Advice needed; Gretsch vs. Yamaha

[XNavyDrummer]

Okay, I'm ready to get the new kit. I've narrowed it down to two. The Yamaha Recording Cusotms or a Gretsch kit with the Jasper shells (the Custom kit or USA Maple kit). I love the sound of these two sets the best.

What are your opinions on these kits? What are the pro's and con's?

Thanks!

Andy

[gslsejth]

Hey Andy,
I guess I will be the first to reply. I have had the pleasure of owning a bunch of different kits as I am sure many of the participants of this board have. Gretsch gets.. and has my money.. hands down. Several reasons.. First and most importantly, I think the drums are the most versatile available, far and above all the manufacturers, including Yamaha.
Sparing you the rhetoric of the tuning range and craftsmanship stuff.. all pro drums tune well and are made well. The point that I have found Gretsch differing is the overall ?smoothness? of drums. Meaning.. some companies have the niche of being/ making or marketing the instrument as the ?loudest?.. and others make attempt the perspective of being different .. ?Our drums are made from Moon rocks!?
All this to say Gretsch drums sound round and appropriate for all jobs. The toms and bass drums really have a consistency. I am sure you have played kits where the toms are the standouts, or the bass drum is unbalanced. Gretsch really has seemed to figure this out.
Yamaha drums, as great as they do sound I have a couple of ?bones? with them.
My biggest gripe is that I have never heard a bass drum except the Tour Custom series that has sounded worth a flip. At best the bass drums sound like a basketball in a gymnasium. Attack oriented with really a lack of bottom end.
This has been just my experience others may like the RC bass drums, just not for me.
The next thing is if you are going to get any toms over the size of 13? the YESS system is a big NO! My experience has been that in toms larger than 13? and even some 12? toms have been affected.. All the weight being centered over those two bolts does in fact mute the drum significantly. You may want a real controlled floor tom and if so, this is for you, or you can get real floor toms w/legs .. no worries.

In all fairness Gretsch has shortcomings as well. First the drums are really too expensive?(Custom)
You can get the Savannah, GA shells with import hardware on the USA Maple series at great value.
Any special order is going to be a very long weight (Custom). Some of the parts ..bass drum spurs, and screws that attach the lugs to the shell ect.. were not been secured properly.
Die-cast hoops on the Gretsch drum make the toms feel different than the RC.. not worse, just different. I happen to like the cast hoops especially on the floor toms. I can tune them a touch over finger tight and the drums just sound great.

I am 32 been playing since I was 12. Making a living like you and the rest of the guys playing my tubs is a great honor and I fortunate to be able to support myself and new wife doing it. When not on the road I work in Music retail this being my 9th year and over the years I have worked at some great drum shops in Atlanta, Houston and currently in OKC. Only writing this personal stuff to let you know that I am not a 15 year old kid..
I don?t know..at 15 I would have wrote something twice as long and said half as much.
Gretsch drums for me were a ?mature? choice. I bought them because they sounded the best out of everything I have played up to this point. Even got a ?B? endorsement with ?em though landing a road gig with a nashvegas country ?star?
8x10,8x12,14x14,fl 16x16fl 16x20,18x22, and a whopping 18x24 all broadcaster ebony.
Only thing that I think comes close in the birch dept. Is the Sonor stuff.. which is expensive but not as much as Fred?s (Custom) stuff.
It is fun getting new drums, let us know what you decide on.. and I hope this helps in some small way.
Jeff
The shop I work at is a Gretsch dealer let me know if I can help you out with a price.

[Randy walker]

First I have to say there is no comparison between the 2 and the 1 thing being wood. Yamaha RC=birch and Gretsch=Maple/gumwood. IE Jasper shells, which BTW Jasper is no longer in business.
I have heard pros and cons on the new 2003 Gretsch so I am really out of touch on these, saw them at NAMM and they look good. My Gretsch kit is a 1980 and have no intentions of parting ever, this was my first ever pro kit upon graduating school.
I know a few dealers also whom deal with Gretsch and could help you in scoring a decent deal if interested. Not sure about your status but you might send some info to Yamaha and see about a cost thru a dealer type thing.
I know of a few Yamaha dealers whom might be able to help also outside of GC.

[Derek DeFields]

First off, GREAT choices! Along with the MC, those are my 3 favorites.

As I've mentioned here before, both have got some serious service issues but hopefully you won't need those!

I own a newer (2000) Gretsch Custom. After I had the edges done by Bill Detamore, it's the best sounding kit I've owned. However, (warning) do NOT be a nitpicker if you get either of these kits. Yamaha and Gretsch are not famous for their attention to detail so there will likely be flaws that you wouldn't have to live with from someone else.

Example: my Gretsch claws came out of the box dug through the lacquer on the hoops. Not a huge deal if you line up the hoops, but I'm letting you know. 10" tom out of round out of the box. Sounds great though.

I've seen recent Cherry recording customs at the local guitar center that look like someone painted them with a paintbrush. (no kidding, big paint brush size dark paint stripe on kick)

Having said all that, there's a pretty big financial difference between those two kits. I can recommend a good place for Gretsch. Yamaha you're somewhat on your own. However, in good news a guy named Jim Hayler (sp?) was recently hired on into Dave Jewell's position at Yamaha. (Dave's been promoted.)

Jim is a kick ass guy who knows his sh#t so you should have better luck if there's a problem. Jim used to work at GC as a departmental region head so if you order through them they may be able to speak with him directly about your order.

If it's all sound based and you're willing to live with some potential problems (and money is no object) I'd recommend the Gretsch Custom. 2nd place would be the Yamaha's. Although I have heard just as you have that the USA maple is the "same" as the custom, I've yet to hear one that sounds as good as the good customs I've played. (There have been some REAL dogs too) That's a plus for Yamaha. The RC and MC are VERY consistent in the sound department and there's no way you'll need new edges as Yamaha's seem to be about the most consistent around.

Longest post by me ever? perhaps.....

Good luck! [img]graemlins/thumbs_up.gif[/img]

[Lorenzini]

I play both custom Gretsch and Yamaha Maple Custom drums. Although the Maple Customs are somewhat different than the Recording Customs, they both have a quality to them that are alike. I ordered both kits from Pro Drum Shop in L.A. and the delivery time was very different for each kit! Yamaha: 8 Weeks / Gretsch: 7.5 months. I have never had one problem with Yamahas, except for the head combination that they came with. Like I said, I waited 7.5 months form my Gretsch Kit and when they arrived I had to send my 10"x12" back to Gretsch because it was out of round and unable to tune. That took another 8 weeks. Unlike my Yamaha's, the Gretsch edges from the factory were for shit. I had to take the whole kit to Lee Smith (who does all of Vinnie's edges) at Drum Paradise, which is not cheap! I could of bought two Yamaha kits for the price of what my Gretsch kit ended up costing.... With that being said, I would go through the pain again to get another Gretsch kit before purchasing another Yamaha kit! The tone and resonance of my Gretsch drums are unparallel to any other drum set that I have ever played! If you do not have the budget or patience for Gretsch then your next best choice would be Yamaha's! Either way, you have narrowed down your choices to two very good drum sets...

[Derek DeFields]

Good luck with your decision. Remember, if you're frustrated now, just think how you'll feel if/when you get a bad drum and no help from Gretsch.

My fingers are crossed for you, believe me.

[Randy walker]

yeah good luck indeed. The used Gretsch would be a better route to take, Fred is a nut. The company is basically run by Dinah. I met Fred at NAMM or should I say ran into him at the Fender booth, he had this glazed ghostlty like look on him.......he matched everything I have heard about the guy.
Unless you are an endorser, going to the factory is out and even if you ARE an endorser it's hard to get a meeting with them. A few guys I know whom are affiliated with Gretsch say it's tough getting together and the prices they shoot players is outragious. A friend of mine who plays with Travis Tritt went to the factory ONCE, found some off drums in the vinyard, old stock that was not going to be sold off to stores, so he asked for a price, they came back to him with a price of like 3500.00. He could not believe it.
Hope this gives some insight to what Gretsch is about.

[XNavyDrummer]

Thanks to all of you for your detailed and thoughtful comments! So, if I go the Gretsch route, it seems it would be better to buy a second hand set from somebody who's already had the out of round drum replaced and the bearing edges re-cut. I wonder if Gretsch would let me go to the factory and hand-pick the shells (after I check to make sure they are actually round). This is frustrating. Seems like Gretsch could be on top if they just put some attention to quality control.

Thanks again!

Andy

[Derek DeFields]

the Absolutes are good drums but they sound very different than a Gretsch. (or a RC for that matter)

[ladanny]

A friend of mine in the Los Angeles area is selling his Gretsch kit:

"I also have some Gretsch sets i am looking to part with, if you know anyone one. Set is Burnt Orange 1980's with 22x16 kick 10,12,13, rack toms on rims 16x16 floor with legs. Looks great and sounds great."

Many records have been done with this kit. Please email me directly if you are really interested.

<font color="#a62a2a" size="1">[ May 07, 2003 02:26 AM: Message edited by: ladanny ]</font>