shakey64 Posted March 29, 2016 Share Posted March 29, 2016 Ive been eyeing a Gretsch 5120 on ebay. Never owned one before. I see they came out with upgraded models couple years ago called the 5140. Ive always loved the Stray Cats, Setzer , Eddie Cochran , Rockabilly sound....so I think it would be a cool axe. My Epi Casino is my top dog, but curious what you players think of the Gretsch that have one or played one? None in my local area to try out. Thx. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sledge57 Posted March 29, 2016 Share Posted March 29, 2016 Don't have one but I heard a guy play one at GC, different enough from the Casino that there should be room for both in your house... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kidblast Posted March 30, 2016 Share Posted March 30, 2016 Gretch pickups do something else entirely different from a P90. does it have a bigsby? does your casino have one? That would be a huge diff right there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shakey64 Posted March 30, 2016 Author Share Posted March 30, 2016 Gretch pickups do something else entirely different from a P90. does it have a bigsby? does your casino have one? That would be a huge diff right there. no..my Casino doesn't have the Bigsby...that's one of the points that interest me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kidblast Posted March 30, 2016 Share Posted March 30, 2016 yea,, definitely... good luck, enjoy the hunt! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parabar Posted March 30, 2016 Share Posted March 30, 2016 I have both a Casino, a 5120, and the newer model that replaced the 5120, called the 5420. All three sound quite different. The 5120 has Gretsch Humbucker pickups, which don't sound like either of the most common Gretsch pickups (Filtertrons or Dynasonics), but also don't sound like Gibson/Epiphone humbuckers. The Gretschbuckers are brighter, especially if you adjust the polepieces to be higher on one coil than the other. They are different sounding than the Casino's P-90's too. I'd describe the P-90's as meatier in the mid-range and punchier in the low range, while the Gretschbuckers have a thinner, crisper sound. The 5420 has Blacktop Filtertrons, which sound even brighter and crisper yet, with sparkly cleans that also take well to dirt. Each of the three is different enough to my ears to warrant keeping all three. The 5420 is much closer to the Brian Setzer tone. Eddie Cochran's guitar had a P-90 at the neck and a Dynasonic single coil at the bridge. Gretsch actually makes an Eddie Cochran model, but it's a pro-line model so costs a couple grand. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt4356 Posted March 30, 2016 Share Posted March 30, 2016 I have a gretsch 5422, the current models double cut. The pickups on mine are very different to p90s and I think the pickups on the older model were closer to a humbucker tone. The build quality is perfect, faultless even! I tried several casino when searching for a hollow body but the Gretsch suited what I wanted better, it's my number one to pickup and play! If possible I would go for the newer 54XX models or even the new streamliner models, to me the newer seem to feel better and have more of the Gretsch sound! If buying used check the bridge, I believe the 51XX models had floating bridges which a lot of people took to fixing in place! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shakey64 Posted March 31, 2016 Author Share Posted March 31, 2016 I have both a Casino, a 5120, and the newer model that replaced the 5120, called the 5420. All three sound quite different. The 5120 has Gretsch Humbucker pickups, which don't sound like either of the most common Gretsch pickups (Filtertrons or Dynasonics), but also don't sound like Gibson/Epiphone humbuckers. The Gretschbuckers are brighter, especially if you adjust the polepieces to be higher on one coil than the other. They are different sounding than the Casino's P-90's too. I'd describe the P-90's as meatier in the mid-range and punchier in the low range, while the Gretschbuckers have a thinner, crisper sound. The 5420 has Blacktop Filtertrons, which sound even brighter and crisper yet, with sparkly cleans that also take well to dirt. Each of the three is different enough to my ears to warrant keeping all three. The 5420 is much closer to the Brian Setzer tone. Eddie Cochran's guitar had a P-90 at the neck and a Dynasonic single coil at the bridge. Gretsch actually makes an Eddie Cochran model, but it's a pro-line model so costs a couple grand. thanks Parabar!..exactly what I wanted to know. I'm eyeing the 5120's....One that ive been watching has upgraded TV JONES Powertron in the neck, Powertron Plus in the bridge. Also, eyeing the newer 5420's. I can get a new one around $700. Really want the one in Orange. I have two weeks off from work,,for vacation, so I'm definatley gonna snag a Gretsch and spend some quality time with it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
357bullfrog Posted April 1, 2016 Share Posted April 1, 2016 I hope you get it cause I want to see pictures??? I been wanting a Gretsch for a loooong time. Since I first herd Duane Eddy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JerseyRay Posted April 3, 2016 Share Posted April 3, 2016 Did you check out a epiphone swingster? That's the one always being compared to gretch 51xx's. Most reviews I saw seemed to lean towards the epi. I've got one, played the Gretch's liked the looks but didn't like the feel of them, but that's just me... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sledge57 Posted April 3, 2016 Share Posted April 3, 2016 My brother loves his Swingster but neither of us have tried a Gretsch yet... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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