Thinking of switching from Zildjian to Meinl

[thepilgrimsdream]

I played the meinl byzance dark cymbals the other day. Man I was blown away, they had such a 3 dimensional sound and were very pleasant and sweet.

I use A customs, which are pretty bright and almost opposite spectrum of these, but now my cymbals sound so boring and lifeless in comparison.

I figure I should trust my ear and go with what I love, but is there anything else I should try? I've tried about every offering from sabian and zildjian

[itchie]

why switch when you can have both?

put it this way, when you're on your death bed at least your wife can sell up and get food for the week

[drummer]

why switch when you can have both?

Exactly.

[Northern Redneck]

Ive never heard of As described as lifeless. lol

[pcs90]

This is why I love darker cymbals. So much more character to me. If that's the sound you like now, get them. Though I would look around for used ones to save some money...

[crispycritters]

Perhaps its the novelty of darker cymbals that is tempting you? Yes they certainly sound good but if you've been playing brighter sounding ones will the change of sound be good for the type of music you play. Like others have already said - why not have both?

Personally if I like the sound of a cymbal I buy it and worry about if it will work with my others or not as I like the idea of having different sounding sets.
I buy everything used though so if it comes to the crunch and I can only keep one set I shouldn't get burned too much.

[itchie]

If you want darker tones bury your cymbals in your yard and go back to hen in a few weeks .. Should be plenty darker

[onegourd]

sounds like your ready for a change, check out Murat Diril's, black sea series.

[slinky]

the Zildjian pitch blacks are pretty dark sorry

[JohnnySticks]

This has probably been discussed before but what is wrong with mixing cymbal brands/models? I know that some just won't go together well but a lot do go nicely together. It becomes a matter of finding cymbals that get along.

I once read an article in Modern Drummer about it, many years ago. I know that most of the top guys are sponsored but the rest of us can do anything we like.

I have a K Custom Flat Top ride that goes great with my A 18" med thin crash. I also have a Sabian AA that I won and it contrasts nicely with the A but doesn't sound so good with the K. My buddy has a Paiste that I covet but I haven't tried it with my cymbals yet to see if it fits in.

Also, pilgrimsdream, have you looked at Exodus cymbals? They have a lot of lines and some really different sounding cymbals. I've yet to see any in a store but online they seem to have a very interesting range of sounds.

[Squeakthedrummer]

There's nothing wrong with variety. After all, it is the spice of life. I myself have four manufacturers represented in my collection: Zildjian, Sabian, Paiste, and Meinl. My Zildjian cymbals are K and K custom dark cymbals (crash, and hi-hats respectively), while my Sabian and paiste cymbals are bright (my Paiste Dimensions crash/ride is very bright), and my Meinl is more dark, but not as dark as my dark crash and hats.

Despite the differences in tones, my cymbals all play nicely with each other.

[JohnnySticks]

There's nothing wrong with variety. After all, it is the spice of life. I myself have four manufacturers represented in my collection: Zildjian, Sabian, Paiste, and Meinl. My Zildjian cymbals are K and K custom dark cymbals (crash, and hi-hats respectively), while my Sabian and paiste cymbals are bright (my Paiste Dimensions crash/ride is very bright), and my Meinl is more dark, but not as dark as my dark crash and hats.

Despite the differences in tones, my cymbals all play nicely with each other.

Excellent! I don't think we talk about this enough.

Yes, my buddy has a Paiste Dimension that I love. It has a beautiful swell with mallets.

[pcs90]

I have absolutely no problem with mixing cymbal brands and series. I use various Sabian and Zildjian cymbals from several different lines, as well as Kasza hi-hats and a Wuhan cymbal stack. I've owned Meinl, XingSir, Dream and various others in the past as well.

[crispycritters]

Same here - I have cymbals by Sabian, Stagg, Zildjian(2) and Paiste(1). And I like to swap them around occasionally to try out new sounds. I don't mind mixing and matching - I also try different hat top and bottom combinations from different manufacturers. Zildjian sell mixed hats K/A K/Z etc. so I see no reason not to try it out occasionally - an old Paiste 404 bottom hat (B8) on top of a Stagg BH (B20) top hat work well for me as a cheapo set of thin hats till I can afford some K or A lites.

[JohnnySticks]

The Eclectics are coming out of the closet.

[slinky]

I'm using Zildjian, UFiP, Meinl and one Sabian (bottom hi hat cymbal). I use to be all about Sabian but all except two have cracked and I jumped ship.

The only Paiste I ever played was in the very beginning, an old crash. That was the only cymbal in the house. Don't know where it came from or where it went It was either my brothers or my dad's

[BackStreetDrums]

Same situation...A Pure Turk guy for years (Bosphorus/Istanbul), I am considering going with Meinl Byzance Vintage/Jazz series...

Yes, agree, "why switch when you can keep both", but unfortunately, some things need to be sold, so some things can be bought

[MDK]

tough choice, I me one starts with an "M" and ends with an "L", how rare is that? But then again the other one starts with a "Z" and has a "J" in it and that is just classy..hmmmmmmmm

[slinky]

There's no company out there that's going to sell B20 at a ridiculously low price. So always remember you get what you pay for and I'm a little skeptical about buying used although I have and will if it's still in new condition. Cymbals do go flat after time though.

[DrummingAllTheWayHome]

Cymbals do go flat after time though.

No they don't. Actually quite a large amount of drummer search and get vintage Zildjians from the 1950's and 1960's because of their aged sound.

[pcs90]

No they don't. Actually quite a large amount of drummer search and get vintage Zildjians from the 1950's and 1960's because of their aged sound.

That's exactly what I was thinking too. Old Zildjian A's and K's are still used today, as well as some older splashes from the 40's from different brands (don't know too much on these).

[DrummingAllTheWayHome]

That's exactly what I was thinking too. Old Zildjian A's and K's are still used today, as well as some older splashes from the 40's from different brands (don't know too much on these).

Exactly 60 70 and 80+ year old cymbals are still being used today and sound great.

[slinky]

we're all intitled to our own opinions, they can still make a sound and if that's someones sound great!. Not mine though, I happen to think new technology is manufacturing better sound. An eighty year old cymbal would probably be nothing more than an effects cymbal if that by today's standards.

[DrummingAllTheWayHome]

we're all intitled to our own opinions, they can still make a sound and if that's someones sound great!. Not mine though, I happen to think new technology is manufacturing better sound. An eighty year old cymbal would probably be nothing more than an effects cymbal if that by today's standards.

Depends on what the drummer wants to use it for. I have a vintage 1960's 20" A Crash ride I use as a huge crash. I was just pointing out that cymbals don't have an expiration date. anyway back to topic sorry for the thread Hijack.

[slinky]

Depends on what the drummer wants to use it for. I have a vintage 1960's 20" A Crash ride I use as a huge crash. I was just pointing out that cymbals don't have an expiration date. anyway back to topic sorry for the thread Hijack.

okay, i never said they expire, but that is a pretty good way to describe it, I said they go flat which in my opinion they do. The metal changes over time it's just a fact.