Opinions on best cymbals for recording.

[Doug Paluch]

I am considering purchasing two new crashes specifically for recording my kit. I feel that a warm fast decaying crash would fit the bill (16-17" HH sabian, K or a custom zildjian, or maybe Paiste Signture). In your infinite wisdom (duc), do you agree? I currently have aa sabians (thicker sized 17-18"), and they seem a little brash.
Thanks in advace.

[Swaphappy]

Well you could save some money by duct taping some
foam on it. [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

[MikeD]

Paiste Signature's sound very good IMHO. I have to say, of the cymbals I have recorded, they have been my favorite, and I have recorded all of the ones you mentioned. Their clarity really cuts through. I really like the Paiste Signature Dry Ride. Cuts through perfectly without being harsh at all.

[Sabe]

MikeD is right on the money about the Paiste cymbals, excellent choice. I use a pair of those myself and really enjoy the way they sit in a mix.

Also, you may look for an older (mid 70's, nice and aged by now) Zildjian 16" medium crash, or a Zildjian 16" thin crash. Both will give you a fast decay with the "medium" being warm and the "thin" being warm with a little edge to cut thru a tight mix.

Try and find a cymbal tree at a local drum shop and tap around.

Your overhead micing distance will greatly affect the cymbal decay and warmth also, as well as compression/limiting and a gate. I prefer my overheads to be wide open w/no comp/limit/gate, however that doesn't fit all styles of music.

Best of luck Doug Paluch [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[Bloux]

Start Here

then click on cymbals at the top of the page...
then in the middle of page go to series....
click on "A" Customs.....
go to crashes....
You now can listen to each one!

I have always loved the sound/recording of the A custom fast crash 16" and 18" and the 16" projection crash. they record awesome.

sorry for the steps above, I couldnt get it to link right to the page I wanted.

good luck

[Jopry]

I like the sounds we get out of the Custom A Zildjian's, but I imagine that its really going to be dertermined by the mixture of the cymbals with the sound of the drums. any local music store around you willing to let you try out a few different cymbals with your own kit?

[IOP Drummer]

First off, I have 11 years experience with drums, and about 7 years recording them. I started off with ****** drums, ****** mikes, the whole thing. Tried for years to make that sound the best I could. Then I got better drums, cymbals, mikes and tried to make that sound good. But, at last I realized this:
As with any instrument, listen to it without even thinking of recording. Make the drumset sound how you want by balancing the whole drumset with itself. Not with faders, certain compression or EQ, but with how you play and which combo of cyms and heads you use. With the right combination it can be VERY easy to get a great drumsound. If you compress the snare alot after recording to make it consistent, just play it consistently, or use a certain snare or head combination to make it consistent. If you are boosting a lot of high end on the toms, then use heads that have more natural high end. Same goes for cymbals. I must admit to having a 17" signature crash as well as a 20" signature full ride. They sound awesome, but my 5 other cymbals definitely shape the way my 2 paistes sound relative to my whole kit. If you make your drumset sound great, then recording yourself will be HARD to mess up. At this point you can take advantage of mic placement and processing. I know that there are a lot of easy or safe ways to make drums sound good (like triggers, pinstripe heads, paiste cymbals, DW drums) but I consider each drum an instrument, and feel responsible for their balance with each other. You being an engineer and being able to hear how your instrument translates to tape is a great tool. Use it to determine which cymbals to buy. Guitar center is great cause of their 30 day money back guarantee.

[minimoog]

mikes pretty much on the money.

i've recorded many drum kits over the past twelve years or so and they've all been different.

each time sees a new combination of musicians, drums, cymbals, rooms and mics. it's such a subjective thing that it's almost impossible to offer direct advice on cymbal choice as so many factors come into play where drums are concerned, as they do with all acoustic instruments and each person that plays the instrument will make it sound different.

just go with what you think is right. never judge a cymbal in a drum store when it is in a rack with 20 other cymbals. pull them out and hit them until you've deciced which ones have the right character then put the ones you like on a kit and have a go. try different combinations - they don't all have to be the same series, or even the same brand, and try to play on a kit similar to what you have. don't try them out on the freshly tuned $20k sonor kit or the '69 ludwig if you don't own one yourself as you'll be distracted by the sound of the actual kit (i know too many drummers!)

trial and error may well enter the equation and it's quite possible that you'll find your taste in cymabls changes as your playing changes (and the ability of your ears to perceive top end. hehe...)

my personal taste - i don't like cymbals that go "pish"