Made in China - 22 frets - 2 humbuckers - Bigsby - 2 volume and tone knob for the pickups, this has already been said.

Because I would have no other place in this paper to discuss the negative aspects, I am here. The only three problems I found with this guitar are: plastic plate that sounds very hollow and which gives an impression of fragility, the plate of the jack was loose, and the volume control on the bridge pickup was loose. In short, made in China ... I'm done for the bad sides. (!)

UTILIZATION

The handle is simply ... grandiose. It is very fine and the grip is more than pleasant. In addition, there is a feeling of "length" of the handle, even if it has only 22 frets, the skirt is cut until the 21st. Suffice to say that access to acute is divine.
Ergonomic side, nothing wrong. Despite a body / handle unusual, the balance is perfect. We do not encounter problems with weight unevenly distributed as in SG. The skirts are very short, slightly oversized, but the playability is still increasing, and it is not at the expense of design. So it's a successful challenge for Gretsch.
This gives a good sound easily, no hack for long hours is a guitar that does not disappoint. However, I do not really advise a beginner.

SOUNDS

I use it in concert, we play many times, but in a rock style. Anyway, I use it mainly to play good Grunge (Soundgarden, Pearl Jam), it goes very well on the AC / DC (.. we are not in a form, but SG almost!), ZZ Top, but also on the System of a Down. Basically, you can be sure that it sends heavy. I never really saw what it looked on the bright, but I think this is not what is required of a guitar like this one. A pinch of blues + a disto type only TS9 or Blues Driver, it works very well.

I find it, anyway, very versatile. At the sound, of course, but also in terms of use. Let me explain: it has all the qualities of a great rhythm guitar and an excellent guitar solo. I draw a sound rather bold, but still remains very accurate, even given in D or in C. I would also argue that this is an excellent concert guitar. A user has raised this point in an earlier opinion, but I find the mids very clear (obviously, it can sound slightly typing), and live it is not negligible.

Hardware level, I associate it with a Flextone III XL Line 6 + a Cab Marshall AVT. I play on a Soldano SLO Modelling 100 (very successful, but I'm not advertising for Flextone here, of course not <img class="smiley" src="https://fr.audiofanzine.com/images/audiofanzine/interface/smileys/icon_wink.gif" alt="" /> ) And it passes nickel. In short, drive solid metal but not for me.

Level effects, I use the very common and all going very well. WH4 Whammy, Ibanez TS9, Big Muff ... No problem the above. Knowingly, I know that some effects tend to "emphasize" a rotten side of his guitar, to alter, but this is not the case here.

Even if I am repeating myself, I prefer to use the saturation grunge sound generally marked early 90s. I like to use it to play Rage Against the Machine, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, I think it comes out particularly well. She also surprises on Toxicity System.

OVERALL OPINION

I use it for two years, I only find the positive. Nothing to throw inside, it's versatile, reliable, quality Gretsch at an affordable price, and that's great. I tried many other models, and now I move on this model and a Start that I forsake increasingly for Gretsch, particularly in compositions. I think the corvette has much more personality.
Needless to say that the price / quality ratio is excellent. It goes far beyond some guitars that cost twice as much, trust me. With experience, I do it again this choice, except maybe that I'll be buying it rid of my Start ... <img class="smiley" src="https://fr.audiofanzine.com/images/audiofanzine/interface/smileys/icon_lol.gif" alt="" />