whats the best bang for the buck?
whats the best bang for the buck?
lets pick apart each of the major brands intermediate kits. features, sound...ect.
The gretsch catalinas seem to be a great pick, but so far their professional, on a intermediate budget, so i guess ill write them in here
A good intermediate kit what ive seen is the mapex M birch, ive heard of people going pro with those kits and not changing out for a few years, even when they had the money
I still think intermediate should be removed as an entire catagory in drumming, because if tuned correctly they can be used as a professional kit, and if their good enough a professional kit with minumum work
i think this is the most competitive market out there. since mapex and gretsch have introduce maple drums on a budget, it has just exploded.
i really need to check out the new yamaha tour customs. also the sonor force maple and birch drums are outstanding.
yea, ive heard good things about the gretsch maple 6 piece set, only 700 bucks, and we all know gretsch's quality
i accually love the renown kits. they are about 1200 for a 5 pc but are made with all the same components as the usa customs. just mass produced in asia without many finish options. the renowns are on my list for a second 7 pc.
Hey wanted to tell you guys those yamaha tour customs sound really good. Played them at the music store. I like the sound of the snare drum. With like a price tag of around of $1000, i think they would be a strong competitor. I have still yet to play the new pearl export customs which could possibly fall in this category. Looking at what you guys said above I, they (pearl and yamaha) are alittle more expensive than those gretsch drums. I have never played on gretsch drums but sounds like I am going to have to. Also I went on the gretsch website I could not find specs on there catalina maple sets such things as how they are made and bearing edges. Anyone know?
sorry, i do not know the specs on the edges. they say that "that great gretsch sound" is all about the bearing edges. i beleive they are more rounded than the typical dbl 45.
Do you guys know if the gretsch catalina maples would make a good drumset for music like jazz and swing? I know that maple can be alittle punchy at times, but I am wondering if the catalina maple may have a mellower (sp?) tom "attack" versus the more tradition maple drumsets.
ddrum diatribe ALL THE WAY, made of birch and mahogany, superior hardware, this is absolutely a pro kit with a budget price, the upgraded kit(mine) will sell for around $1300 I believe, when it is made available to the public, the old models of diatribes are going for about $850.
Theres my 2 cents.
I also really love Yamaha drums.
Some of the Pearl Export kits should be considered intermediate kits. I have a 7 piece Pearl ELX ($1100) with upgraded 2.3mm hoops and ISS mounts and it sounds just as good as any of the forum kits they make.
Da' Bum
Rockin' the beat for fadedblue
Keepin' time for Andy Harrison & the AOP
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DW Performance 5 pc. in White Marine Pearl
1972 Pearl Deluxe Custom 5 pc. in blue sparkle
KAT KT-3
Paiste cymbals
Gibraltar hardware
Axis pedals
Vic Firth sticks
Evans heads
the forum is the downgrade from export. both made with the same poplar shell, but the export has better hoops, iss mounts and more finish options.Originally Posted by 1DrumBum
since mahogany kinda went out of style for a bit thru the years (making a comback tho) alot, if not most jazz drummers are using maple. not much of an issue with stick attack if you use a coated head. the most attack i have heard from a kind of wood would be on the yamaha oak customs. an that don't seem to bother keith carlock, who happens to be one of the most respected young jazz guys out there. so yes i think the catalina ould suit you for jazz and quieter music aswell. however i don't know if they come in sizes typical of a jazz kit. such as 18 o 20 inch kicks.Originally Posted by drum1895
Last edited by funkymcstain; 04-25-2007 at 10:42 AM.
I have a gretsch catalina maple 6 pc. and it's a pretty good kit. The heads that come with it are crap, but I expected that since the guys that sold it to me told me that, so I got some remo heads on it and it sounds really good.
To drummer 1919,
what kind of bearing edges does your drums have, just curious and how does the snare drum sound with some new head on it.
I'm taking a break from checking out my new intermediate level kit. I just picked up a Gretsch Catalina Birch Kit, fusion size 5 piece kit (they were discontinued and I got the last one at our local guitar center for next to nothing). I'm really happy with the kit so far, it is a vast improvement sound wise from the CB percussion Kit I had been playing, although I do see an upgrade in heads coming in the near future. Only negative I see is although the tom holders seem sturdy, it did take a little playing around with them to get the playing position I wanted. I also wish that it hadn't been put together by guitar center. I actually had to take the bass drum heads off and switch them around. Someone put the Gretsch Logo head on the batter side of the drum, and the clear batter head with the muffling ring on the front.
By the Way I'm new on this forum, I was actually looking to see what some of the other oppinions were of Gretsch Catalina sets.
Welcome church drummer.
Your new Gretch Catalina kit is a great kit, even for more advanced players, I truly believe gretch makes excellent drums, very good job with that.
congrats on a nice new kit. new heads will have it sounding VERY nice.Originally Posted by Church Drummer
i feel your pain with the assembly, i sometimes think guitar center will hire ANYBODY.
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