Gretsch Renown Review

I’ve spent quite a lot of time playing Gretsch drum kits over the years, particularly the Catalina Maple and Catalina Club series. I’ve always thought those kits sounded great and offered a lot for the money, but until recently, I’d never actually had the chance to properly sit down and play a Gretsch Renown.

The Renown has been around for quite a while now, and I’ve always been interested to see how it compares to the more affordable Catalina kits, as well as other professional-level drum sets I’ve played.

I’ve now spent plenty of time playing, tuning and recording this kit, and I’ve been seriously impressed with it. The sound quality is fantastic, the hardware feels incredibly solid, and I genuinely think this is one of the best drum sets you can buy for the money.

Gretsch Renown at a Glance

The Gretsch Renown is a professional-level maple drum set, and the particular configuration I’ve been testing is a four-piece shell pack in a beautiful Vintage Pearl wrap finish.

It features 10″ x 7″ and 12″ x 8″ rack toms, a 16″ x 14″ floor tom and a 22″ x 18″ bass drum. These are fairly modern shell sizes, with relatively shallow rack toms and a medium depth bass drum. This particular configuration also has a double tom holder mounted directly to the bass drum.

The shells are made from seven plies of maple, with Gretsch’s classic Silver Sealer interiors, 30-degree bearing edges and 302 hoops. These are all really nice features, particularly considering the price of the kit.

I’m a big fan of the 302 hoops. They’re thicker and more substantial than conventional triple-flanged hoops, giving the drums a slightly more focused sound and a really solid feel. They offer some of the benefits of die-cast hoops without quite as much weight.

The 30-degree bearing edges are another classic Gretsch feature. They’re quite different from the sharper 45-degree edges you’ll find on many modern drum kits, and I think they contribute to the really warm and musical sound of these drums.

Another big plus is that the Renown comes fitted with professional Remo drumheads straight out of the box. You get Clear Emperors on the tom batters, Clear Ambassadors underneath and a Powerstroke 3 on the bass drum. I’ve swapped the bass drum batter head for an Evans EMAD on my kit, but it’s excellent that Gretsch includes proper heads as standard rather than cheaper alternatives.

Visually, I think this kit looks fantastic too. I’m not normally the biggest fan of wrapped finishes, but the Vintage Pearl really works here. Combined with the Silver Sealer interiors and classic Gretsch hardware, the whole kit has a really beautiful appearance.

Sound Quality

This is where the Gretsch Renown really impressed me. These drums sound absolutely amazing, and after spending time listening back to the recordings, I think they sound even better than I initially realised.

The toms have a really clean, musical sound with loads of sustain and excellent tonal definition. There’s a lovely warmth to them, but I was actually surprised by how much attack they have as well. The two rack toms sound incredibly punchy, with a satisfying initial attack followed by a full, resonant tone.

And the 16-inch floor tom sounds enormous. It has so much low end and body that it almost sounds like a second bass drum when you really lay into it. I particularly enjoyed how well the floor tom retained its definition, even with all of that low end.

Before playing the kit, I was slightly concerned that the 30-degree bearing edges might make the drums sound a little too rounded, or that they’d lack some of the attack I enjoy from more modern shell designs. But that really wasn’t the case. There’s loads of clarity behind every note, and I think Gretsch has achieved a really nice balance between warmth, sustain and attack.

Something I particularly noticed when listening back to the recordings was just how good the natural sustain sounds. The toms really sing, and they have a pleasing musical resonance rather than being overbearing. I didn’t feel the need to start dampening everything to get a clean recorded sound, which is always a good sign.

The bass drum sounds amazing too. It’s got loads of punch and a really satisfying low end, although I personally wanted a slightly tighter and more controlled sound for the heavier music I was recording. I fitted an Evans EMAD and added some internal dampening, which gave me a shorter, punchier response.

I’ve been playing quite a lot of metal on the Renown, and it sounds awesome. But I think this kit would be equally at home playing rock, pop, country, jazz and plenty of other styles.

The best way I can describe the Renown is refined. Everything sounds balanced and musical, and there’s a quality to the tone that I’d normally associate with much more expensive drum kits.

Tuning and Playability

One thing I’ve particularly enjoyed about the Renown is just how easy it is to tune. I found it really straightforward to get a great sound from the toms, and there’s a nice tuning range available without the drums becoming difficult to work with.

The tension rods feel incredibly smooth when you’re turning them into the lugs, and all of the hardware has a really precise, high-quality feel. It’s one of those little details you notice when you’re actually spending time setting up and tuning a drum kit.

I also really like how the toms respond at different tunings. There’s plenty of resonance when they’re tuned lower, but they still retain a nice amount of attack and definition. I found it easy to get a full, musical sound without spending ages adjusting everything.

The kit feels fantastic to play too. There’s a really satisfying response from the shells, and the whole setup feels solid and substantial behind the kit. I’ve genuinely enjoyed spending time recording with it, and it’s one of those drum sets that makes you want to keep playing.

Build Quality and Hardware

I think the build quality is one of the biggest reasons the Gretsch Renown stands out at this price. Everything about this kit feels incredibly solid, from the shells and hoops through to the lugs and mounting hardware.

The shells are beautifully made, the 302 hoops feel substantial, and the die-cast lugs are the same style used on Gretsch’s higher-end USA-made drums. There’s a real sense of quality to the whole kit, and it genuinely feels like a much more expensive instrument.

In fact, having spent plenty of time with it now, I’d say the Gretsch Renown feels surprisingly close to a US-made custom drum kit in terms of its overall construction and hardware quality. I know that’s a pretty big statement considering the price difference, but that’s genuinely how it feels to me.

The tom mounting system is really nice to use as well. This particular configuration has a double tom holder mounted to the bass drum, and I found it easy to position the toms exactly where I wanted them. The adjustments feel smooth and secure, and importantly, the toms stay exactly where you put them.

One thing worth mentioning is that these drums are pretty weighty. The shells and hardware feel really substantial, which I personally like, but it’s worth considering if you’re regularly transporting your drums to gigs.

Overall, though, I think the build quality is fantastic. The Renown feels like a really high-end instrument, and I was genuinely impressed by just how premium everything feels.

Gretsch Renown vs Catalina Maple

In my opinion the Renown is definitely a noticeable step up from the Catalina Maple, both in terms of its construction and overall playing experience.

The Gretsch Renown is made in Taiwan, which helps Gretsch keep the prices relatively accessible. And the Renown also uses more North American maple plies within its shell construction, although it isn’t made exclusively from North American maple.

There are significant hardware upgrades too. You get the thicker 302 hoops, Silver Sealer interiors, higher-quality Remo drumheads and more substantial lugs and mounting hardware. And you can really feel the difference when you sit behind the kit.

The Catalina Maple is a great intermediate-level drum set, but the Renown feels like a proper professional instrument. The shells and hardware have a much more substantial feel, and I think the overall sound is more refined too.

That’s not to take anything away from the Catalina, because I still think those kits offer excellent value, but if you’re looking to move into the professional-level drum market, I think the Renown is a really worthwhile upgrade.

Value for Money

I think this is where the Gretsch Renown becomes particularly difficult to beat. There are loads of excellent professional drum kits available, but once you start looking at the more expensive American and Japanese-made models, the prices can increase considerably.

What I really like about the Renown is that you’re getting a lot of those professional features and qualities without having to spend anywhere near as much money. The maple shells sound fantastic, the hardware is excellent, the drums are easy to tune and they come with proper Remo heads straight out of the box.

And most importantly, the kit sounds absolutely beautiful. I’ve played plenty of expensive drum sets over the years, and I genuinely don’t feel like the Renown is lacking much in terms of its sound or overall playing experience.

For me, the Gretsch Renown and DW Design Series are probably the two standout options at this entry point into the professional drum kit market. Both offer excellent shells, hardware and sound quality for the money, and I think you’d be incredibly happy with either.

But the Renown is generally the more affordable of the two, which makes it an even more compelling option. I honestly think it’s pretty difficult to find a better drum set at this price.

Final Verdict

I’ve been seriously impressed with the Gretsch Renown. I knew it was a well-regarded drum kit before testing it, but I honestly didn’t expect it to feel quite as premium as it does.

The shells are beautifully made, the hardware feels fantastic and the drums are incredibly easy to tune. But above everything else, I just love the sound. The toms have loads of sustain and a really musical tone, the bass drum is wonderfully punchy, and the whole kit sounds absolutely fantastic when recorded.

I think Gretsch has done an amazing job with this kit, and it’s genuinely one of my favourite drum sets I’ve played at this price point. If I were looking to buy a professional-level kit without spending a fortune, the Renown would be right amongst the top.