I was looking at Gretsch when I was shopping for drums.

Most "beginner" sets can be made to sound a lot better by replacing the cheap drum heads, and getting a good set of cymbals... Most of the cheaper cymbals, even by well known companies like Zildjian, Sabian, and Paiste, sound bad. You can get as good of sound by drilling a hole in the middle of your wife's cookie sheets and bolting them on to the stands. Ok, a LITTLE extreme, but a fairly true statement. If you go acousic, look at a basic set with hi-hats, a ride and a crash. That is all you need most of the time anyway. The larger the cymbal, the "bigger" the sound. Think 80's rock... For me, I didn't like the sound of the big 20" rides. I liked the 18" better. Go to GuitarCenter, and give a few of them a spin...

Like it was mentioned before, you can tone down the sound levels, but depending on the method, you impact the feel of what you are doing. I've seen several people take perfectly good acoustic sets, and then use these rubber sound deadeners on them that go right where you would hit the drum head or cymbal... Completely gets rid of one of the positives of an acoustic set, and that is the feel of playing them.

Oh, I was looking at the Gretsch Catalina Fusion, the Pearl Forum, and a couple of others. At the time I was also trying to keep everything under $1000. When all was said and done, I was over $2000, but I don't regret it. Now $2000 for someone to just "try it" for a while??? That would be silly.

Don't forget.... Don't skimp on cymbals, and if you find a set you like in looks, and construction, but the sound is a little off (not a LOT off) from your liking, upgrading drum heads will make a big difference, and depending on cost, you may find that you can upgrade the heads on a lower cost kit and still be less than a more expensive one.

Farewell - June 4, 2020