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Classic looks, Classic sound... Classic.

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The Classic is a bargain addition to Premier's awkwardly named but universally acclaimed Series. These are drums with top features, but in order to keep the price down, options are restricted. All drums are maple, and there are five shell-pack sets available in limited colours.

Design and features

The Classic title refers to the fact this kit is, like the very first Premier Series, a six-ply, straight-sided maple shell set. That's North American maple, by the way, the real maple syrup stuff. You don't get the option of birch or Gen-X maple-birch mix, and you can't have four-ply supported shells. But that's fine – six-ply maple is standard for a pro set.

The price is also anchored by the fact the kit is shipped as a shell pack, squeezed into two cardboard boxes. You can buy an accompanying, matching wood shell snare, although it's not compulsory. Premier recognises the fact that drummers buying a quality kit may already have a favourite snare or want to buy something extra special. If you do opt for a matching snare there are two: a 14"x5½" or 14"x6½". Go for the shallower model, like the one here, and it has a new double-ended lug rather than the usual oval lugs. The ovals, being quite large, would have required offsetting, which Premier didn't want. The new design is a bit lumpy and doesn't match the elegant oval lugs on the rest of the kit quite as well as it might. Still, the snare's just an option, and all the lugs are set on some of the chunkiest rubber gaskets around.

The snare also has a new throw-off. This has a flat side lever suspiciously like Premier's classic from the '60s. It works smoothly enough and is not as cumbersome as some modern designs. Taking the drum apart, we also noticed a nice design detail on the snare butt-end: a ridged clamp that bites into the snare tape as you tighten it, so it can't slip. The 20-strand steel snares themselves have solid end plates and hug the gently dipping snare beds, smoothly and almost invisibly shaved into the sharp, decently finished bearing edges.

The five available shell packs cover most popular choices. There's one with a 20"x18" kick and four with the 22"x18". Toms are described as either 'Short' (10"x7") or 'Quick' (10"x8"). The review kit is the Modern Rock-22 with popular mainstream sizes: 10"x8", 12"x9", 16"x16" and 22"x18". You can buy add-on drums separately, so your options are in fact barely reduced in the long run.

Choice of finishes is limited to four Premium Sparkle lacquers and two Standard lacquers. We'd be more than happy with the densely glittery red sparkle of the review kit. The newly resurrected 'P' badge is quite a sophisticated job. It's embossed and stands out proudly from the drum, surrounded by a thin rubber border. At the base of the 'P' there's the script Premier logo and below you'll find the legend 'Premier Classic', which identifies the drum line. Quite a bold visual statement compared with most of today's badges. And why not?

Small toms are clamped to a bass drum mount RokLok holder with brand new flush fitting ISO mounting. Rather than the usual bulky outer steel band, this one is snuck right in under the top hoop, just fractionally clear of the shell. It's a smart, unobtrusive solution that allows significantly closer positioning of your toms. Thick, springy rubber grommet mouldings ensure the isolation mount positions easily and securely. Aside from this, the kit benefits from all the other design details that have made the Series popular with many of today's top drummers. We particularly like the integrated memory locks, which slot into the base of each mounting block – toms and floor tom legs, for instance – each completing a sensuous oval.