Gretsch claims on their website that they have been making the USA drums the same way since the mid fifties when they came out with the 6-ply shells......so, I would say, Round Badge, Stopsign badge, Square badge are pretty much the same save for some minor hardware details....they all sound like Gretsch to my ears, so I say save some $$ and snag them!

The shells were made the same way by Jasper until around 2002 . But the bearing edges have changed since the 70's , so the round badge drums will sound a bit different than the more modern drums .

The Stop sign models all used the same shell. Jasper combination gumwood/maple, six ply for the toms and eight for the kick. Around 1973 Gretsch changed the way they manufactured their bearing edges. They changed from a very rounded edge - called the pencilled edge - to the classic 30 degree edge still in use today . The difference in sound is dramatic. The rounded edge sends an enormous amount of the energy of the drum hit into the shell, resulting in a less resonant when hit at higher volumes.

Gretsch made the change because of the number of rock players wanting to play their drums harder without choking the sound of the drum. The shells were also thinnner from the mid 70's and vent holes were placed in the toms . Point - nothing is going to sound exactly like the round badge kit you played unless it IS a round badge kit .

My 2000 Broadkasters definitely have more resonance , bottom end and a wider tuning range than my 62 Gretsch kit . And then there is the problem with tight fitting heads on the vintage sets . Violin

hmm, so if i ask my drumbuilder to cut me some "pencilled" edges i should come close to the old sound even with shells from the 80ies/90ies?