Phil Rudd snare drum... Roll Call

[Jules]

This was a great snare drum, and well conceived. Sonor revived the Sonor Signature Badge, and added the Chrome Over Brass option which has been missing from the Sonor catalog until that point. Probably 2,500 or more were made over the course of its production life and comparatively you don't see them for sale in large numbers.

Here is our friend Aaron Edgar playing his in 2012:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dkjNYj2-8wo

Interesting notes about Phil's touring snares of the 70's and 80's: A deep scrub of the internet finds him playing Sonor snares once in a while, but he frequently (and maybe most often) played Gretsch snares, and there are pics online of him playing other brands, as well. Ironically, on the Let There be Rock video filmed in 1979 in Paris France, he used Gretsh snare drums and could be seen swapping one for another before the beginning of Hell Aint a Bad Place to Be.

He used a Phonic set for the tour and in one picture I found (I will include this and other photos in a separate topic) there is duct tape apparently holding the butt plate in position on a Gretsch snare that appears to be a wooden shell.

While the Phil Rudd production snares (and the one used in promotional materials) came with the more common weight die cast hoops, Phil actually toured with snares fitted with Hella hoops, as seen in concert footage.

Incidentally, I bought 3 brand new ones over the course of the years. Two for myself and one as a give away for my drumandstage.com (or was it .net by then) in 2009 or 2010. I have two currently for sale, on with the older style Hella Hoops.

Photo Credit: sonormuseum.de

[Frank Godiva]

Great snare. I’ve had 2 over the years. But I would avoid his Signature kit. It was made from basswood.

[Jules]

Great snare. I’ve had 2 over the years. But I would avoid his Signature kit. It was made from basswood.

I am not sure that Basswood is a reason not to buy the shell set. It was chosen for low fundamental tone, which Phil is known for.

[Jules]

I mentioned in the Danny Carey tread that the Phil Rudd snare drum had lugs unique to that model. And when Phil was touring, he was using Hella Hoops, as can be seen in the videos. For the lower priced snares such as the Phil Rudd, Danny Carey, and who knows what else, I think there is a difference between what the Artists actually have and the retail models. I don't know what was specifically different about the lugs other than the casting was slightly different, and I think the plating may have been chrome over the base metal rather than the better copper, nickel, chrome.

PR Lugs.jpeg (19.2 KiB) Viewed 6903 times

[Frank Godiva]

If they wanted a quality wood for low fundamental then they should have went with Mahogany like old Premiers. Basswood screams cheap cheap cheap. Like CB700 cheap. Look at the resale on those kits. At the bottom for a reason

The only other Sonor kit made from basswood was the bottom of the line 1007.

[Jules]

I think cheap is what they were going for. And, as far as I know they sold good, at $999 MAP if I remember correctly. Maybe they didn't expect them to sell at a higher price point. Funny thing, too, is that you don't see them for sale very often.

Something else about wood shells... sometimes companies make decisions based on trends that don't always result in better products. AN example is from when I was a dealer. The 3003 shell pack was a blend of Maple and Basswood. The 3005s were all Maple, and everyone that I know of that had played both favored the sound of the Maple and Basswood. But, the competition was promoting "All Maple" shells, and the consumer thought it was superior to have all of the same wood. Gretsch is a fine example of a company who has build an entire history of blending woods, and it's hard to deny "That Great Gretsch Sound". Even Pearl has a new(ish) shell with a pretty similar layup to the Gretsch USA Custom, with Maple and Gum.

[DaveInNZ]

I have a Phil Rudd snare that I picked up pretty cheaply. Swapped a Dual Glide throw onto it as all the rubber had perished on the fitted throw off. It's a good drum but in my opinion, not a great drum. If I compare it for instance, to my Pearl All-Purpose COB (the Stewart Copeland snare of mysterious provenance), the Pearl just goes harder. If I compare it to my Premier Carmine Appice signature snare (model 2016) the Phil Rudd drum is brighter and speaks more clearly, but lacks the snare crunch the Premier has from it's parallel action.

If I were gigging, it's probably a drum I'd reach for as one I'm less precious about.