Cymbal Guide- develop the right mentality(updated)

[churnz]

This guide is to help everyone to explore the world of cymbals and help expand their choices and also to develop the right mentality.

[1] The 3 major cymbal producers
this section is for beginners or perhaps those who only heard of these 3 brands.The reason why these 3 companies are so famous and preferred to is due to the fact that they are large companies with the capacity to endorse many famous drummers who are idols of many people and therefore,these fans of the famous drummers would naturally be influenced about getting their idol's cymbals and hence get "stereotyped" into the "zildjian/paiste/sabian is the best!anything else will lose out to it" kind of mentality.i would like to let everyone know that even though that these 3 brands are very reputable for making "good" cymbals,there are other companies out there which also produce very unique and wonderful cymbals,do not be constrained to these 3 brands only when buying cymbals.

[2] Branding is not everything , sound IS
Most people also tend to be brand conscious,the minute they hear of an unfamiliar brand of cymbals,they do not even put them into consideration, without even hearing them.I would like to emphasize that branding does not say a single thing about the sound,but actually hearing the cymbals for yourself and letting your ears do the judging of the sound produced is everything.just because the cymbal has the brand of bosphorus or istanbul etc. doesn't mean their cymbals sound incomparable to zildjian/sabians/paiste cymbals,they may have different characters but never incomparable.

[3] "Good" sounding cymbals
this term is very very subjective,there will never be a definition for good or best sounding cymbals.Each cymbal may sound brighter,darker,washy,crisp etc. and different people may like a certain cymbal while others might not.so next time if you are asking for some cymbals,
dont ask "hey,do these cymbals sound good?"
instead,you should ask : "what are the characteristics of these cymbals?and where can i find the sound sample"

[4] "Should i sell my current cymbals to get money to buy the next set?"

No.you should try your very best not to sell your cymbals just to get money to buy the next one unless you truly hate what you are hearing.

First reason,if you sell your current cymbals,you will be selling it lesser than what you bought it for,in the long run,you will be losing a lot of money by buying and selling cymbals after using each of them.

Second reason,each piece of cymbal is an art,how its being crafted,how it sounds.Having a larger arsenal of cymbals would also mean that you will have a larger variety of sounds to play with rather than being confined to a single set that you might also want to change in the near future.


List of Cymbals
this list of cymbals listed by me is to let drummers in our community know about the less popular cymbal companies and a chance to explore more into them.

Big Three

American - Zildjian
Zildjian.com - EN-US - Homepage
Canadian - Sabian
Sabian Home Page
Swiss - Paiste
Paiste Cymbals: Cymbals, Sounds, Drums and Gongs

Turkish

Istanbul Mehmet
Istanbul Cymbals Mehmet Original Handmade Cymbals From Turkey Traditional Cymbals
CymbalsOnly.com current Istanbul Mehmet inventory

Istanbul Agop
ISTANBUL CYMBALS
CymbalsOnly.com current Istanbul AGOP Inventory

Bosphorus
Bosphorus
CymbalsOnly.com current Bosphorus inventory

Amedia
Amedia

Turkish
Turkish Cymbals

Masterwork
Masterworkcymbal

Anatolian
::ANATOLIAN CYMBALS::

GrandMaster
Harmony Central®: Grand Master Cymbal Models

TRX (Turkish OEM, US brand)
Welcome to TRX Cymbals ONLINE

Cadeson (Turkish OEM, Taiwanese brand)
Drums, Xylophones, Saxophones, Trombone, Trumpets, Clarinets, Flutes, Baritone, Tuba, Mellophone, Violins, Double Bass, Cello, Dram Sticks, Instrument Bags & Boxes-Cadeson Musical Co., Ltd.

Italian

UFIP
PPC Music GmbH > UFIP
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VErtOXTboxE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i2DqWY2LB7o&mode=related&search=
(audio samples)

German

Meinl
MEINL CYMBALS... INSPIRE: Home
Note: Byzance series made in Turkey, finished in Germany

Chinese

Wuhan
www.wuhancymbals.com

Saluda (Chinese OEM, finished in US factory)
http://www.saludacymbals.com/c/sounds.php
(audio samples)

Dream (Chinese OEM, Canadian brand)
http://www.mountainrhythm.com/
Front Range Bronze, Dream Bliss, Contact, Bosphorus, Cymbals. Vintage Cymbals

Stagg (Chinese OEM, Belgian brand)
STAGG MUSIC | Home

Brazil

Orion
http://www.orioncymbals.com.br/english/produtos.htm

Harpy/Krest
Krest Cymbals.com.br

Japanese

Koide
KOIDE CYMBALS


Local

Trojan

Independent Artisans
These are the rare and few who work alone, creating cymbals from scratch with their bare hands, also modifying existing ones, personalized custom work.

Italian
Don Roberto / Spizzichinos
Spizzichino Cymbals
Film - FourDocs

Swiss
Michael Paiste / Swiss Custom Shop
S.C.S. Swiss Customshop - Drums & Cymbals

Belgian
Johan VanDeSijpe
Index of /cymbzdrumz

Icelandic
Steve Hubback
Steve Hubback/Hubgong

*compiled by weckl-x


Edit: - added afew more details into the cymbal list
- edited some terms in section 4
- added weckl-x's cymbal list compilation

 

[blissuicide]

Ur 'Istanbul' heading may be misleading to beginners. As it was, there's only 1, but after the breaking up, jus like the one tat lead to the founding of Sabian, tis break-up led to the formation of Istanbul Agop and Istanbul Mehmet. Wat u have listed is for the Istanbul Mehmet company, so its better to state it as such, rather than jus Istanbul. Anyway, cymbalsonly.com also has a link to Agop.

 

[churnz]

lol ok edited

 

[drum_hobbyist]

Wah... I am impressed!!! 8)

 

[churnz]

Wah... I am impressed!!! 8)

haha,thank you for the compliment,i was merely putting down what i have learned from you in black and white so that others may also benefit for your wisdom.

 

[mel80]

[4] "Should i sell my current cymbals to get money to buy the next set?"

No.you should never sell your cymbals just to get money to buy the next one unless you truly hate what you are hearing.

Some thoughts about this...

While this is true, but there are many factors why someone would sell his/her cymbals. Some people need to sell off stuff to fund new purchases. The ways of funding purchases differ for different individuals. By saying "you should never sell" is too strong a statement.

Something less definite would be better.

Just my 2 cents

 

[weckl-x]

Hmm.. well.. just fyi, some people actually consider Meinl in the Big Four now.. haha. nevermind

Lemme add a couple, plus one suggestion, organize by country of origin.

*think* I got most if not all of them right. Please feel free to edit.


Big Three

American - Zildjian
http://www.zildjian.com/
Canadian - Sabian
http://www.sabian.com/
Swiss - Paiste
http://www.paiste.com

Turkish

Istanbul Mehmet
http://www.istanbulmehmet.com/
http://www.cymbalsonly.com/cymbals/mehmet/mehmet.htm

Istanbul Agop
http://www.istanbulcymbals.com/
http://www.cymbalsonly.com/cymbals/agop/agop.htm

Bosphorus
http://www.bosphoruscymbals.com/
http://www.cymbalsonly.com/index.htm

Amedia
http://www.amediacymbals.com/

Turkish
http://www.turkishcymbals.com/

Masterwork
http://www.masterworkcymbal.com/

Anatolian
http://www.anatoliancymbals.com/

GrandMaster
http://news.harmony-central.com/Newp/WNAMM98/Grand-Master/models.html

TRX (Turkish OEM, US brand)
http://www.trxcymbals.com/

Cadeson (Turkish OEM, Taiwanese brand)
http://www.cadesonmusic.com/17-cymbals.html

Italian

UFIP
http://www.ufip.com/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VErtOXTboxE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i2DqWY2LB7o&mode=related&search=
(audio samples)

German

Meinl
http://www.meinlcymbals.com/cymbal_series/cymbal_series.html
Note: Byzance series made in Turkey, finished in Germany

Chinese

Wuhan
http://www.wuhancymbals.com/

Saluda (Chinese OEM, finished in US factory)
http://www.saludacymbals.com/c/sounds.php
(audio samples)

Dream (Chinese OEM, Canadian brand)
http://www.mountainrhythm.com/
http://www.frontrangebronze.com/

Stagg (Chinese OEM, Belgian brand)
http://www.staggmusic.com/

Brazil

Orion
http://www.orioncymbals.com.br/english/produtos.htm

Harpy/Krest
http://www.krestcymbals.com.br/

Japanese

Koide
http://koidecymbal.com/factory/index.html


Local

Trojan

Independent Artisans
These are the rare and few who work alone, creating cymbals from scratch with their bare hands, also modifying existing ones, personalized custom work.

Italian
Don Roberto / Spizzichinos
http://www.spizzichinocymbals.com/
http://www.channel4.com/fourdocs/film/film-detail.jsp?id=8262#

Swiss
Michael Paiste / Swiss Custom Shop
http://www.swiss-customshop.ch/

Belgian
Johan VanDeSijpe
http://users.telenet.be/cymbzdrumz/

Icelandic
Steve Hubback
http://hubgong.dse.nl/

 

[drum_hobbyist]

Another excellent contribution... keep it up! :wink:

By the way... Mehmet, Agop and Bosphorus have their own website...

 

[ahpek1]

Another one:

Anatolian Cymbals

http://www.anatoliancymbals.com/

 

[joshie]

now this should be made a sticky
or at least kept at the top for people to view.

 

[churnz]

[4] "Should i sell my current cymbals to get money to buy the next set?"

No.you should never sell your cymbals just to get money to buy the next one unless you truly hate what you are hearing.

Some thoughts about this...

While this is true, but there are many factors why someone would sell his/her cymbals. Some people need to sell off stuff to fund new purchases. The ways of funding purchases differ for different individuals. By saying "you should never sell" is too strong a statement.

Something less definite would be better.

Just my 2 cents

this is why i said "never sell your cymbals" unless you really hate why you are hearing,many people nowadays need funds to purchase new cymbals,that i understand,however,selling your current cymbals is not the best method of doing so.like i have mentioned earlier,cymbals are works of art,besides,selling your current set is just going to result in a loss because you will be forced to sell it at a lower price than when you bought it.do not be desperate about getting anything,be patient,let yourself be the one controlling your drums,not the other way round.

but then again,for those who probably are really desperate to get funds foryour new cymbals,the choice is up to you,i am just suggesting that you think twice before doing so.the reason why i said "never sell your cymbals unless you really hate what you are hearing" is to enforce my statement about how important it is to treasure your cymbals.

i hope i did not "force" anyone to comit on something that they are not uncomfortable with

 

[kanzer]

haha man why did our friendly neighbourhood forum become an argument.. haha. lol.. chill out guys. lets all agree.. CYMBALS ROCK! (whether its ours, once ours, going to be or never) haha..




pardon me i'm feeling crappy..

 

[mel80]

There's no argument whatsoever. Just friendly suggestions

And churnz, that's great. All is well

 

[churnz]

yea,kanzer, its not an argument man,i juz clarifying certain points in my post which i think that others might have misunderstood.

and mel,thx for pointing out that part,i've changed the terms used in the guide already

 

[kanzer]

haha.. woops sorry.. my bad i misunderstand.. paiseh..

 

[churnz]

bump,
lets keep this topic alittle more active so that more ppl can read and also share more info regarding the topic

 

[marcdadrummer]

can't seem to find this cymbal around but the name is

cobalt river anyone heard of them or their website?? i found some of these from ebay.

edit: they are always quoted to be "warm" and "explosive" with very shiny gloss finish. Anyone with info do spill them in

 

[churnz]

can't seem to find this cymbal around but the name is

cobalt river anyone heard of them or their website?? i found some of these from ebay.

edit: they are always quoted to be "warm" and "explosive" with very shiny gloss finish. Anyone with info do spill them in

hmmm....very interesting,from what im guessing....it's most probably bought from a arbitrary cymbal producing factory and printed with the brand "cobalt river",but thats juz what im thinking.
if they had sound files or their cymbals(which they claim to be as good as the sabian professional series or you get a refund),that would be the best

 

[marcdadrummer]

just simply click on ebay and search "cobalt river"... they have snares, cymbals, amplifiers and still their origin is inevitably, unknown.. weird... their cymbals retails cheap but shipment is a bummer!!

 

[weckl-x]

The general concensus on the US forums I've been to pretty much say it's a waste of $20.