Premier Resonator... Shall I?

midgetunderfire

Junior Member
Hi all,

Right. I've been playing Premier drums for quite a long time now, but always at the bottom of the scale with Olympics and APK. My bands getting more serious and I wanna upgrade!

I've come across a beautiful 7 piece Premier Resonator from the early 80's ish thats on sale for about £700 ($1200?) with included rack hardware that Im gawping at in 8/10 con, but theres little chance of me playing it before I commit as its at the other end of the country. Im unsure how these kits sound, but so far have been assured that they're top of the line kits.

Basically has anyone got any opinions or advice about this line of Drum Kit? I love the idea of a fat, full resonating sound as they claim to be and as many other drummers have said, but am still after opinions!

Cheers all,
C
 
I dont have a lot of info on that particular kit but I do get the chance to play a fairly high end Premier every now and then and they are pretty dependable - good sounding drums.

Just one word of caution- you mention you think you want to upgrade because you band's getting 'serious'.

Buy the kit because you want to- not because you think you need it because of where your band is going etc.... Give me one 'getting serious' band that becomes something and i'll give 2000 that are accountants and bartenders etc etc...

By all means buy the kit- just make sure its because you want to. The kits you were talking about with the right heads and tuning and care etc will see you through most bar/gig situations as well as begining recordings etc-(especially with a good producer/recording)
 
I understand pal, the "getting serious" thing isn't the main driver - just perhaps one reason!!

The reason why I would want to spend that much cash on any kit is almost entirely down to me wanting one to play on. would blow my mind to have such an awsome kit to practice on every day!

But I understand what you're saying about smaller kits being fine with the right heads/tuning. Im not expert on tuning but with evans heads and a good few hours experimenting Ive managed to get some good sounds out of my current Olympic that other drummers have complimented. but a very valid word of warning, cheers!
 
I own a Premier Signia kit, so I'm a Premier fan.

But I've never been a fan of the Resonator. While it was their top of the line for the period of time in the 80's, it wasn't exactly a great seller. One store I worked in had one, and we couldn't give the thing away.

If you really want a used upper line Premier kit, I'd hold out for a Signia or Genista. They also had a line called the Projector that was middle-high end kit that was pretty nice.
 
Neil Peart put a set of Resonators side-by-side against the cream of the crop from other drum companies in the 1980s, when he was looking for a new drumset, and found them to be anything but resonant (until he yanked out the inner shell, that is). The full story may be found here.

Seems to me like one of those ideas that was thought up, executed, marketed, and only then tested and found wanting.
 
I'd grab 'em. A 7 piece kit, for $1200. My Luddies (26, 13, 16, 18) cost me $1100. My Yamaha Recording Customs (22, 12, 13, 14) cost me $995. So the price is right, for a 7 piece pro-level kit, in good shape.​
To say the Resonators never sold well, Premier has never sold well, in the US. The Resonators were competing against the huge Japanese invasion (Tama/Pearl/Yamaha) in the 80's. The only cat, I can think of, that was playing Premier, was Rod Morgenstein. He seemed to make 'em sound "pretty good".​
Too bad Lars wasn't sittin' behind a Premier kit. Probably be a whole different story, then.​
 
To say the Resonators never sold well, Premier has never sold well, in the US. The Resonators were competing against the huge Japanese invasion (Tama/Pearl/Yamaha) in the 80's. The only cat, I can think of, that was playing Premier, was Rod Morgenstein. He seemed to make 'em sound "pretty good".​
Too bad Lars wasn't sittin' behind a Premier kit. Probably be a whole different story, then.​

I wasn't comparing the Resonator to Tama/Pearl, but to other Premier lines.

One store I worked in, we sold plenty of Projectors, Signias, and Genistas.

The Resonator sat and sat, and sat, and only sold once it was discounted to a fraction of it's whole sale price.
 
You should hear it for yourself 1st not just go by what someone else says. That pretty much goes for any drum, cymbal, etc.. I have heard a few top of the line kits that do not sound any better than a few mid range kits IMO.

I will not name companies as thats a matter of personal preference and everyone is different.. It may be worth it to ride all the way out there and hear them even if you dont like em and dont buy em atleast you'll know for sure
 
I own both a 7pc Genista and a 6pc Signia limited, so I'm also a Premier fan. I would tell you that if you're a Premier fan, you'll love the drums. However, I'd also wait and hold out for a Signia/Genista. Still the top high end stuff, just a little "newer". You won't be disappointed.
 
I wasn't comparing the Resonator to Tama/Pearl, but to other Premier lines.

One store I worked in, we sold plenty of Projectors, Signias, and Genistas.
Still ... apples to oranges. Resonators were made from 1972-1992. Projectors came out in 1984. Signa and Genista drums didn't even appear until the 90's. Check Premier drum history here ... http://drumset.premier-percussion.com/history Of course Projector, Signa and Genista would outsell Resonator. Modern series almost always outsells "older lineage".
In the 60's/70's, almost all Brit. drummers abandoned Premier, once they hit the "big time". Keith Moon and Carl Palmer being the "only" two exceptions I can think of.​
The 90's, still, not a lot of cats playing Premier, Nico McBrain and Brad Wilks probably being the most visible.​
Wasn't really until just a few years ago, Guitar Center started selling Premier, and of course, a boatload of $800 Cabria sets .... and now, I don't think GC sells 'em, anymore.​
 
Just a word from me, from crappy mobile phone. I owned the beast for years. No comparison w. any other Prem, louder, fatter, darker. Steal it, kill for it, richer and more musical than any other drum at that time, far east makers just doesnt match. Pinnacle. Thunder. Poetic. No kidding. Overengineered to the extreme, you get two shells in one drum. I dont know if anyone will read this so Im not going to write in-depth. If I see that you are really interested Ill givel user experience with all pros and cons. Im world class drummer and it was my drum of choice till I got Sonor cheers
 
I had one, toured with it twice, recorded with it, changed bands and toured again. They are bomb proof and sound ok but a modern Tama Rockstar kit is better. Get the Signia or Genista if you want Prem as they are better.
 
Just a word from me, from crappy mobile phone. I owned the beast for years. No comparison w. any other Prem, louder, fatter, darker. Steal it, kill for it, richer and more musical than any other drum at that time, far east makers just doesnt match. Pinnacle. Thunder. Poetic. No kidding. Overengineered to the extreme, you get two shells in one drum. I dont know if anyone will read this so Im not going to write in-depth. If I see that you are really interested Ill givel user experience with all pros and cons. Im world class drummer and it was my drum of choice till I got Sonor cheers

The above quote is right on target . . . I had a full Premier Resonator kit from 1984 to 1993. It sounded GREAT! Keep the inner shells in for power stuff . . . take them out and the set opens wide up for jazz play. Two different sets in one! I believe they were birch and by the way . .. same himass lug structure as the Yamaha Recording Custom . . . on the rack toms at least.

Really enjoyed that old kit . . . I played a Yamaha Maple Custom from 1993 to 2012 . . . another amazing kit and just switch to my new Yamaha PHX.

Maybe it's just fond memories, but my Premier Resonator and orginal Slingerland 58N drum kits were a joy to play!
 
I can vouch for the Signas as well...

...I always wish for an 11" diameter...but thats a raritiy in most lines.
 
Being the OP brought this question to the floor 25 months ago .... it probably doesn't matter.​
 
The thread was re-opened by the "world class drummer" with 1 post under his belt. Where that came from, who knows, guy was probably doing a general Premier drum search.
And he said a lot more about the topic than an 800 post guy.
LOL

Anyway, I had a set of Sigs when they came out. The double tom mounts had a habit of the screws for the ball mount messing up, and it would strip the mount. Also, the tom mounts are hooked into the tube lugs, and some of them will vibrate and make noise, especially on the floor tom legs(which were also hooked up the the lugs) I did not like having to stuff it with paper towels and tape in order to record them. I do not think the Genista's had this problem with their mounts.
 
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