Hi hats ???
Folks,
I’d appreciate any comments about hi hats from anyone who knows about such things.
I’m looking to get a set of hi hats to replace the Meinl entry level ones on my son’s kit (they were thrown in for free when we bought it and are about the same quality as the Sabian Solars he had on he previous kit).
His new kit is a PDP 7 piece and I’d like to encourage him by seeing if I can upgrade his cymbals - one at a time as the budget allows, starting with the hi hat.
So with a second-hand budget of, say
£50/$100US, on ebay, what would be good cymbals to look at that would be a step up from where we are now? I appreciate that it’s a bit like asking a guitar player what are the best strings but I’ve got to start somewhere.
Comments much appreciated. Thanks in advance.
Oh, basic guitar rock is the style. He likes Neil Peart in particular.
Cheers!
Well I’m not a drummer but I think just about any Sabian or Zildjian cymbal above the Solars, in your price range, would do the trick. Finding something in that price range may be hard though. Good luck!
Since price is an issue - just starting out and all that – I suggest looking at the Sabian B8 line.
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product…=440390
They aren’t the best things, but hi-hats are two cymbals so it’s easy to get expensive fast.
I’ve recorded a bit with these and was pleasantly surprised. They are sheet metal, instead of cast, so that’s a downside, but a minor issue.
I don’t think you can beat them for the price (new).
I have no idea how well they’d hold up unfortunately.
Thanks for the replies guys. I had been looking at the B8’s but I think we have been a little bit put off by our experience with the Solars.
So many cymbals and then so many variants! Thanks for the real-world advice chaps.
Off to surf ebay again now.
Quote:
I think we have been a little bit put off by our experience with the Solars.
You mean Sabian?
Sabian IS Zildjian in almost every sense of the name, including the same cymbal formula (their cast cymbals). Sabian is Robert Zildjian's company, started when he left the parent company many years ago. The name is the combination of his children's names.
OK to be put off by some models (like the B8 Pros), but don't be put off by that brand.
My ride and crash cymbals are sabian B8. They are not out of the ball park, but don’t sound nearly as good as cymbals costing, say, 2 or 3 times as much. Anyway, they need a lot of low end roll off, at least mine do. I suspect they’d sound better in a big room.
Actually, I was really astonished to hear how much difference in sound there is between the student grade cymbals and the mid priced ones. Given that cymbals are so important to the overall sound, I’d really like to have better.
Quote: (phoo @ Apr. 16 2008, 3:22 PM)
Quote:
I think we have been a little bit put off by our experience with the Solars.
You mean Sabian? Sabian IS Zildjian in almost every sense of the name, including the same cymbal formula (their cast cymbals). Sabian is Robert Zildjian's company, started when he left the parent company many years ago. The name is the combination of his children's names.
OK to be put off by some models (like the B8 Pros), but don't be put off by that brand.
Yes, Sabian Solars. I was aware that Sabian make pro cymbals but my concern was whether "one level up" from the Solars would be really worth the time and effort, but folks are suggesting that it is.
We're very green here. When it comes to guitars, I've got 30 years of knowing who made what and what is good, but drums stuff.... I've heard the names but couldn't tell you where (for example) Paiste 101's were in the grand scheme of things.
Anyway, Wikipedia is very helpful on this stuff. I've looked up Zildjian, Paiste and Sabian and there's a little section on the different cymbals in their ranges and how they relate.
It's looking as if B8 pro may be the way to go, although I missed a pair of XS20s on ebay last week - which I understand to be one level above the B8s. I think patience is the name of the game . I've got GAS.
I appreciate all the input chaps. Thanks
I’m not familiar at all with the Solars (UK only???). I found a link where some others were saying to try to B8 line instead.
http://www.drummerworld.com/forums/archive/index.php/t-13329.html
In hindsight, I’m thinking that we didn’t use the B8 ride and crash because they sounded like pie plates, but we may have anyway. We were recording a quick commercial and needed to use what we had on hand at the time. We were recording only, so I don’t know what they’d sound like in a live situation. As Tom said, we may have ended up rolling off the lows a lot. We could have done that easily since the drums were a Simmons electronic set. I didn’t do the final mixing.
Still, I liked the sound of B8 Pro hi-hats. But, I don’t like sheet metal cymbals at all. Every one I’ve used has had a ping and definite pitch that can be picked out. (When I say “used”, many experiences were from working with other drummers.)
Quote: (phoo @ Apr. 21 2008, 2:40 PM)
I'm not familiar at all with the Solars (UK only???). I found a link where some others were saying to try to B8 line instead.
http://www.drummerworld.com/forums/archive/index.php/t-13329.html
In hindsight, I'm thinking that we didn't use the B8 ride and crash because they sounded like pie plates, but we may have anyway. We were recording a quick commercial and needed to use what we had on hand at the time. We were recording only, so I don't know what they'd sound like in a live situation. As Tom said, we may have ended up rolling off the lows a lot. We could have done that easily since the drums were a Simmons electronic set. I didn't do the final mixing.
Still, I liked the sound of B8 Pro hi-hats. But, I don't like sheet metal cymbals at all. Every one I've used has had a ping and definite pitch that can be picked out. (When I say "used", many experiences were from working with other drummers.)
Well that link just about says it for the Sabian Solars. I'm not sure if they are UK only, but even I could tell that I didn't like them!
Anyway, I'm still looking, and still somewhat confused by the various options, but we'll get there. I'll let you know what we end up with.
Just a little update…
I got GAS I’m afraid. I’ve always believed in buying the best quality instruments I can afford so when I started looking at things it was like… only another
£20 to get to the next level… and then only another
£20 to the level after that.
So I sold some stuff on ebay and bought the boy a second hand set of Sabian 14" AAX Stage Hi Hats.
He says they play beautifully, and they sure sound nice… and they are very shiny!
Now he’s waiting for me to replace all the other cymbals on his kit to an equal standard . So I’m off to ransack the house to find more stuff to sell on ebay!
Thanks for all the help guys. I have a happy son; I’m a happy dad but have a bewildered wife (“how much?”).