Gian M.
Overhyped and Overpriced
Marketing is a powerful force. The short of my review is $400 with tax is way more than this cymbal pack is worth. Somewhere between $150-200 feels better.
I've been experimenting with a hybrid kit for at-home recording use. I've decided to avoid trigger cymbals, record the whole kit with overheads, and supplement the mesh-headed shell notes with sound replacing the hits via piezo contact mics and software like Trigger 2. So tone within a reduced volume parameter is what I'm looking for.
I've owned low volume cymbals from 5 different manufacturers, Zildjian L80s, Sabian Quiet Tones, Aegean Natural R, Evans D Bones, and Chinese knockoffs of the Sabian Quiet Tones with no badges on them.
Overall, I'd recommend the Chinese knockoffs the most as they are the cheapest and essentially perform the same. The knockoffs I got were exactly the same as the Sabians, which cost like 5x more. Basically, if it looks the same, it is all coming from the same factory and they are putting different badges on them to sell at different price points depending on how much clout that brand has with consumers.
Evans D Bones plusses and minuses:
+ It's cool that an outfit making low volume cymbals finally made hi-hats where the bottom is heavier than the top (like with full-volume cymbals). The bottom hat also has a different pattern (how that affects sound I couldn't really tell
- the Evans hats are by far the worst item in the pack. They are loud and clangy and awful.
+ on the other hand the hats can also be used as smaller crashes, but they suffer from the ugly tone issues the crashes have (see below)
+ if money is not an issue pairing an Evans D Bone as the bottom hat with a Zildjian L80 on the top is way, way better.
+ the ride was my favorite element. It's dry and pingy, which is how I like it. In the real cymbal world my fave ride is my 20" unlathed Earth Ride
-/+ the Evans crashes are just ok. They have some good tone, but they, like all the other pieces in this kit, have a nasty, dirty, low undertone that becomes present once the initial better crash tone dissipates. The response on the Evans is not great either. Again, if these were $50 crashes, much more recommendable
- Evans is getting too bold with their price ask. This same pack was more robust and much cheaper a year or two ago. People are falling for the marketing and the price is going up and value down.
Sabian Quiet Tones and/or Chinese knockoffs (they are the same product) plus and minus list:
+ the response on these is the best. I hit them and they respond the best. Most lively. This is good for recording.
+/- The silver stainless steel cymbals are the brightest in tone. The attack, sustain and decay are uniform in tonality. On the other hand these are the harshest in terms of sounding tinny, but overall they are the most like real cymbals. My intention is to EQ out harshness later in mixing.
+ the ride is defined but also has a good amount of wash to it. I like it but I like it better with one piece of tape on the bow to better control this.
- hats are a little too harsh so what I do is I pair a Zildjian L80 on top with a silver 14" on the bottom. Way better.
+ these are the cheapest!!
Zildjian L80 plusses and minuses:
+ for sure the quietest pack I've tried. The cymbals are so quiet that stick noise starts to be unusually noticeable. Note you can make any cymbal, low volume or full volume, totally dead (still stick noise) by getting a roll of Lusata 2" elastic fabric and making DIY rings to go around the cymbal bow. I made my own trigger cymbals this way and they worked fine.
- / + Since the Zildjians are so quiet, the tone is nothing special. It's just a serviceable noise that isn't awful but I wouldn't want to record.
+ the hi-hats are likely the best piece. They kind of sound like more static tambourine sizzles overall, from the chick to the stick notes.
- the ride is the worst piece. Too washy for me and the distinct notes are more stick noise than tone. Again, the quietest
+ the ride works way better as a crash IMO
+ I have a 13" Zildjian hat, too, that I pair with the 12" piece that came in my silver knockoff set, and I use it as a loose, permanently closed aux hat and it's cool!
- the finish wears off. I've never seen this on a regular cymbal, so it leads me to believe there's some wool being pulled over people's eyes in terms of what these cymbals really are.
- the asking price on these is stupid. Half of this is because most drummers seem to not be able to name any manufacturers past Zildjian, Sabian, and maybe Paiste, and so the price of the products reflects the market share, not the quality. IMO the Zildjians are 2x too expensive for what you're getting, mass produced cheap metal plates with holes in them.
Aegean Natural R plusses and minusses:
+ slightly better tone than the others, I guess
- then again, it wasn't so great that I kept them. I gave them a whirl for a day, decided they weren't as good as the marketing hype claimed they were, and returned them. I remember the ride was not dry or defined enough for me, the hats were ok at best, and the crashes were crashy but...
- The price for these is like getting a pack of proper full volume cymbals, but with 65% as good tone. That seems to be missing the point to me.
- Much louder than any other low volume cymbal. Again, 60% of volume and 65% of tone of full volume cymbals for full volume cymbal price... what's the point?
Here's what my current at home, low volume recording setup looks like.
