Watch It First
Gretsch just took its Center Block Streamliner and put it on a diet.
The G2655T Jr keeps the twang, keeps the Bigsby, and trims the body down to something that doesn’t feel like you’re gigging with a canoe strapped to your torso.
Question is whether the smaller body loses any of that classic Gretsch honk. Short answer: not really, and in a couple of ways it’s actually better.
What’s Actually New Here
The „Jr” in the name isn’t marketing fluff. This is a genuinely smaller double-cutaway body than the standard G2622T Center Block, and Gretsch built a center block into the middle of it, same idea as the bigger models.
That block runs from the neck joint through to the tail, so the top and back can still resonate around the edges (you get real semi-hollow air in the tone) while the middle stays solid enough to fight off howling feedback at gig volume.
It’s basically the guitar for people who love the hollow body electric sound but got tired of chasing squeals every time they stood near the amp.
Playability
The neck is a Soft „C” profile with a 12-inch fingerboard radius, and honestly it’s one of the more comfortable necks Gretsch puts out at this level. Nothing baseball-bat-shaped here.
22 medium jumbo frets give you enough room to bend without the strings feeling like they’re going to slip off the edge, and the smaller body means it sits differently across your lap than a full-size hollow body. Less balancing act, more just… playing.
If you’ve got smaller hands or you’re coming from a Strat-shaped guitar, this transition is way less awkward than jumping straight into a full Electromatic hollow body.
The Bigsby Factor
It ships with a Bigsby-licensed B50 vibrato, and that thing is doing a lot of the emotional heavy lifting on this guitar. Smooth shimmer and pitch wobble on chords, gentle vocal-style swells, all present and correct.
Don’t expect Floyd Rose dive bombs. That’s not what this is for. It’s for making a single sustained chord sound like it’s breathing.
Tone – Broad’Tron BT-3S Pickups
These are Gretsch’s high-output Broad’Tron BT-3S humbuckers, and they’re punchier than the standard Broad’Trons you’ll find on cheaper Streamliners. Alnico 5 and Alnico 2 magnets combine for stronger mids without losing that airy Gretsch top end.
The push/pull on the master volume knob splits the coils, which opens up genuinely useful single-coil textures. Suddenly you’ve got access to clean, chimey tones without swapping guitars mid-set.
Rolled-back tone knob and a bit of reverb and you’re in classic rockabilly territory. Crank the amp and dig in and it holds together for surprisingly heavy stuff too – it won’t out-metal a proper humbucker superstrat, but it’ll cover grungier, dirtier rock tones without falling apart.
If you’re coming from single-coil or P90 land and wondering how this compares, it’s worth reading up on P90-loaded guitars for a sense of where the Broad’Trons sit tonally – somewhere between vintage twang and modern push.
Build Quality
Maple body and top, nato neck, laurel fingerboard with the pearloid Neo-Classic thumbnail inlays Gretsch loves so much. Bone nut, chrome hardware, Adjusto-Matic bridge for easy intonation tweaks.
None of it screams „budget,” which is impressive because this thing is priced well below Gretsch’s Electromatic and Players Edition lines. Fit and finish on the review sample was genuinely tight – no sharp fret ends, no gaps in the binding.
Who Should Buy This
Anyone who wants that unmistakable Gretsch clatter and jangle but doesn’t want to lug around (or store) a full-depth hollow body. Also great for gigging guitarists who’ve had feedback problems with true hollow bodies at higher stage volumes.
If you play indie, rockabilly, surf, or just want one guitar that can do jangly cleans and gritty rhythm work without switching pickups mid-song, this checks a lot of boxes.
The Niggles
- The stock tuners work fine but aren’t locking – expect minor tuning drift with heavy Bigsby use until strings settle in.
- Thumbnail inlays are a Gretsch signature but they’re not for everyone visually.
- The Broad’Tron BT-3S pickups are good, not legendary – some players will want to swap in a TV Jones down the line.
Gretsch G2655T Jr vs the Bigger Streamliners
Compared to the standard G2622T Center Block, you’re losing a bit of body size and a touch of low-end thump, but you’re gaining comfort and, in a lot of rooms, better feedback control. For players who found the regular Center Block a bit much on the lap, the Jr fixes that without changing the fundamental DNA of the guitar.
It also sits nicely alongside a semi-hollow bass if you’re building out a full band’s worth of that airy, resonant tone – there’s something satisfying about a rhythm section that all breathes the same way.
Specs at a Glance
- Body: Maple, semi-hollow with center block
- Neck: Nato, Soft „C” profile
- Fingerboard: Laurel, 12″ radius, 22 medium jumbo frets
- Pickups: 2x Broad’Tron BT-3S humbuckers, coil-split via push/pull volume
- Bridge: Adjusto-Matic with Bigsby B50 vibrato
- Nut width: 42.9mm, bone nut
- Scale length: 629mm
- Hardware: Nickel, closed die-cast tuners
Amp Pairing
This guitar rewards a clean-ish amp with some headroom. A Fender-style blackface tone lets the Broad’Trons breathe, and the semi-hollow resonance fills in the low-mids that a slab body Strat just can’t produce naturally.
Push a bit of gain and you get a lovely edge-of-breakup growl that’s perfect for indie rock rhythm parts. Stack a fuzz or overdrive on top and the center block keeps things controlled instead of collapsing into feedback mush, which is honestly the whole point of this design.
For anyone building a pedalboard around this guitar, a compressor ahead of a light overdrive tends to flatter the Broad’Trons nicely – they’ve got a fair bit of output on tap already, so you don’t need much extra push to get them singing.
Final Verdict
The G2655T Streamliner Jr does something a lot of „smaller version” guitars fail to do – it doesn’t feel like a compromise. You still get real semi-hollow resonance, a Bigsby that actually adds character instead of just being a cool prop, and pickups versatile enough to cover jangle, rock, and everything in between.
It punches well above its price bracket. If the full-size Center Block always looked appealing but felt like a lot of guitar, this is the version that finally makes sense. IMO it’s one of the smarter buys in Gretsch’s current lineup.
