My Cymbal Story

[Drumolator]

Once upon a time I had these Sabians: 20" Pro Medium Ride, 18" AA El Sabor, 17" AAX X-plosion Crash, and 14" Paragon Hats. I was very happy with those cymbals. However, I ended up giving them to a church that I do not attend (although I used to). I also have them a red Mapex Saturn Pro four-piece kit. They are there now. That church gave me the only two decent cymbals they had: a 17" AA Medium-Thin Crash and a Paiste 505 Medium Ride. For about two days, those were the only cymbals I had.

Then I went shopping at C&M Music in Lafayette, Louisiana. I bought the following Sabians: 20" HHX Evolution Ride, 18" SR2 Thin, and two SR2 14" cymbals, one medium and one heavy to use as hats. Then about a week later I bought the cymbals from a friend's widow. He had passed away a few months before. All of these cymbals were originally purchased my me and were used: 20" AAX Dry Ride, 18" XS20 Medium-Thin Crash, 16" AA Medium-Thin Crash, 16" AA Thin Crash, and Paiste 13" Alpha Medium hats. So... that left me three rides, two 16", one 17", and two 18" crashes, and two pairs of hats. Soon after that I traded the Paiste 505 Ride and the 16" AA Medium-Thin Crash for some mic stands and cables. Then a friend of mine started a new church, and started going there. My son plays bass, and I play drums there.

The rest of this story is not as detailed because I was constantly trying to get the right combination for the church drum set and for my drum set. About eighteen months later, I bought an AA 16" Concept Crash. Then a few months later I bought two AAX Concept Crashes, a 16" and a 17". A few months after that I bought two AAX Studio Crashes, and 17" and an 18". Where are they all now?

At the church I currently attend, In the Beginning Church, in Marksville, Louisiana, are these: 20" HHX Evolution Ride, 18" AAX Studio Crash 17" AAX Concept Crash, 16" AAX Concept Crash, and the Paiste 13" Alpha Medium Hats.

At Christian Family Worship Center, in Mansura, Louisiana, are the AAX 20"Dry Ride (my second-favorite ride ever) and the 16" AA Concept Crash. I got the AA 21" Bash Ride from there.

At Lifepoint Church, in Mansura, Louisiana, a church I have never attended, are the AA 17" Medium-Thin Crash and the XS20 18" Medium-Thin Crash. Those two sound very good together. For a while I used them, and they are in one of the videos I posted on this forum.

My Cymbals:
21" AA Bash Ride (my favorite ride ever)
18" SR2 Thin (works great as a crash-ride, better than my old 18" El Sabor)
17" AAX Studio Crash
16" AA Thin Crash
14" SR2 Hats (medium top / heavy bottom)

Two weeks ago I got a chance to use these at a jam session, and I loved how they sound together. Peace and goodwill. The end.

[Blk Diamond]

Mark, it sounds like you've had quite a journey in discovering the right combo of cymbals that works for you.

I'm sure that the various churches that you've assisted in finding cymbals and drums for are grateful for your help too.

[Drumolator]

The saga continues. I switched ride cymbals. I now have the 20" HHX Evolution Ride, and the church now has the 21" AA Bash Ride. I also brought home the 18" AAX Studio Crash because it does not blend well in that room with the AAX Concept Crashes. Here is what I now have.

All Sabian (except where noted)
20" HHX Evolution Ride
18" SR2 Thin
18" AAX Studio Crash
17" AAX Studio Crash
16" AA Thin Crash
16" Wuhan China
15" SR2 Thin
14" SR2 Hats (medium top / heavy bottom)

I will most likely never use all of these at the same time. Peace and goodwill.

[Drumolator]

I decided that I really did not need two 18 inch crashes. Last Wednesday I took the SR2 18 inch Thin cymbal to church to use as a crash-ride, and it worked well. My son said it sounded good. So now I have both the AA 21inch Bash Ride and the HHX 20 inch Evolution Ride. Peace and goodwill.

[NO DRUMS]

Here is just an innocent question.If you are playing at the same church and the first set of cymbals were fine and the songs of that church didn’t change, why switch between so many cymbals often?
PEACE AND GOODWILL…GTG

[Drumolator]

Here is just an innocent question.If you are playing at the same church and the first set of cymbals were fine and the songs of that church didn’t change, why switch between so many cymbals often?
PEACE AND GOODWILL…GTG

You ask a good question. I guess I am obsessed with getting the best sound for me and the church. I think I have arrived at the best combination now. Peace and goodwill.

[Drumolator]

Also, I kept changing my mind about whether to use two crashes or three and if three, which ones? Peace and goodwill.

[Drumolator]

Well, I decided to go with three crashes, the 16" and 17" AAX Concept Crashes and the 18" SR2 Thin. I also returned the 21" AA Bash Ride to church. I will use the 20" HHX Evolution Ride. Peace and goodwill.

[Drumolator]

The story continues in 2022. Two days ago I bought a ride and hats. I went to C&M Music in Lafayette, Louisiana and bought a Sabian SR2 19" Heavy and XS20 14" Hats. I compared the SR2 19" Heavy with my AA 21" Bash ride. They were very similar, except that SR2 19" Heavy was slightly higher pitched. So now I have two sets of cymbals.

Set One, all Sabian
19" SR2 19" Heavy (ride)
18" SR2 18" Thin (crash-ride)
16" AA Thin Crash (20th Anniversary model)
14" XS20 Hats

Set Two, all Sabian
20" HHX Bash Ride
17" AAX Studio Crash
15" SR2 Thin
14" SR2 Hats (medium top, heavy bottom)

At Chrurch, mostly Sabian
21" AA Bash Ride
18" AAX Studio Crash
18" Zildjian K China
17" AAX Concept Crash
16" AAX Concept Crash
13" Paiste Alpha Medium Hats
10" SR2 Thin (splash)

Peace and goodwill.

[Drumolator]

Here is a picture of my new cymbals and my current cymbal setup, all Sabian.

19" SR2 Heavy (good ride)
18" SR2 Thin (good crash-ride)
16" AA Thin Crash (20th Anniversary Model)
14" XS20 Hats

Peace and goodwill.

[Drumolator]

Well, the 17" Concept Crash at church is lower pitched than the 18" Studio Crash there. So I replaced it with my 17" AAX Studio Crash, which blends well with the other crashes at church. Also, I took pictures of my cymbals today.

Set One, all Sabian: 19" SR2 Heavy (good ride), 17" AAX Concept Crash, 16" AA Thin Crash, 14" XS20 Hats. I played these at a jam a few days ago and really liked them.



Set Two, all Sabian: 20" HHX Evolution Ride, 18" SR2 Thin (turned out to be a great crash-ride cymbal), 15" SR2 Thin, 14" SR2 Hats (Medium top, Heavy bottom)



Peace and goodwill.

[Drumolator]

Well, since the AAX 17" Concept Crash is so low pitched (lower than either of the 18" crashes I have access to), I took it back to church and brought home the AAX 18" Studio Crash. So here is my slightly different cymbal setup.

Set One, all SABIAN
19" SR2 Heavy
18" AAX Studio Crash
16" AA Thin Crash
14" XS20 Hats

Set two is the same, and the church setup now has the AAX 17" Concept Crash. Peace and goodwill.