New Gretsch Renown Limited Mahogany

It may be a blend of AM and luan, like their Renowns' Asian and NA Maple blend, or USA Custom's maple/gumwood blend. It probably contributes to the intended focussed Gretsch tone, and doen't bother me as long as it's not olivewood.
What does bother me though is the lack of size choices. I'm basically stuck to a Euro config at most. No 9x13? No thanks!
I think it is likely a blend of some sort, but whatever the case may be I love the sound! Agreed, I would love to have a 13x9 option with this kit. May possibly add a 10x7 at some point down the road when I have more funds, but I may just keep this as a 1 up 1 down indefinitely.
 
I think I’ve changed my mind on the inlay. Lookin really nice in your pic.

Congrats! And yeah, who cares if it’s AM or not. Just enjoy your new kit.

Mine’s been in the closet for months. Think I’ll set it back up today. Thanks for the inspiration.
Much obliged :cool: Love the look of that purewood kit! Enjoy your reunion!
 
When Cascio Music was still open, I'd stop in each time they got a new Purewood set.
I thought they all were gorgeous, and sounded really good.
That was a great thing they had going, offering a different exotic wood in very limited quantities. The only one that really interested me was my mahogany, though… beautiful wood with a deep finish, like fine furniture, and the 4pc came in the perfect rock sizes.

I'm a little ashamed to say I first saw the kit at Pro drum in Hollywood, but I didn't buy it there. I got mine from a smaller "mom & pop" (actually sons and mom) store that was struggling and eventually went out of business.
 
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It looks like these Renown are philippine mahogany or luan wood.. African mahogany is a selling point and they will always post that ... Where are some modern African Mahogany sets from the last few decades that DID NOT point it out ? . Also, many people on drum forum org contacted Gretsch about this wood source and they WILL NOT respond.

I'm sure they sound good and I don't really care where the wood is from but for them to stay silent on this when prospective buyers are asking is not very cool. .. regardless the price is much too high IMO.
Hey buddy,
yeah i agree.......be transparent bout the stuff they sell.
one of the kits i own is a Gretsch club mod, that is supposed to be Mahoghany.
more than likely not a top Grade...... But, i believe the drums sound good for what i paid for them used.
Bass drum is a Cannon. Snare isn't bad, but the floor tom and high tom are harder to tune.
I'll be honest my Pearl Elx kit sound much better to me overall.,
but in the future i would love to try a Renown.
 
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It looks like these Renown are philippine mahogany or luan wood.. African mahogany is a selling point and they will always post that ... Where are some modern African Mahogany sets from the last few decades that DID NOT point it out ? . Also, many people on drum forum org contacted Gretsch about this wood source and they WILL NOT respond.

I'm sure they sound good and I don't really care where the wood is from but for them to stay silent on this when prospective buyers are asking is not very cool. .. regardless the price is much too high IMO.
Its like dw who used philipine mahogany in their maple mahogany promo and suddenly stayed quite about it


Nothing wrong with ph mah btw. Love it in Yamaha’s lines who have been using it for a few decades.

Afr mahogany is too expensive for production run models, especially the lower end of them.
 
Agree that there's nothing wrong with luan. Stewart Copeland used one as his secret recording weapon, even after trying a premium Hokkaido birch kit. Gretsch also makes the Renown out of a blend of hard and soft maple, so the "prestige" of wood really doesn't matter as much as its actual property and design. I think we should see more luan kit as they offer a unique alternative tone.
I still can't swallow the price of that kit, though. Also the company isn't ingenuous about its wood species, much like Epiphone who substitutes olive for mahogany and birch for maple. The Tama Superstar (that Stewart had ditched) has got a similar configuration at a similar price, and I prefer its tone and handling. If Tama could make a luan kit in their design, I'd take that in a heartbeat.
 
Oh my droogies... the time has come for me to part with my 2006 African Mahogany Purewood Renown kit, that I mentioned earlier in this thread. I'll be posting it in the Classifed section tomorrow. PM me if interested.
 
Beautiful
I love this finish
 
So what's your take on the new kit. I'm assuming you love it!
I do! I finally got them out to a gig a couple of weekends back. Perhaps a bit mellower in tone due to the 7-ply mahogany, but easily comparable to my USA Customs overall. Coated Ambassador batters all around (stock P3 clear bass drum). I believe the secret sauce with these is largely the die cast hoops. Also, the 7x14 snare really stands out.

Sacrilege alert: I drilled the bass drum for a Gretsch tom mount. No regrets! 🙂

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It looks like these Renown are philippine mahogany or luan wood.. African mahogany is a selling point and they will always post that ... Where are some modern African Mahogany sets from the last few decades that DID NOT point it out ? . Also, many people on drum forum org contacted Gretsch about this wood source and they WILL NOT respond.
Old post, I know, but I would like to confirm to anyone interested that it was eventually established on that DFO thread by Gretsch reps for both Chicago Music Exchange and Sweetwater that these are, in fact, 100% African Mahogany ply shells. I can verify firsthand, as my floor was filled with dark brown sawdust after I drilled for the tom mount, lol. There's no lauan sandwiched in between: every ply is clearly AM.
 
Old post, I know, but I would like to confirm to anyone interested that it was eventually established on that DFO thread by Gretsch reps for both Chicago Music Exchange and Sweetwater that these are, in fact, 100% African Mahogany ply shells. I can verify firsthand, as my floor was filled with dark brown sawdust after I drilled for the tom mount, lol. There's no lauan sandwiched in between: every ply is clearly AM.

Yeah thanks David.. and I saw that info on drumforum a while back but it did take Gretsch a long , long time to reply on that. Many of those members on that forum are still skeptical but I believe what you say when you drilled etc.. however I think there are other mahoganies that are very similar to African.
 
grandma Brown old growth mahogany

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almost same shade as those Gretsch just wonder what how they were "finished" in the paint or staining booth clear lacquer or ?
Probably clear coated about 4-6-7 layers 3- etc
 
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I just received a new set today. I got an offer I couldn't refuse. I hope to have them up and running by tomorrow evening. First impressions are very favorable indeed.

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My kit does not have this sticker on the inside of any of the drums. Not something I am upset about or anything, just kind of curious as to why. I know my kit was used for promo and marketing purposes so maybe that has something to do with it. Who knows....
 
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