The Gretsch Catalina Maple kits would be my vote. Every Pearl thing I have ever seen has been terrible quality. I've seen many Pearl drum sets, snares, marching drums, and hardware and all have not been worth the price they cost. Now with Pearl coming out there and announcing their Reference series with the sophisticated science between their shell construction when just old style 3-ply mahogany drums sounded the best, proves they don't know what they are talking about over there. Pearl's durability is also something to be desired. If you want to blow money on expensive kits, go with a TAMA, at least they are well constructed, even though they have features you will never use or need. Gretsch is really coming back and making a name for themselves lately. The Catalina Maples sound amazing and are certainly a bargain. They are about half the price for what I paid for a Pro M two years ago in the same configuration. They just don't come in a variety of colors though. I don't have much experience with Gretsch, so I can't comment on their construction. At least, I know they sound better than the Pearls