Best (most stable and strong) cymbal stand ever made? Brand/model?

.........I measure the frequency with an Oscilloscope to prove my point about homonics and substained tonality.

In a day to day practical sense doesn't the fact that you need sensitive equipment to prove the point speak volumes?

In a common listening situation we don't have ready access to oscilloscopes or other scientific listening equipment. The average punter has to rely on their ears. And given that, could the average man even notice an audible difference?

I don't doubt the findings you put forward at all. It's more a matter of their practical application in a musical sense. I'm not sold that you need to carry around all that extra weight for what seems like such a minute benefit that gets totally lost on all but the most sensitive equipment anyway.

What do you reckon?
 
Given all the overtones of a cymbal, I'm not sure how you measure the frequency with an oscilloscope. Maybe if you have a DSO in spectrum analyzer mode with a snapshot of the waveform, you can pick out some of the various dominant frequencies. I would use a fast Fourier transform instead to map the decay of the various overtones.

Beyond academic fun with toys I would think none of which matters unless you're trying to characterize a particular cymbal you like and duplicate it.
 
I've seen the DW 8700 series stands and they are beasts in both stature and weight. I usually go a bit overboard knowing that stands can and do make a difference in the sound of the cymbals, but the 8700 is radical in every sense of my being. What I can't understand is a stand of the nature having a "toothless tilter". With the stand being so overly engineered, if anything was going to slip or fail, it would be the tilter in my estimation. The DW 9700 series are more than enough to give me the confidence I need no matter what I have to hang from it. I use many stands that are much lighter in weight than even the DW 9700 and never had a problem.

Dennis
 
Dude you are dead on, I make my living doing structural engineering of a day and gig all night. The more ridgid the stand the longer the substain as to the strength of material and the inertia ( force applied). I hope somebody reads this old post because you are dead on with your belief!

Thanks for your comments Octaplus. I have been a professional product designer in the field of vibration control for over twenty two years and stand (pun intended) behind my statement.

In many everyday situations where a drum kit will be played in a noisy bar or through a sound system most, but not all, of the benefit of an extremely rigid cymbal stand will be lost. When a high quality cymbal/kit is used for recording or in an acoustic setting and/or in a good listening room the benefits are much more apparent - especially when the music being played highlights dynamic range and tonal quality.
 
Last edited:
I've seen the DW 8700 series stands and they are beasts in both stature and weight. I usually go a bit overboard knowing that stands can and do make a difference in the sound of the cymbals, but the 8700 is radical in every sense of my being. What I can't understand is a stand of the nature having a "toothless tilter". With the stand being so overly engineered, if anything was going to slip or fail, it would be the tilter in my estimation. The DW 9700 series are more than enough to give me the confidence I need no matter what I have to hang from it. I use many stands that are much lighter in weight than even the DW 9700 and never had a problem.

Dennis


Hi Dennis,

Thank you for your reply.

Since I started this thread in September 2010 I did purchase two DW 8700 cymbal stands because they were the only ones I could find that competed with my Sonor Signature and Sonor 5000 II stands. You are right, the DW 8700 is extremely well engineered.

There are many good stands on the new and used market that can hold a cymbal without falling over but I consider that more of a minimum requirement.

Barry
 
The average punter has to rely on their ears. And given that, could the average man even notice an audible difference?

Without a doubt, yes they can. Average people have the ability to discern relatively small sonic differences when they know what to listen for and if the comparisons are conducted in the proper environment. Most people just don't have enough experience listening critically to sound quality but they do possess the same physiological capabilities as "Golden Ears".

It is possible, however, that even though a person would be able to hear the difference, the difference may not be that important to them or it is negated by practical concerns such as significantly increased gigging gear weight. For other people the sonic difference may be very important.

Measurement equipment is an important tool but our ears are far more sensitive to the complexity of sonic nuance than any piece of lab gear.
 
I find the problem is that even when you introduce a heavy/rigid stand all you can hear is the added frequencies of the stand vibrating when you strike the cymbal. I mean, I buy my cymbals for their sound, and the last thing I want to hear is the stand humming along at its favourite frequency. The only solution has been to suspend my cymbals via magnetic levitation. The only trouble is that I have to get to the gig really early to make sure I can get all my power cables laid and plugged in before the rest of the guys show up and try to steal my sockets. Of course, the true upshot -- beyond the pristine sound of my cymbals -- is that I don't have to tell the lead guitarist to turn down quite as often.
 
Last edited:
History's biggest, most absurdly overkill cymbal stands were made in the mid-80's by Tama and Sonor. I think Tama was triple-bracing them at one point. Yamaha also made a stand with a gigantic, 4-foot base. To me they're a little bit like using a deuce and a half to haul your groceries, but there you go.

Yep,Tama Stilt stands are the best I've ever seen,bar none.You can make them heavier,but not better.

Steve B
 
Bringing this back from the dead. Surprised there was no mention of Pearl stands. For at least a quality stand. I have a Pearl set. Although I want quality heavy duty boom stands and cymbal stands, I'd like to stay loyal to a brand baring I'm getting a just as quality product. If Tama's are that much "better" then other I will be looking into them. If not I'm sticking with Pearl stands. Going to compare them at the drum shop to make an informed decision.
 
Bringing this back from the dead. Surprised there was no mention of Pearl stands. For at least a quality stand. I have a Pearl set. Although I want quality heavy duty boom stands and cymbal stands, I'd like to stay loyal to a brand baring I'm getting a just as quality product. If Tama's are that much "better" then other I will be looking into them. If not I'm sticking with Pearl stands. Going to compare them at the drum shop to make an informed decision.

I have two Pearl double-braced boom stands for my main crashes and a boom arm for an effects cymbal. They can be either straight stands or boom stands. The grommets kinda came a quarter to a third of the way out, but just stayed that way. I've had them for almost a couple decades. Love them, no issues other than the plastic grommets at the base where it slides up and down.
 
for low weight to stability ratio, I have to suggest the Axis Vortex line.

Not as stable as the 80's monsters...but FAR less weight....and very acceptable stability.
 
I see this is here again. If you want to get academic about it (I'm also an engineer) there is more to the equation than just mass. Grab an old Tama stand and rotate it. You'll find a lot of slop in the way the legs are riveted on. Try the same with a Yamaha stand 1/3 the weight and it doesn't move. So which is dissipating more energy?

Actually you would have to tune the stand away from any fundamentals of the cymbal to minimize energy dissipation. Some combination of the correct mass in the correct places along with rigidity where it's needed and lossy connections where they're needed.

There's a new business opportunity for someone. Tuneable cymbal stands. You could start with sliding weights and start a million internet arguments over the correct settings. Then someone would come out with elastomeric decoupled weights and people could argue over the durometer as well as where on the stand it goes. And since no two hand made cymbals are the same, this could go on forever.
 
There's a new business opportunity for someone. Tuneable cymbal stands. You could start with sliding weights and start a million internet arguments over the correct settings. Then someone would come out with elastomeric decoupled weights and people could argue over the durometer as well as where on the stand it goes. And since no two hand made cymbals are the same, this could go on forever.

....and after all the science and manufacturing and marketing and buying of shiny new toys, some kid will still overtighten the felts and choke the cymbal to hell.
 
Gibraltar still makes their 9000 series but I dont know if any of you remember how they looked in the 90s. triple telescoped, the boom arm itself is like 3 feet long and 1" motorcycle bar tubing with a cylinder weight at the end. Just massive.


I still use one on my kit for the ride. When I carry it around I feel as if I should be reciting lines from The Terminator.

I'd kill myself if I still had a whole set of them.
 
Pearl stands are a bit unreliable, I've got a double braced bood stand I can't open the boom on because it starts rotating away once I hit the cymbal due to the stand not tightening properly. Plus I had another Pearl boom that disintegrated at the boom tilter. Saying that I have a Pearl hi hat stand that I've used for donkeys and never had an issue.

Premier stands tend to go at the legs when the tightening nut gives out but other than that they're pretty sturdy.

Tama stands have got to be the most sturdy. I use two single braced snare stands one of which I've used for every gig since I bought the kit it belonged to new in 2001 and it's still going strong. I have a straight stand as well from that kit that's still going strong too, the Tama rockstar has long since gone!
 
I have two Orange County boom stands that are extremely sturdy and stable. They're like DW 9000s on steroids. They don't make them anymore however, so I may just have the last of a kind.
 
Back
Top