Sonor AQ2 Bop Kit and HS LT 2000 Hardware Set

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| JUNE 2018 WWW.MUSICRADAR.COM/RHYTHM

GEAR REVIEW

£792 (kit), £318 (hardware) Arising from Sonor’s

recent extensive overhaul, this AQ2 series kit is a big

step forward for aspirational Sonor owners

SONOR AQ2 BOP

KIT AND HS LT 2000

HARDWARE SET

WORDS: GEOFF NICHOLLS

THIS SNARE HAS THE FEEL OF A

DRUM TWICE THE PRICE. AND

THANKFULLY SO DOES THE SOUND,

WITH ITS LUXURIOUS, ALMOST

CHOCOLATEY TONE, AND

SNARE-RICH SCRUNCH

STUNNING FINISH

Aqua Silver Burst is just one

of a choice of four classy

lacquer ﬁ nishes. The maple

bass drum hoops are

ﬁ nished to match

Build

Although the AQ2 looks typically Sonor, it

represents a major overhaul with lots of

up-market features and components. As such

this is not a cheap starter kit but more of a

mid-priced aspirational set. Gone are the

9-ply poplar shells of the SSE to be replaced

by the former Force Select maple shells.

These have a mix of three plies of Chinese

maple enclosed on the outside and the inside

by twin plies of Canadian maple – making

seven plies in total. Snares, toms and small

bass drums (14", 16") have 5.8mm-thick shells

while 18" (illustrated), 20" and 22" bass drums

are 7.2mm.

The AQ2’s elevated spec continues with the

ﬁ nish – the old plastic wraps replaced by four

high-gloss lacquers plus a single Delmar White

Marine Pearl wrap for the traditionalists. The

review kit is in eye-popping and beautifully

silky Aqua Silver Burst. It’s a stunner, but

maybe not everyone’s cup of tea and the

alternatives are rather more restrained

Titanium Quartz, Brown Fade and Transparent

Black. (In passing, note the AQ1 also now has

lacquered shells which are derived from the

former Essential Force shells of Asian birch.)

The AQ2’s maple shells are coupled with

complementary lacquered maple bass drum

hoops which add further to the up-market

image. And they feel a lot tougher than some

onor has re-vamped all its drum

series so they now fall into

easy-to-follow brackets. Thus the

SQ1 and SQ2 are the ﬂ agship lines,

while the AQ1 (entry-level) and AQ2

(intermediate level, as seen here) are the

gateway products. In between are the niche

ProLite and Vintage series. That’s it,

easy-peasy.

The new AQ2 extends the market

pioneered by the much-copied Jungle series

and small-footprint SSE sets, but goes

further in cleverly covering all bases. Or

should that be basses, since the AQ2 is

offered in ﬁ ve initial shell-packs with 14", 16",

18", 20" and 22" bass drums. You can almost

hear Sonor’s design and marketing teams

slapping one another on the back.

There’s the 14" Martini, 16" Safari, 18" Bop

(pictured), 20" Studio and 22" Stage outﬁ ts.

Sonor’s Product Manager, Frank Boestﬂ eisch,

explains, “The new AQ2 series is part of

Sonor’s realignment which began two years

ago. Our entire drum line portfolio

underwent a reorganisation; all our

made-in-China Force series (Smart Force,

Essential Force, Select Force) and SSE

Special Edition sets (Martini, Safari, Bop)

were discontinued by the end of 2017

and were replaced by the new AQ1 and

AQ2 series.”

RHY281.gear_sonor.indd 84 4/19/18 1:37 PM

Summary of content (4 pages)

PAGE 1
GEAR REVIEW SONOR AQ2 BOP KIT AND HS LT 2000 HARDWARE SET £792 (kit), £318 (hardware) Arising from Sonor’s recent extensive overhaul, this AQ2 series kit is a big step forward for aspirational Sonor owners WORDS: GEOFF NICHOLLS S onor has re-vamped all its drum series so they now fall into easy-to-follow brackets. Thus the SQ1 and SQ2 are the flagship lines, while the AQ1 (entry-level) and AQ2 (intermediate level, as seen here) are the gateway products.
PAGE 2
Sonor Asian wood hoops we’ve encountered in the past. The claws are probably the only giveaway to the AQ2’s intermediate status, being pressed steel rather than cast. Still, they look decent enough and have the now obligatory isolating rubber liners. Each drum has a full complement of lugs – and these too are newly designed, although typically Sonor with the twin-mallet logo. They are cast and, as with all the hardware, radiantly chromed and polished.
PAGE 3
GEAR REVIEW They say… Frank Boestfleisch Frank Boestfleisch is the Product Manager for Drums and Marching at Sonor in Germany SHELLS Shells are three plies of Chinese maple enclosed on the inside and outside by two plies of Canadian maple What’s the idea behind the new AQ ranges? “A lot of our customers loved the compactness of the old SSE sets, but were asking for more professional sonic qualities, as these kits were made from poplar wood.
PAGE 4
CYMBAL AND TOM COMBINATION SONOR SMART MOUNT The combined small tom and cymbal holder can easily be converted to a double tom holder if preferred The small tom is hung from the new Smart Mount with its two-point isolation bracket that does not interfere with the tuning rods First impressions – you lose the ultra-tight bonk of the jungle/drum’n’bass 16", but don’t quite achieve the full-fat roundness of a 20".