• Renown maple is da bomb

  
  As reviewed by Malcolm Orr on 6/7/2010

  Holy man, this kit is incredible. hands down, best kit in it's price range. the tone of the maple is sweet and resonant and the hardware is heavy duty. the die cast hoops are especially nice and make such a difference on the heads; they stay in tune for a long time. definitely a professional quality set. Gretsch has been making top of the line drums for many years and they know a thing or two. it has their silver sealer and 30 degree bearing edge for a great sound. this set is super versatile and will sound killer in any style you want to play. the 20 inch bass drum is actually so big and boomy when it's included evan's emad head is tuned somewhat loose. yet it is small enough where you can play jazz and still sound great tuned tighter. also it makes it easier for gigs. this was an upgrade from my first set, a pearl forum. believe me if you are going to upgrade from you entry level kit, get this because i researched for several months and it is the best bang for your buck, literally. so get this set, you will not regret it.

  11 of 11 people found this review helpful.
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• Awesome.

  
  As reviewed by Parker on 12/22/2010

  I've been play funk, rock, jazz and everything in between for a while now, so I decided to upgrade, but downsize my kit. I found this one after a lot of searching and it is exactly what I was looking for. The 20" bass is not too heavy, but very focused. Great for funk and hip hop but also capable of going to heavy rock or to light jazz. The toms sound awesome, especially the smallest. None ring to long or anything after just a minute of tuning. The heads that came on them sound great too and the drums stay in tune! There's no snare, but I thought that was an advantage because I could pick out my own. I bought a pearl steal piccolo to try something new and the crack of it is incredible with the rest of the kit. All together a great kit for funk, rock, hip hop, jazz, gospel, and...just about everything.

  2 of 2 people found this review helpful.
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• There is a reason it is the renown series

  
  As reviewed by Malcolm on 1/7/2011

  Where to begin. This drum kit is by far the best kit I have ever heard. My drum teacher recently got a Yamaha Recording Custom and man those babies are sweet but this set is a lot cheaper and in my opinion actually sounds better. The combination of maple and die cast makes these tubs sing like an opera singer. Their tone is so pure and focused. I still have the clear evans on them and they sound fantastic and they take awhile to drop out of tune. I just bought some coated heads for the toms and I know I will like them even more. The coated will diminish some of the ring slightly yet the tone will be ever present, yet with even more punch! I am so stoked on this kit. I have had it for about 9 months now and have no complaints. I was worried about going down to a 20 inch kick but holy **** this is the fattest sounding bass I have ever heard. With the emad and a loose tuning it sounds like it were miked coming through a subwoofer. I tuned it up a bit and am so pleased with its sound. It has tone but doesn't have nasty overtones, and it punches but it ain't no flat thud. I found this kit on ebay. It had been used once at a NAMM show. The thing that was so nice about it was that it came with the matching snare and was actually cheaper than anywhere else. The hardware is super sturdy from the rims, to the tom legs, bass drum spurs, and the tom mounts. I upgraded to this from a Pearl forum like someone else in these reviews and it has been so beneficial. It is so nice to sit down and just play a beautiful sounding kit instead of getting caught up in tuning my crappy old set every other day because it dropped out so much. The tom mounts are so nice. I have so much freedom to get them where I want them. The sizes are not just ideal, they are perfect. The toms are great in relation to one another. The 14" floor, 20" bass, and fusion toms allow for a tight compact feel. I don't have to reach for anything. It has honestly improved my playing so much and honestly they are so beautiful (cherry burst) I catch myself just sitting and staring. Buy this kit if you want the best professional, most versatile kit for the amount of money. Plus, if for some insane reason you were to sell them one day you would get a lot of money back, in many years these octagon badge renowns will be like what the 50's round badges are today, a classic. Long live Gretsch drums.

  3 of 4 people found this review helpful.
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