Anyone else play mismatched hi hats?

Channing said:
What makes a cymbal a "crash" or a "ride"? Is there some inherent qualities cymbals possess that make them one or the other? I know one drummer who uses an A Custom ride as a crash, and I wonder, what is the difference?
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Crash and ride are the verbs we use to describe what the drummer is doing. The label/adjective inked on the bronze simply lets a drummer know a cymbal's intended use. Drummers can ride crashes, crash rides, splash hats, etc. Manufacturers are free to design products that do both (Sabian Omni), or transcend labels by marketing cymbals without adjectives to avoid preconceived biases regarding how a particular cymbal should be used.
 
I have a crappy nickle silver top over a not so crappy B8 (Paiste 404, the old ones). Honestly, I think the combination of the two sounds better than either set of hats the cymbals came from.

They still arent great, but I'm not really a hats person. I have them, but much prefer rides.
 
Hit or miss mismatching,

Best mismatches:

Paiste PST7 top, Signature Sound Edge Bottom (B8 + B15)

Signature Sound Edge Top, Zildjian S Matersound Bottom (B15 + B12, interesting combo and sound)


Worst

16" 2002 Thin as Top, 16" PST 7 as Bottom > sounds like CARP!!
 
I’ve done a lot of mixing and matching. I really liked the super thin, wafer-like sound I got from putting a Paiste 14” Signature Crash on top of a Zildjian A Custom Mastersound hi-hat bottom.
 
Over the years I’ve tried various combinations over the years and none were any better than the pre-matched. Then I picked up an A Custom Mastersound bottom and it was like getting a new set of hi hats. Marked difference in sound when required for about £50.
 
I have 3 kits set up right now, one with Meinl Soundcaster Fusion hats, which I absolutely love, but that left me with Rudes, original Colorsound 5s, and the newer Colorsound 15" hats to choose from for the other 2 kits. I'm not a basher anymore, so none of the choices really thrilled me.

Then I remembered I had some Meinl HCS hats laying around, part of a cymbal pack that came with a double bass Imperialstar I bought a couple years ago. So what the heck? I tried them out and theyre godawful...but then I put a Colorsound 5 on the bottom and wallah! Surprisingly good sounding, decent stick definition, but not overpowering. For the other kit I put a Rude on bottom and the HCS bottom on top, youd never know they were "beginner" hats when paired with something decent.
Couldn't find any redeeming qualities with the rest of the HCS set though!
 
This thread has inspired me. In a couple of weeks when we record praise music for our currently online church, I'm gonna try two old A. Zildjian cymbals that haven't gotten into the rotation lately. 1958 16in 1050g crash as the TOP HH with a 1950 16in 1525g (I have no idea what this cymbal was made for) cymbal as the BOTTOM. I'll reserve judgement until then. At least they're pretty. Might end up being a more subtle and very dark version of New Beats.

Pete

PairOf16s.jpg
 
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Peedy said:
This thread has inspired me. In a couple of weeks when we record praise music for our currently online church, I'm gonna try two cymbals that haven't gotten into the rotation lately. 1958 16in 1050g crash as the TOP HH with a 1950 16in 1525g (I have no idea what this cymbal was made for) cymbal as the BOTTOM. I'll reserve judgement until then. At least they're pretty. Might end up being a more subtle and very dark version of New Beats.

Pete

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Those weights sound like they'd make great hi hats!
 
Winston_Wolf said:
Those weights sound like they'd make great hi hats!
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I'm hoping. I've been thinking about using these two together for several months but I haven't pulled the trigger. Thing is they're almost 2600g while my regular pair are 1550g and I like to travel light. So we'll see if they wow me in carrying them around.

Pete

ps - after I posted the pic, I just sat and stared at it for three or four solid minutes. Cymbals are like art sometimes or I have too much time on my hands <g>.
 
I have my sweet hats. They used to belong to Mick Tucker apparently. They are my first 15s.

A Rock Top/602 soundedge bottom of 70s vintage. They're really warm sounding but the heavy top gives it the cut.
 
I have a 15" pair of Zildjian Mastersound hats, and I also have a Sabian 15" AA Sizzle Hat bottom and a 15" AA medium crash and I can get a lot of cool sounds out of mixing and matching all of those. For 14" I have a 2002 Heavy hi hat bottom, a 404 hi hat bottom and a Zildjian Titanium Rock hat bottom that also mix and match surprisingly well.
 
For me the secret sauce is the rippled bottom, SE or MS. A long long time I go I took a good looking but piece of Junk sounding Sabian B8 hats and made my own ripples on the bottom and banged the hell out the top deforming it a bit, sounded so much better!

My very own custom Hand Hammered Sabian.
 
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In my world it's less common to have a matching set of HH's.

The only HH's I keep together is a set of 1977 New Beats that I don't play anymore.

Mismatched Soultone "Old School 1964" series are my HH of choice.
 
theseer2 said:
For me the secret sauce is the rippled bottom, SE or MS. A long long time I go I took a good looking but piece of Junk sounding Sabian B8 hats and made my own ripples on the bottom and banged the hell out the top deforming it a bit, sounded so much better!

My very own custom Hand Hammered Sabian.
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I've been playing Mastersound hats for a few years now. They really are amazing. I'll never go back to a smooth-bottom hat.
 
My mixed up Hi Hat combinations of choice are currently

1) Istanbul 30th anniversary top - Bosphorus SM fat hats bottom, both 15”
2) Bosphorus New Orleans top - Istanbul 30th anniversary bottom, both 15”

Choice 1 delivers complex sticking sound and cleaner barks, louder foot chick
Choice 2 delivers clean (woody) sticking with dirty barks, quieter foot chick

I change from 1 and 2 every few weeks.
 
I do it all of the time. I don't think I've done a single recording in the last 4-5 years where I haven't used mismatched hats :) It creates so many different sound options. The mics in general are "hearing" a bit differently then the ears so experimenting is the key. Currently my favorite hi-hat combo is 15" thick PoBoy crash as bottom and 15" K Dark thin crash for top. It sounds like this:

 
I don't normally play mismatched hats, but on occasion I will. One particular set I sometimes used in church was a Paiste 13" 602 Heavy top over a 13" 2oo2 Medium bottom.

Browsing through those old Paiste Profile books I noticed many drummers used a 602 Heavy Hi-hat top over a 2oo2 Sound Edge bottom.

Now that Paiste brought back the 14" and 15" 602 Heavy hats, maybe that combo could make a comeback!?

I once owned brilliant 14" Sabian Light Hats and would often place either the top or bottom over a 14" New Beat bottom that sounded great.
 
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