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
[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
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