point of hesitation for me, but the 5 lug thing really opens up the smaller toms. You never forget where you are either. Just draw a star every time you tune. Brainless....just like me. :)
 
Thanks everyone, I’m doing the deal we are swapping on Sunday.

He gets my DW performance series
12/14/16/22

I get his Gretsch Renown
8/10/12/14/22

He is also tossing in a Tama Starclassic Birch in liquid metal which I believe was made in Japan but I’ll need to investigate further

10/12/14/22

14 is a hanging floor

8777987781
 

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That’s a sweet deal. That generation of Renown had 16” FTs too, so you may be able to find one of those if you look hard enough.
 
That’s a sweet deal. That generation of Renown had 16” FTs too, so you may be able to find one of those if you look hard enough.
I was going to say, "you're going to miss that 16" floor tom" but AzHeat beat me to it.
 
I wouldn’t. There’s more to be gained and learned by learning how to get the tone you want from your current set. Heads and tuning will impact drum tone much more than shell construction.
 
I wouldn’t. There’s more to be gained and learned by learning how to get the tone you want from your current set. Heads and tuning will impact drum tone much more than shell construction.
Bearing edge plays a big part. The tone is fine, I’m just looking for something different
 
I wouldn’t. There’s more to be gained and learned by learning how to get the tone you want from your current set. Heads and tuning will impact drum tone much more than shell construction.
Bearing edge plays a big part. The tone is fine, I’m just looking for something different
I spent months and countless dollars I could have put forth on a kit, wasting time trying to get my old set to my liking. Got my Gretsch and even my wife noticed the difference. Same heads, same tuning (Tune-Bot), different shells, bearing edges and hoops and voila! With all the ...I can make a trash can sound awesome with proper heads and tuning...posts, I was kicking myself and spending hours trying to figure out why I couldn't. You need a proper foundation, then heads and tuning. Not that OP's DW doesn't have a good foundation, but it just may be wrong for the targeted sound.
 
Bearing edge plays a big part. The tone is fine, I’m just looking for something different
I totally get what you're saying. My first kit, a PDP FS Series birch kit in fusion sizes, had SUPER ringy toms. I attributed that ring to the really sharp bearing edges, which from what I could see were a single 45 degree angle. At the time Phattie Drums, a small boutique company that I believe is now defunct, was making drums with precision bearing edges - dual 45 degree edges with what they called the "Phlat Spot" in the middle. Using that as an idea and a guide, I put together a sanding table with a big piece of MDF and two different grades of sandpaper, and I sanded down the sharp edges on those toms. This is a diagram I made clear back then and posted to the Pearl drummer's forum about what I'd done.


87787
I didn't want the sharpness on the outside edge, so once I'd flattened them down, I took a wood block and some fine grit sandpaper and gave it a very light roundover. I know that some people might be horrified by the idea of personally altering a bearing edge in that way, but you have to figure, they were only a $400ish shell pack, and I didn't figure that I was going to ruin them. If all else failed, I could always take them to Keith Larsen (Baltimore/Maryland Drum) and have him recut the bearing edges. (Keith was literally the next door neighbor to my brother-in-law, but didn't realize just who he was until after I started playing drums, and after he'd moved - I actually knew him before I knew he was a drum builder.)

The end result, at least to my ears, was pretty remarkable. The 12" tom, which had been horribly hard to tune, would tune right up, and the drums themselves lost that overly ringy/boingy sound. It smoothed out the sound - it was warmer and seemed fuller. I'd kind of wanted to keep them, but I made a deal with my wife that I'd sell them to help fund the purchase of a new kit, the Pearl SMX Session I still have and play.

In any case, I understand the part about the role the bearing edge plays, and I hope you find what you're looking for.
 
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