Got my new Sonor SQ1's today....Meh..

So let's see......it's not too much trouble for you to complain about a company on the internet to thousands of people about a QC issue but it's too much trouble for you to give said company/dealer/distributor a chance to rectify it? IMHO, that's kind of weak.

This is silly.

This is a forum for discussion - why on earth wouldn't he mention his problems with his brand new kit.

This isn't Fess's problem with his manufacturing and letting a less than great kit through production and QC - it's Sonor's.

I would be really curious to see what they say if you mention it to them - I'd be willing to bet they want do some kind of exchange.

You should contact them - I bet they hop on it.
 
It wouldn't take much to shoot a few pics, send them off to Sonor, and see what their response it.
 
I don't want anyone to misunderstand. Some of the tension rods are not straight, and the bearing edge is not quite as smooth as I would have expected. I do not consider these lemons. They tuned up great, look good and I really like them. I was just surprised by what I consider a couple of minor QC issues given their reputation. Any company can, on occasion, have some small issues sneek through.
I hope this puts an end to this.

Hiya Fess ?

Mate......sorry to hear about the QC issues.

I get in a flap if a pair of drumsticks have QC issues......so given the money you've spent, you are dealing with it very well.

I'd be a total mess no doubt ?

So now that these QC issues have been identified after your review/unboxing, do you think it's worth taking them back to Sonor?

I only ask because you still love the sound.

You obviously can see more positives in the kit than negatives.....but yeah, those few tension rods being stiff is a bit of a kicker.
 
My SQ2 kit was flawless, edges and finish inside and out - possibly the best edges I had ever seen or felt.

My Vintage Series kit (German-made) had rough bearing edges in places, tiny bubbles of hard material at some places on the bearing edges. The interiors were rough in some places and you could clearly see where the interior lacquer had been unevenly applied.

I wrote to Sonor about this and another (hardware) issue on the kit. This was part of their reply:

"Generally our high QC standards haven´t changed over the years, which doesn´t mean that there can´t happen a mistake, as the majority of our production and QC steps are still made by humans, not by machines. Talking about the difference between SQ² and Vintage, the main difference is that SQ² is an absolute individual and custom made line with each drum manufactured individually, while the Vintage series is a regular drum series. One part of the substantial price difference between the two series (a single SQ² bass drum is more expensive than a complete 3pc. Vintage set) are the much more extended QC processes between each production steps compared to a regular drum series. An SQ² drum is subject to much more stringent controls than any other regular drum series which of course affects the final price for such a product."

While I have moved on and am completely over this entire episode, I found it interesting Sonor would put forth such an explanation for inconsistencies in their product - essentially admitting a tiered QC approach to German-made drums.
 
Just stopping in to apologize to Fess and Pushy for my over the top remarks. Nobody asked me to but I woke up today feeling kinder and gentler. Enjoy your new kit. ;)

Thanks, no problems, sorry if I got a bit snarky. Just the usual internet forum fun.


One note about the drums though. The interior of the shells are extremely well done. Try as I might, I cannot find the seam
 
While I have moved on and am completely over this entire episode, I found it interesting Sonor would put forth such an explanation for inconsistencies in their product - essentially admitting a tiered QC approach to German-made drums.
Well, there is your problem. You didn't pay them enough to care. I blame you, really. So inconsiderate. ;)
 
I got to agree with Darth Vater here. I have been in Fess's situation where a high end kit was sent to me with quality control issues. Did I complain about it on a forum to a bunch of people, potentially hurting a companies ability to sell their product? No. I contacted the rep I dealt with in the purchase of the drums to explain the situation and gave them first chance to stand behind their product. And they did everything in their power to fix the situation right away including giving me additional gear for my troubles. Other than this post, I have never talked about the situation on any public forum, nor will I mention what company it was, what level of kit it was, or what the actual problem was. I paid good money for a product, it arrived with problems and the company stood by their product and made things right. If anything, I should be singing praises about them.

I know the products we buy are made by people, even the ones that are made primarily by automated machinery. There are always people behind those products and people can have bad days. I would much prefer to give those people a chance to fix the mistake rather than spread rumor of quality issues of an entire company just because one person had a bad day or a laps of judgement. If the company gave me push back on my issues, then I would likely let people know about the situation as a warning to others.

Fess, I would contact the place you got the kit from letting them know you have X number of bent bass drum tension rods and would like to have replacement ones sent out to you. For the bearing edges, you have the right attitude about them. They may not be baby butt smooth, but they are not affecting the sound. If you really want to, some 400 grit sand paper will smooth those out in a few quick passes. On the other hand, maybe the roughness of the edges is part of the design. I have heard some drum builders don't like baby butt smooth edges because they feel the head sticks too much to them and doesn't seat as easily as an edge that is a little rough to the touch. As long as the edge is formed properly and is level and flat, that's all that they care about.
 
I got to agree with Darth Vater here. I have been in Fess's situation where a high end kit was sent to me with quality control issues. Did I complain about it on a forum to a bunch of people, potentially hurting a companies ability to sell their product? No. I contacted the rep I dealt with in the purchase of the drums to explain the situation and gave them first chance to stand behind their product. And they did everything in their power to fix the situation right away including giving me additional gear for my troubles. Other than this post, I have never talked about the situation on any public forum, nor will I mention what company it was, what level of kit it was, or what the actual problem was. I paid good money for a product, it arrived with problems and the company stood by their product and made things right. If anything, I should be singing praises about them.

I know the products we buy are made by people, even the ones that are made primarily by automated machinery. There are always people behind those products and people can have bad days. I would much prefer to give those people a chance to fix the mistake rather than spread rumor of quality issues of an entire company just because one person had a bad day or a laps of judgement. If the company gave me push back on my issues, then I would likely let people know about the situation as a warning to others.

Fess, I would contact the place you got the kit from letting them know you have X number of bent bass drum tension rods and would like to have replacement ones sent out to you. For the bearing edges, you have the right attitude about them. They may not be baby butt smooth, but they are not affecting the sound. If you really want to, some 400 grit sand paper will smooth those out in a few quick passes. On the other hand, maybe the roughness of the edges is part of the design. I have heard some drum builders don't like baby butt smooth edges because they feel the head sticks too much to them and doesn't seat as easily as an edge that is a little rough to the touch. As long as the edge is formed properly and is level and flat, that's all that they care about.

I’d say he probably paid enough money to be allowed to share his experiences. Or were you the one that paid for them? Refresh my memory on that. LOL
 
I got to agree with Darth Vater here. I have been in Fess's situation where a high end kit was sent to me with quality control issues. Did I complain about it on a forum to a bunch of people, potentially hurting a companies ability to sell their product? No. I contacted the rep I dealt with in the purchase of the drums to explain the situation and gave them first chance to stand behind their product. And they did everything in their power to fix the situation right away including giving me additional gear for my troubles. Other than this post, I have never talked about the situation on any public forum, nor will I mention what company it was, what level of kit it was, or what the actual problem was. I paid good money for a product, it arrived with problems and the company stood by their product and made things right. If anything, I should be singing praises about them.

I know the products we buy are made by people, even the ones that are made primarily by automated machinery. There are always people behind those products and people can have bad days. I would much prefer to give those people a chance to fix the mistake rather than spread rumor of quality issues of an entire company just because one person had a bad day or a laps of judgement. If the company gave me push back on my issues, then I would likely let people know about the situation as a warning to others.

Fess, I would contact the place you got the kit from letting them know you have X number of bent bass drum tension rods and would like to have replacement ones sent out to you. For the bearing edges, you have the right attitude about them. They may not be baby butt smooth, but they are not affecting the sound. If you really want to, some 400 grit sand paper will smooth those out in a few quick passes. On the other hand, maybe the roughness of the edges is part of the design. I have heard some drum builders don't like baby butt smooth edges because they feel the head sticks too much to them and doesn't seat as easily as an edge that is a little rough to the touch. As long as the edge is formed properly and is level and flat, that's all that they care about.

This is where I have to disagree. I don't think I "spread rumor of quality issues of an entire company" Sonor has a great reputation of making high quality drums. I would be very surprised if my post was "potentially hurting a companies ability to sell their product"....that's ridiculus. This is a forum where people interested in drums are supposed to share their experience with drums. I never said this is a terrible product and no one should buy them; in fact I said I was overall happy with the drums. Don't you think we are getting a little too politically correct here?
I ordered drums, I got drums and I shared my expierience with the members of this forum. I assume we are mostly rational adults here and I'm quite surprised that my minor criticism of this product has caused so much upset.
 
This is where I have to disagree. I don't think I "spread rumor of quality issues of an entire company" Sonor has a great reputation of making high quality drums. I would be very surprised if my post was "potentially hurting a companies ability to sell their product"....that's ridiculus. This is a forum where people interested in drums are supposed to share their experience with drums. I never said this is a terrible product and no one should buy them; in fact I said I was overall happy with the drums. Don't you think we are getting a little too politically correct here?
I ordered drums, I got drums and I shared my expierience with the members of this forum. I assume we are mostly rational adults here and I'm quite surprised that my minor criticism of this product has caused so much upset.

I don't think political correctness has anything to do with it. I just believe that if you have an issue with something, in this case a drum set, that you bring up that issue with the company first before bringing it up on a public forum. While many of the veteran people here can see that your comments weren't drastically harsh towards Sonor, and likely wouldn't sway their opinions of the company, I would not be surprised if this particular thread gets referenced in the future where someone asks, "Should I get a Sonor SQ1 or...". Your experience about some slightly bent tension rods and slightly rough edges will likely drive a potential naive buyer to look in another direction. If that was your purpose in posting your initial impressions, then I would say "mission accomplished", but if you actually like the kit, the brand and the sound don't you think it would have been better to get the issues resolved then take a moment to enjoy the kit and bring your overall impressions and experience to the forum for all to hear?

In case anyone wants to know, I am not a Sonor fan boy. I don't own a single piece of Sonor gear. Never have.
 
I’m a proud Sonor owner: a ProLite kit and three SQ2 snares. They’re extremely well crafted, but I’m not naive enough to believe they don’t let out the occasional lemon. The mark of a great company though is how infrequently these issues occur, and how it supports the customer when they do. Posts making us aware of problems like this help us become aware of possible trends. Might be helpful in influencing a future decision for some of us.
 
I don't think political correctness has anything to do with it. I just believe that if you have an issue with something, in this case a drum set, that you bring up that issue with the company first before bringing it up on a public forum. While many of the veteran people here can see that your comments weren't drastically harsh towards Sonor, and likely wouldn't sway their opinions of the company, I would not be surprised if this particular thread gets referenced in the future where someone asks, "Should I get a Sonor SQ1 or...". Your experience about some slightly bent tension rods and slightly rough edges will likely drive a potential naive buyer to look in another direction. If that was your purpose in posting your initial impressions, then I would say "mission accomplished", but if you actually like the kit, the brand and the sound don't you think it would have been better to get the issues resolved then take a moment to enjoy the kit and bring your overall impressions and experience to the forum for all to hear?

In case anyone wants to know, I am not a Sonor fan boy. I don't own a single piece of Sonor gear. Never have.
Interesting take on this. So it sounds like when I receive a damaged product, I am morally obligated to contact the company before I can tell anyone I was sent damaged goods. I can’t tell anyone my new car broke down on the way home from the dealership until I find out if the dealer will fix it.
This assumes that the fact that I received damaged goods in the first place has no relevance. I think it does matter. Regardless of whether a company stands by their product or not, the condition in which it arrives to the buyer matters.
I am under no obligation to Sonor drums, or any other company, to keep the fact that they sent me a less than perfect product quiet. If someone decides not to buy a $3k set of drums because I complained about some bent tension rods, so be it
 
Right, a new drum set comes with a non-disclosure agreement. $2600 + doesn't buy the right to talk about your drums. You have to give them a chance to "make it right" a second time, because the first one doesn't count.

It's not as if you have anything better to do with your time than try to contact the retailer or manufacturer, and box that stuff up and deal with shipping.
 
Interesting take on this. So it sounds like when I receive a damaged product, I am morally obligated to contact the company before I can tell anyone I was sent damaged goods. I can’t tell anyone my new car broke down on the way home from the dealership until I find out if the dealer will fix it.
This assumes that the fact that I received damaged goods in the first place has no relevance. I think it does matter. Regardless of whether a company stands by their product or not, the condition in which it arrives to the buyer matters.
I am under no obligation to Sonor drums, or any other company, to keep the fact that they sent me a less than perfect product quiet. If someone decides not to buy a $3k set of drums because I complained about some bent tension rods, so be it

I never told you how you should operate, nor told you how you should be morally obligated to anyone or anything. I think you are misunderstanding my side of the debate. I'm trying to pose a different approach to the matter where time and wisdom can bring a more established overall experience to the forum vs giving people knee jerk reactions. Any drum review you read online tries to give people a full story/experience of having the drum/kit in their possession. They tell the good, the bad, initial impressions, long term feelings/thoughts, etc. They don't try to hide anything or put restrictions on what they tell their readers. They try to give people the whole picture so their audience can make the best informed decision.

What message were you trying to give the forum in your initial post:
I'm a bit disappointed in the quality. The bearing edges feel somewhat unfinished, like someone forgot the final sanding. Compared to the edges on my DW performance kit and especially my INDe, kit they feel pretty rough. Additionally, most of the 20 bass drum lug screws were quite tight screwing in. I found a number of them that had a noticeable bend in them making them bind inside the lug. Disappointing for a company with such a good reputation.
All that said, the kit sounds very good....but still.......

Having owned DW, Gretsch, Ludwig, INDe and now Sonor, my opinion is that INDe is the best deal out there.

To me it sounds like you are disappointed in your new kit. That the company let you down despite it's good reputation and in the end people should buy an INDe kit instead. Is that what you wanted people to know?

I believe a post like is not beneficial to the forum as it doesn't bring the full story to us. Like Darth mentioned long ago, you can take the time to come here to complain about the kit, but cant take the time to pick up the phone and ask Sonor to fix the issues? C'mon.
 
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I never told you how you should operate, nor told you how you should be morally obligated to anyone or anything. I think you are misunderstanding my side of the debate. I'm trying to pose a different approach to the matter where time and wisdom can bring a more established overall experience to the forum vs giving people knee jerk reactions. Any drum review you read online tries to give people a full story/experience of having the drum/kit in their possession. They tell the good, the bad, initial impressions, long term feelings/thoughts, etc. They don't try to hide anything or put restrictions on what they tell their readers. They try to give people the whole picture so their audience can make the best informed decision.

What message were you trying to give the forum in your initial post:
I'm a bit disappointed in the quality. The bearing edges feel somewhat unfinished, like someone forgot the final sanding. Compared to the edges on my DW performance kit and especially my INDe, kit they feel pretty rough. Additionally, most of the 20 bass drum lug screws were quite tight screwing in. I found a number of them that had a noticeable bend in them making them bind inside the lug. Disappointing for a company with such a good reputation.
All that said, the kit sounds very good....but still.......

Having owned DW, Gretsch, Ludwig, INDe and now Sonor, my opinion is that INDe is the best deal out there.

To me it sounds like you are disappointed in your new kit. That the company let you down despite it's good reputation and in the end people should buy an INDe kit instead. Is that what you wanted people to know?

I believe a post like is not beneficial to the forum as it doesn't bring the full story to us. Like Darth mentioned long ago, you can take the time to come here to complain about the kit, but cant take the time to pick up the phone and ask Sonor to fix the issues? C'mon.

You may not have told him in that thread - but you're certainly implying it in both.

I for one - am here for all things drum related - this would include interesting anecdotes regarding new kits - good or bad.

I'm not big on censoring people or only selectively hearing good experiences.
 
Fess, please don’t respond to the fanboys. It just makes them respond more.

this is a forum for communication. If I received a response that said, “We’ll, you didn’t buy SQ2s, what dI’d you expect?” I’d be pretty pissed.
 
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