Which kit to keep?

The Dreamer

Member
First timer. From Australia.
I am lucky enough to be in possession of two kits. Both in very nice nick. A Gretsch Catalina Birch 7 piece and just lately, a Pearl 6 piece Vision VBX (the older model) in Orange Sparkle, which is truly a good looker. I just couldn't pass up the price on the Vision. I am only a bit better than a beginner, and even though I have the opportunity to sit at both kits, I simply do not know which one to keep. To me, they both sound similar. But I am a real novice. Going into the future I would like to think I made the right choice as I improve...........Could you guys just throw your two-bobs worth with in please? Would appreciate it greatly.
 
A good position to be in & I am in the same one.
Both of your kits are good quality & sound. I really like the Visions & would be tempted to keep those (If they are the 6/8's, 6 ply toms, 8 ply Bass & Floor).
 
Yes Frosticles they are that. The VBX series. I pulled them down completely polished and greased etc.....and it was obvious that the ply thickness was different....
The later VBL's I read are 6's all 'round........
so you lean towards the Visions eh? Thank for your reply Frosticles
 
I can't offer anything re the kits but welcome to the forum. I Like the "two bobs worth" - real old aussie saying. Is that Mundulla in SA? I'm in Adelaide.
 
Putting my preference for Pearl asside... the Vision line is discontinued, so you can't get any add-ons from Pearl anymore. Might be that you can find some on eBay someday. I believe the Gretsch still is being made, so you can get add-ons.

I can only say go with your gut. They both sound similar, but keep the one you think sounds best. The Vision i have is my practice kit at home. Got it in 2012 and the only thing i had to do was to tighten the screw of a floor tom leg because it was getting loose. For the rest a great kit! Highly suggest clear Ambassadors tops and bottoms for this kit, amazing sound! Also sapped the ISS mounts for Optimounts and it improves the sound and resonance of the toms.
 
You’re a “beginner” now but sooner or later you’ll start playing with others. Most blue collar drummers have at least two kits so one can stay set up at home for practice, and one is ready to roll out the door to go play. I’d keep both if you like them and leave one set up to practice on, and keep the other one broken down and ready to go once you do start leaving the house.
 
Great advice iCe, will take that on board for sure...
And yeah basset52, Mundulla south Oz. I manage a vineyard up in this area......and thanx for the welcome.
They do sound similar to me but I need to really have the same heads to compare I think, and I haven't. I must do that tomorrow....swap them over..
Geez you guys are serious. swap the mounts? I never thought of that...
Thank you all.
 
Thank you Bo.
I may keep them both, but in truth, I am a long long way from playing with a band. Hard to justify
 
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Putting my preference for Pearl asside... the Vision line is discontinued, so you can't get any add-ons from Pearl anymore. Might be that you can find some on eBay someday. I believe the Gretsch still is being made, so you can get add-ons.
Good point but probably not that important for a beginner since he has a 6 piece set already. I'd keep both sets for a while until you see some differences. If you're not in a rush to sell them, that will probably get you a better price for the one you eventually sell.
 
That's a fair point Swiss. Check them out for a while.
I do need to sell one tho sooner or later. Will get a bit sick of swapping heads!! :) (A: buy more heads)
Fantastic advice all 'round. Thank you guys.
 
You might just try the same heads on a tom of the Gretsch and the Pearl. But you're new to tuning, so the sound might not even be the most important factor. I think sizes, functionality, hardware and looks are even more important if you can't hear a real difference. You'll learn to tune drums to a sound you like anyway. I'd probably lean towards the Pearl as well.
 
If I were in your shoes, I'd pick whichever one has the better sounding kick drum. Most rack toms can be manipulated with heads, muffling, etc. to get a decent sound out of them. Heck, I played an SPL kit the other day with Evans G2's on them, and they sounded great! If a kick doesn't sound good no matter what, then the kit is no good to me.

For some reason, I've never heard a bad Pearl kick drum. Some sound better than others, but I've played their Session series drums and several Export kits, and the kicks sound great to my ears. In addition, the Pearl kit is a sparkle kit, and I won't own another drum set unless it's a sparkle kit (one of my quirks). Sight unseen, I'd go with the Pearl kit as long as you can live with the mounts. I always play a 4-piece kit with my rack tom on a snare stand, so I don't care a lot about mounts.

Also, another thing to remember is that this probably isn't going to be your "lifetime" drum set. It's there to learn on, and as you grow as a musician and get more experience, you ear will develop and your needs will change in what you want in a kit. In short, I'd sell the Gretsch kit, buy a good snare and cymbals for the Pearls, and you should be set for a long time.
 
Pearl Kit is better quality than the Catalina, which a good kit, but hardware wise, Pearl is better, stronger. Ice is right, you can swap the mount of the vision, the ISS mount isn't the best they've made. What is the colour of the Catalina ? any picture of both kits ?
I would sell one kit and use the money to upgrade the Pearl (Optimount, skins, a second snare,...)
 
...pick whichever one has the better sounding kick drum. Most rack toms can be manipulated with heads, muffling, etc. to get a decent sound out of them.
This is key. 90% of actual drumming is done on the snare, bass & hi hats/cymbals. Toms are for fancy fills and playing Come Together. ?

When you have a few hours, learn how to tune. Find a video, examples below, and go for it. The bass and snare are not the easiest to learn on so you may want to start learning on a tom. Once you’re comfortable with tuning, get the bass & snare tuned how you like them and do a side-by-side comparison of both bass drums and snare drums. Whichever one you like least, sell that kit!

Personally, I’m not familiar with the Pearl kit and have played a Catalina only at a church venue (for about 10 years). Since I was always the guy who maintained church kits, I became intimate with a lot of hardware and shells. The Gretsch Catalina hardware was adequate and held up well against different drummers adjusting things every other day. I’ve seen hardware on inexpensive kits (e.g., Chinese stuff with a brand name) get stripped/dented/destroyed and it renders the drum set unusable. So, if there’s a big difference in the hardware of what you have, take a close look at its finish and strength/robustness.




 
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Take one kit and put it away for a month and just play the other. After a month, pull out the stored kit and play it. Hopefully you'll be able to tell if it's an improvement, a deprovement (not sure if that's a word) or a lateral move. Or you like it the same but it's just different.

The short answer is keep them both or listen 100% to your heart says about which one to keep. You mentioned the one was a looker. You may like that better looks-wise. If they are both good soundwise, pick the looker.
 
Welcome to the forum!


Although I usually lean toward Gretsch, I think that I prefer the Pearl Visions in this case.

I agree with the advice to play only one kit for a few weeks to a month and then switch before making your decision.
 
Take one kit and put it away for a month and just play the other. After a month, pull out the stored kit and play it. Hopefully you'll be able to tell if it's an improvement, a deprovement (not sure if that's a word) or a lateral move. Or you like it the same but it's just different.

The short answer is keep them both or listen 100% to your heart says about which one to keep. You mentioned the one was a looker. You may like that better looks-wise. If they are both good soundwise, pick the looker.

I like this idea if there’s no hurry to sell either kit . During this time you can learn and experiment with different tunings and or heads. Good luck with and have fun with your decision . I’d choose the pearl And change out the mounts , but that’s just me . You’ll get opinions on both for why you should choose one or the other ... But Larry’s idea adds in allowing your own experience ( hands on with both) along with our recommendations to make YOUR best decision .
 
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The above statement is 100% in line with the opinion that usually falls out of my face.
 
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The above statement is 100% in line with the opinion that usually falls out of my face.
Before I bought my own kit, I bought a t-shirt with that slogan on the back. One day I went into some non-music store and one of the employees asks about it, see the logo and say, “Nope. Tama.”

Just like the camera wars.
 
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