Gretsch G5655TG Electromatic Center Block Jr. - Orange Stain Review

A 21st Century Gretsch

I have been playing Gretsch electric guitars since 1965.Back then i had a Nashville.This 5655 is similar in style but much improved in comfort and versatility, with a fixed bridge, real f-holes and a tone knob instead of the mud switch. The 5655 is lightweight, thin, and the neck has much better upper fret access than the 1965 edition. The Blacktop Broadtrons are not as powerful… read more as the Filtertrons That I have on my Player's Edition Jet, but they still sound almost as good to my ears thru the same amp, especially when you add an overdrive pedal.I had Sweetwater install Grover locking tuners and I attached a Vibramate Spoiler to the Bigsby to complete the update of this excellent semi hollow guitar.I am really enjoying it and the price.

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Amazing guitar! A sleeping Dragon that roars and growl when you open it up with gain, and sings like an angel.

This is the third Gretsch that I have owned now. To be honest, this was never a brand I ever considered up until about 3 years ago. I absolutely fell in love with semi-hollowbody, and now fully hollowbody guitars, and sought that type of tone. I gave Gretsch a try and never looked back. I could go into exhaustive detail, but this guitar deserves all the attention. Gretsch has a… read more tone all its own, and each type of Gretsch guitar has it's own niche, tone and feel, but every one is still a Gretsch. These guitars have moved, quickly up to my favorites, despite them all being in the Midrange price bracket. They are just so darn versatile. The G5655TG is just a stunningly beautiful guitar. The orange stain and gold hardware are not done any justice whatsoever, even though the photos at Sweetwater are fantastic. This is just gorgeous. I looked over every aspect of it. Not a cosmetic or build flaw that I could find. I also attribute that to the inspection process at Sweetwater, but this is fantastically built. The F holes are immaculately bound, as is the entire guitar. The Bigsby is well built, and stays in tune wonderfully when used for what is intended. Gretsch has mastered these tremolo units. This guitar is also very light and extremely comfortable, and ergonomic, to play. The neck fits into the hand well and the 12" radius is familiar and plays lightning quick. This guitar is very resonant and loud acoustically. I can hear the midrange growl and fullness from the built quality in the construction and this translates directly to the pickups when it is plugged in. Despite having 10's strung on this, it plays lightning quick and smooth. There were no dead notes or buzzing on the frets. The frets were so nicely finished and polished. No rough spots and I only felt minor sharpness on the edges in maybe two spot, but I was being really finicky about it. This is quickly remedied with oiling the fingerboard, as nearly every guitar I have ever gotten has had a dry fingerboard at first. The acoustic chambers are cleanly constructed with no splintering, and no overspray. The hardware and tuners are standard for this range and work perfectly. Locking tuners would make string changes a breeze, but nothing else really. Between the exceptionally cut Graphtech nut to the great setup out of the box, this guitar is a winner in all aspects. It is just STUNNING. The best part are the Blacktop Broadtron pickups. They are just amazing sounding. The Broadtrons are full and thick, with the classic Gretsch twang and clarity. These have more midrange oomph and growl. The resonance of the Semi-Hollow construction add so much more air and fullness to the tone and bottom end without becoming boomy. The top end is sweet, but still Gretch-style clear with less strident top end. Clean they still sparkle and give you goosebumps, with full and warm, but clear tone. The neck pickup is clear, even under distortion and the are very responsive to minor changes in pickup height. This leads me to my next point. For whatever reason, this model ships the pickups with really low height. Mine came with around 7/32 on both pickups and the bridge pickup was too low, to the point of wiggling on the bass end. That could have easily happened in shipping. Tonally, I think this might be done to make the guitar more vintage-toned Gretsch, but it doesn't nearly represent the tone of the Broadtrons and their actual description on the Gretsch website. Adjusting these pickups to even what the factory recommends makes a HUGE impact. And since they are Filtertron style pickups, you still get the amazing clarity and sparkle that only Gretch is known for. Single note-lines are singing with a sweeter top end and midrange fullness that easily adjusts to every amp I have, from my SuperSonic 22 to my Marshall, Blackstar and Boss Katana. Metal style crunch and chug is right there with dialing the amp in right. I covered anywhere from jazz, to 80's pop to old school metal and even Godsmack with this guitar! That isn't a joke! The Midrange growl is perfect. Open and airy, but full and snarly with almost a PAF style singing honk to it. It's subtle, but enough to make the guitar sing rather than sound nasal. In fact, one of my favorite settings is on the Katana, on the Brown channel. You don't need a lot of top end with these pickup; keep the bass around 3 o'clock, the mids around 11 o'clock and the treble at about 10 o'clock. Playing with the gain at this point and using the tone/volume knobs yields any tone you can think of. Do as the old players did and use your controls!!! The pots have a great, gradual, full sweep and I don't see a need to change them at this point. I would recommend taking a look at the strings. if they sound plucky or strident, you may want to change them out. But, that's on any guitar. Finally, the awesome thing about Gretsch, is you can add, literally, as much gain as you want and it will still stay clear. It will make you think, 'is my distortion pedal even on??" It's AWESOME. Don't over look Gretsch. Even their solidbody guitars are build with large acoustic chambers and a laminated, arched top, like a semi-hollow, so they have that airy, resonant tone too. The Broadtrons are wonderful and versatile. Any player owes it to him or herself to try Gretsch. Honestly, they are quickly overtaking PRS as my favorites, but it's a close race!!! Check it out!!

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Awesome!

I normally don't write reviews but I feel this needs to be said. I have been playing for many years and have played many guitars. Without getting into all the technical stuff I will simply say if you like the Gretsch sound then I recommend buying this guitar. I have owned a couple of Gretsch guitars over the years and this center block JR is by far the best one I have ever played!!!!… read more Enough said

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Worth it

Upon receiving this guitar I was very surprised by how perfectly it was set up from the factory. Aside from some minor intonation adjustments needed on the bridge saddles, the action was low with no fret buzz whatsoever. While I've owned many Gretsch models, including the Setzer signature, I never really felt comfortable with the large hollowbodies. That is why I decided to get… read more this model. The thin body and compact size feels more natural to me, easier to handle. Sustain is certainly increased by the center block, but it doesn't choke out the body, it's still pretty loud acoustically - unplugged. The neck is slightly thinner than what I'm accustomed to but not uncomfortable. The 4.5 rating is due to the pickups being a little duller than I expected. However, I put it through an equalizer pedal with a slight rise in the upper frequencies and that brought it up to par as per taste. The Bigsby works quite well after stretching new strings and rubbing graphite into to nut slots. I was actually amazed by the tuning stability. The master volume retains high frequencies as the volume is decreased making it exceptionally functional. Tested this guitar last night at a high volume gig in a three piece band and got so many compliments on its sound and appearance. I had a hardshell Gretsch case from a Duo Jet and it fit perfectly.

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