Premier Signia

It's been six years since I use a real treat The best: the warm, round drums. this is the very high end in the firsties, I would do this choice. Truly outstanding, but really expensive

I purchased a Premier Signia kit. Great quality sound, strong hardware.

I've been playing Premier drums since the 70's. I passed along my 70's kit to my grandson a few years ago, but I have owned my Signia hit from around 1997. My Signia's are Premier Blue, which actually look purple depending on the light. The maple shells produce a big, but warm sound I've not experienced playing other kits. They are easy to tune and sound good using a variety of heads. I've never been a fan of Premier hardware, so I run with DW all around. I find the DW hardware supports my style of playing better. I play a Premier wood snare and Sabian AAX's all around.

I bought a Sapphire Signia kit new in the early 90's after searching for my ultimate kit and not finding everything I wanted in one. But the Signia kit had everything I wanted! Thin Shells, reinforcement hoops, lacquered finish, maple, small lug contact, non drilled tom mounting, shells put together at an angle vs. straight, offered 18" deep kick drums with stand receivers which I needed for my Voelker style rack, undersized toms, beautiful color, and sounded amazing!!

My other options were GMS, Noble & Cooley, Yamaha Maple Custom. The Signia encompassed all the features I liked in all these makers, and didn't come with a 6+ month wait time. GMS only offered virgin Kick Drums, Yamaha only offered 16" kick drums at the time, and Noble & Cooley had a huge wait time and cost. I still paid a few grand for my kit, but I wanted the best kit I could find!

I ordered x2 - 22x18, 10", 13" 16" and matching Snare. In hindsight, I would have ordered all the sizes. Since, I recently found a couple orphan matching drums in England which I bought and brought back to add to my kit. I scored a 12" tom and 14" tom. Now if I could just find an 8" and 18" I'll be set! (Not that I'm not already)

I've recorded and toured with these drums many times, and still love them! Nicko McBrain of Iron Maiden (who used to play the Signias) told me "Some of the best drums ever made! Never get rid of them!" So I will take his advice!

I turned a friend on to these shortly after I bought my kit and he also bought a set of Signia's which he still has today as well!

Too bad Premier has gone in the toilet, but I am happy to say that I own a piece of their greatest masterpieces!

made a good living for many years playing drums. Been retired now twenty years in that iturum I have taught myself to play piano dobro guitar now working on fiddle and mandolin I am 66 years young now. If i would have hand the luxury of a kit of premiers when i was first garage banding it before i turned pro and spent my life on the road there is no telling where i would be now.Simply put i learned one thing about all the instuments iI have learned to play .Make your job as easy and as effortlessly as possible make it secound nature get your hands on premier signias and never let go. .i still say i boughtem and i still gottem

I was on tour in the 1990's with the band Deleon Conspiracy, my Tama Rockstar Drumset was stolen out of the back of the van after a show in Berkley, CA. I was in San Francisco the next day and went down to Guitar Center and was speaking to the Drum Manager and told him my story. He said he had a kit in the back that was shipped in from the Premier Drum Factory in England for Faith No More's drummer Mike Bordin. Mike had come by and after testing a couple of kits, I believe he chose a DW Kit instead. I jumped in and asked if I could play the Signia Kit from England, they said yes and I FELL IN LOVE right there in the middle of the drum showroom. I snatched up that kit and took it home that day and started tweaking it with new heads and gibralter hardware. I have toured with the Signia Kit, recorded and still have the same kit today. I cannot find another kit that has the warmth and bigness I require for classic rock tunes. I have been in Stone Sonic for 4 years, recorded twice with it, many shows and it still sounds as good as when I got it back in the 90's. I did switch out the snare to a metal Ludwig back in the early 2000's, it had a similar fat sound to the Signia's but better attack. If you have an opportunity to try a Signia Kit, you will not be disappointed.

I read loads of poorly informed comments on Premier Signia drums posted on the internet,let me put a few things straight for you.

I bought a Premier signia kit in around 1994 (new) and I played it professionally for about 15 years before (stupidly) selling it. The Signia was Premiers greatest triumph and it's top of the range pro kit. All maple, very thin shells, with support hoops, I preferred to fit Remo Ambassador clears to the toms and a Remo Powerstroke 3 coated bass drum head.It sounded wonderful and as I was lucky to be playing it in big venues, it got the best chance to sound at it's best. Sound engineers often marvelled at it and it was capable of being so loud (if required) that often it was not miked up when lesser kits would have had to be. The Signia Marquis which came afterwards was not better (I had one)and by that time, the build quality at Premier's Leicester England factory, was in it's death throws and the workers were obviously trying to kill the company themselves!. I understand (as I had long suspected) that the later Premier Series drums(where the quality improved again for a while)which also had thin shells with support rings (as one of the options) was the same shell as the original Signia's.

Premier signia drums were showered with awards when they were first launched. I've tried other drums since including my present Mapex Saturn, but none sound so great as a signia. I'm always on the look out for a replacement set, but as mine were immaculate when I sold them, I'm struggling to find some as good.

Best set of drums I've ever owned. Big projection, stays in tune, hard hitting, great tone quality, solid hardware, recordings come out beautiful and looks great on stage. Still cant find the original snare for the kit though paid 900 for it.

These druns look and sound like they were made for Kieth Moon but they are too good to be trashed at the end oof the set. I bought and still own a 7 piece Sapphire set that as close today as looking just the way they did 91 years ago right of the box. 24" Base Drum, 18"Floor Tom and the 8, 10, 12 and 14 rack toms will shake house off its foundation. I am moving ito a condo from a house that had a dedicated drum room and I am having a hard time putting them up for sale. I know that I cannot play them in the condo and need to get an electronic set but the SIGNIA Sapphire Drums not only sound great but the are beautiful to look at. I knew after looking at and playing these drums I would never own another set. And now that I soon will be retire and move away from my home to a smaller place and others below or beside me I will need to purchase an elecrtonic set if I wand to continue playing..I ddo.

I purchased this beautiful drums in 1996 and it is the one of best drums.Great sound for any music style-from rock to jazz.Looks is also beautiful.I use Yamaha 900 series hardware.Simple I love my kit and I'm happy to have it.My snare drum is 14x7,22,12,13,16.Cymbals:22"Istambul Mehmet ride,18"K-custom crash-ride,17"K-custom crash,14"A-custom crash,10"Avedis splash and 14"Avedis New Beat hi-hat.Who never played this kit is missing a lot.