Gretsch Renown '57s Jazz Bop Shell Packs Now Deep Discounted?
- Thread starter larryz
- Start date
evilg99
Platinum Member
Just pulled the trigger on a Red Bop kit. Need another kit like a hole in the head (this will be kit #8) but I just couldn't resist. $729 plus shipping, that's a no-brainer. I was looking at some high end 6.5 x 14 snares that cost more than this whole kit. So with this setup, I'm getting that deep snare drum but with a bop kit to boot - and for less money!
Will post pictures when they land here , over the border. BTW, my local Long & McQuade's price on this kit is still $1739.00!!!!!
Neal
Will post pictures when they land here , over the border. BTW, my local Long & McQuade's price on this kit is still $1739.00!!!!!
Neal
Sorry, it's hard to see in the pictures I took with my phone. All the drums including snare have the silver sealer though.
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Skulmoski
Gold Member
larryz
Platinum Member
OK attached are phone pics, but I got the kit last Friday evening. All I can say is this may be the best $748 I've ever spent. Unboxing this thing, there's definitely a wow factor. Quite stunning. I can't believe someone would want to ditch the snare - it's the best sounding drum of the kit. 10 lugs. Very sweet, warm, trashy too a bit. Impressive. This isn't some throwaway cheap sounding snare. The 14" floor tom and other 12" sound very classic vintage to my ears. The only tricky thing will be the the 18" bass. I'm gonna need to work with that to get some punch out of it. It's rather quiet so far. I love the kit though. I fel I can play better with this smaller sizes as well. Another wird thing is that I could not play a tune Beatles with it. Music came on and I felt guilty and skipped to another. Almost sacriligious (sp?) to play with anything other than a Ludwig. Other than that, I'd highly recommend this. More comments after I play it some more.
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M
moretulife
Guest
Looks very nice buddy. Congrats!
Yeah, he's a senior at the local performing arts high school here in Houston, same school that produced Chris Dave, Eric Harland, Kendrick Scott and Jamire Williams. I can only hope. Anywasy he picked up his first church gig, 75 bucks every Sunday, a lot better than working at Kroger or McDonalds! Set the kit up today, it really sounds great, we took the g1s and put them on the bottom and put some ambassador X heads I had on the tops. Cranked em up, nice jazz sond, warm. Maybe we'll rethink the snare, I'm going to see if I can get some good sound samples. He's got some nice snares, but neither of us has a 6.5. I buy them, like them, but never end up using them on gigs.
PC
charliedrummer
Senior Member
For those who have purchased one of these kits online, how well are they packaged from Gretsch? I've always been leary of purchasing drums online because of how they might arrive after shipping, but this seems like a deal I can't pass up. Were they packed well in their factory boxes?
larryz
Platinum Member
Yes yes yes! Packaged superbly. Don't worry. They'll come in two managable boxes.
evilg99
Platinum Member
These kits are selling like hot nuts. I know 2 other local people who ordered a bop kit on eBay in the last two days. And this is a small city! 400,000 peeps!
I wonder, are they really discontinued or the distributor (is it Kaman?) just dropped the price to spur sales....which appears to be working!
Neal
I wonder, are they really discontinued or the distributor (is it Kaman?) just dropped the price to spur sales....which appears to be working!
Neal
Did anyone notice in these photos the bass drum is backward, the chevron should be front facing.
Sorry, yes someone did mention it.
evilg99
Platinum Member
Got my Renown 57 in Red yesterday. Holy crap, that's a lotta drum kit for $729.
I was thinking of buying the kit from a seller on the bay that was offering it without the snare. I am so glad I got the snare, it just might be the best drum of the four...but I do like them all.
Put clear emperors on toms and an Aquarian vintage classic on the snare. Ordered that same head for a bass drum reso; I think the off white/cream colored head is a good match to the drums.
Here's a crappy phone pic, I'll post more from tomorrow's gig.
I was thinking of buying the kit from a seller on the bay that was offering it without the snare. I am so glad I got the snare, it just might be the best drum of the four...but I do like them all.
Put clear emperors on toms and an Aquarian vintage classic on the snare. Ordered that same head for a bass drum reso; I think the off white/cream colored head is a good match to the drums.
Here's a crappy phone pic, I'll post more from tomorrow's gig.
Attachments
M
moretulife
Guest
Get the Gretsch now while you can, so you don't regret it forever. See which ones you like the best. Keep the one you like, and sell the rest. Or keep them all. Seems simple to me! 
charliedrummer
Senior Member
I don't know if you would be willing to do this but could you post a photo of your kit set up but with the chevrons on the two toms and snare pointed away from the audience so they don't show from the front. I'm not a big fan of the chevrons on this kit but with this price I should be able to live with them if I can make them less viewable. Thanks!
beautiful..............................
wildbill
Platinum Member
evilg99 - Is that your impression of the bass drum also? While I've seen them several times, I haven't had a chance to play them yet.
evilg99
Platinum Member
I will elaborate on this after my gig tonight. First gig with the kit, stay tuned!
Neal
evilg99
Platinum Member
Okay, just unpacked the VW, put the drums away. Here's the gig report :
They smoked! I loved it. Really. And I wasn't sure if I would, I had a Catalina Mahogany kit when they first came out and I was less than thrilled with those....Even my band mates took notice (not visually, that's obvious! ) of the vibrant sound. We were playing in a good sounding small-ish room with lots of wood beams and lots of diffusion and absorption. Acoustically well balanced.
I found the drums bright (but in a good way) ,snappy, resonant, fat, and lots of depth, hard to explain - not deep pitched but lots of dimension to the sound.
I took off the coated Evans G1's (just not my thing) and put clear emperors on the toms, an Aquarian Vintage classic on the snare and an Aqaurian SuperKick II on the kick, with absolutely nothing inside but a mic...and then a ported reso with a kick port. I have an Aquarian Vintage head coming next week for the reso, the cream/off white looks great with the cream chevron on the drums.
Now, about punch with the 18" bass drum...No problem getting punch, that's why I play them. I have four sets with 18" kicks, I have a lot of experience with them. I play contemporary pop and rock and traditional (they call it "east coast music" here) . Here's my complete take on it :
1) My Situation :
I am lucky that I own a complete set of really good mics (Shure Beta 52, Beta 91, Beta 98amp, Sennheiser e904, Md421, AT 4041, etc etc) and also own two great digital boards, a Yamaha 01V96 and a Presonus 16.0.2. We have 1000 watt QSC powered mains and subs playing in small rooms, usually for 120-250 people. Through this system, I could make a straw sound big. Absolutely no problem with an 18. I could make an 18 so loud that it hurts with this gear.
Now, some guys prefer the "under the foot" feel and sound of a bigger drum. That's a valid and real situation for some. We use no stage monitors , everyone is on in-ear-monitors, and I usually mix the band from the stage (next to me)...so I can blow out my own eyeballs with kick drum in my buds if I want. We don't play really heavy music, and I see no need for a buttkicker.
2) Expectation :
I don't ever have my 18"'s tuned like a jazz drum, "biinggg" or "bonggg". I tune them low and open, a decidedly rock sound...""booth" is the word I think
Still, they don't sound or feel like a 22 or a 20. Pitch is higher overall, they don't have as much tuning range as the bigger drums, and if you go too low, you just get head slap. I tune the reso a good deal higher than the batter (as with ALL drums).
I try to think in terms of balance with an 18 kick : wood snares (no metal or brass, too loud), a set of Zildjian K Dark cymbals, sticks either VF 7a or 5a. Double ply heads are a little quieter than their single ply counterparts and sound great for lower rock tunings as well. There is a lot to said about PLAYING in balance too. It works for me.
3)Application :
To get the most punch out of an 18"
I'm sorry but I feel that if you want the 'rock punch' out of an 18, you have to port it.
I do like the sound of an unported 18, but I find it too bouncy (and I don't bury the beater unless I'm trying to get that sound). Plus, I need to get that mic in there, the stages we play on are very small, using a mic stand is just not an option, even a shorty - they get bumped over and over and over.
Use pre muffled heads, absolutely nothing inside the drum except a mic (I will usually velcro a small piece of foam to the mic,don't want it rattling around in there) and tune the reso higher. Use a lifter to get the drum up off the ground and also so that you can hit it more in the center.
I use differerent resonant heads, sometimes Fiberskyns, sometimes PS clear, black, thicker heads, etc. Every drum is different and needs experimenting. I think the Evans clear EQ4 batter that came with the set sounded like shit (or maybe I had a bad Evans head ?). I really didn't like the coated G1's on the drums, they just came alive with clear emperors and the SKII. Clear two ply heads, yeah. On this set anyway. On my DW Jazz kit, completely different story (Remo Vintage Ambassador there please) .
So that's how I see it all. Much of that above has been said and discussed ad nauseum elsewhere in this forum, and I agree with much of it.
I cannot recommend this kit enough for any style of music. They truly do have "that great Gretsch sound" , whatever "that" is . Magic potion in that silver sealer, yup. Don't tell me it's just fence paint!! Lalalalalalalalaalalalala
Thanks for reading, I'll get some more pictures going tomorrow.
They smoked! I loved it. Really. And I wasn't sure if I would, I had a Catalina Mahogany kit when they first came out and I was less than thrilled with those....Even my band mates took notice (not visually, that's obvious! ) of the vibrant sound. We were playing in a good sounding small-ish room with lots of wood beams and lots of diffusion and absorption. Acoustically well balanced.
I found the drums bright (but in a good way) ,snappy, resonant, fat, and lots of depth, hard to explain - not deep pitched but lots of dimension to the sound.
I took off the coated Evans G1's (just not my thing) and put clear emperors on the toms, an Aquarian Vintage classic on the snare and an Aqaurian SuperKick II on the kick, with absolutely nothing inside but a mic...and then a ported reso with a kick port. I have an Aquarian Vintage head coming next week for the reso, the cream/off white looks great with the cream chevron on the drums.
Now, about punch with the 18" bass drum...No problem getting punch, that's why I play them. I have four sets with 18" kicks, I have a lot of experience with them. I play contemporary pop and rock and traditional (they call it "east coast music" here) . Here's my complete take on it :
1) My Situation :
I am lucky that I own a complete set of really good mics (Shure Beta 52, Beta 91, Beta 98amp, Sennheiser e904, Md421, AT 4041, etc etc) and also own two great digital boards, a Yamaha 01V96 and a Presonus 16.0.2. We have 1000 watt QSC powered mains and subs playing in small rooms, usually for 120-250 people. Through this system, I could make a straw sound big. Absolutely no problem with an 18. I could make an 18 so loud that it hurts with this gear.
Now, some guys prefer the "under the foot" feel and sound of a bigger drum. That's a valid and real situation for some. We use no stage monitors , everyone is on in-ear-monitors, and I usually mix the band from the stage (next to me)...so I can blow out my own eyeballs with kick drum in my buds if I want. We don't play really heavy music, and I see no need for a buttkicker.
2) Expectation :
I don't ever have my 18"'s tuned like a jazz drum, "biinggg" or "bonggg". I tune them low and open, a decidedly rock sound...""booth" is the word I think
Still, they don't sound or feel like a 22 or a 20. Pitch is higher overall, they don't have as much tuning range as the bigger drums, and if you go too low, you just get head slap. I tune the reso a good deal higher than the batter (as with ALL drums).
I try to think in terms of balance with an 18 kick : wood snares (no metal or brass, too loud), a set of Zildjian K Dark cymbals, sticks either VF 7a or 5a. Double ply heads are a little quieter than their single ply counterparts and sound great for lower rock tunings as well. There is a lot to said about PLAYING in balance too. It works for me.
3)Application :
To get the most punch out of an 18"
I'm sorry but I feel that if you want the 'rock punch' out of an 18, you have to port it.
I do like the sound of an unported 18, but I find it too bouncy (and I don't bury the beater unless I'm trying to get that sound). Plus, I need to get that mic in there, the stages we play on are very small, using a mic stand is just not an option, even a shorty - they get bumped over and over and over.
Use pre muffled heads, absolutely nothing inside the drum except a mic (I will usually velcro a small piece of foam to the mic,don't want it rattling around in there) and tune the reso higher. Use a lifter to get the drum up off the ground and also so that you can hit it more in the center.
I use differerent resonant heads, sometimes Fiberskyns, sometimes PS clear, black, thicker heads, etc. Every drum is different and needs experimenting. I think the Evans clear EQ4 batter that came with the set sounded like shit (or maybe I had a bad Evans head ?). I really didn't like the coated G1's on the drums, they just came alive with clear emperors and the SKII. Clear two ply heads, yeah. On this set anyway. On my DW Jazz kit, completely different story (Remo Vintage Ambassador there please) .
So that's how I see it all. Much of that above has been said and discussed ad nauseum elsewhere in this forum, and I agree with much of it.
I cannot recommend this kit enough for any style of music. They truly do have "that great Gretsch sound" , whatever "that" is . Magic potion in that silver sealer, yup. Don't tell me it's just fence paint!! Lalalalalalalalaalalalala
Thanks for reading, I'll get some more pictures going tomorrow.
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