Advantages and Disadvanteges of Cleaning a Cymbal..........

drums32

Senior Member
Will cleaning my Paiste signature crash be a smart idea? I have paiste cymbal cleaner. It sounds great i dont want to clean it and mess it up but i want it to be shiny and clean. I got the cymbal used and it is a little dirty and appears to have a little spill of maybe a drink or somethin idk. What are the advanteges and disadvanteges of cleaning a cymbal? Thanks
 
Will cleaning my Paiste signature crash be a smart idea? I have paiste cymbal cleaner. It sounds great i dont want to clean it and mess it up but i want it to be shiny and clean. I got the cymbal used and it is a little dirty and appears to have a little spill of maybe a drink or somethin idk. What are the advanteges and disadvanteges of cleaning a cymbal? Thanks

The cymbal cleaner will work fine. Soap and water may also work too. I have Signatures also. Windex works too on paistes too.
 
The cymbal cleaner will work fine. Soap and water may also work too. I have Signatures also. Windex works too on paistes too.


thanks will it change the sound?
 
Not at all. Is your cymbal new or used? If you are going to use the polish make sure that you get it all off because if you don't it's going to eat the protective coating off of your cymbal and it's going to turn green.
 
Not at all. Is your cymbal new or used? If you are going to use the polish make sure that you get it all off because if you don't it's going to eat the protective coating off of your cymbal and it's going to turn green.

its used but i have the paiste mild cleaner
 
If anything cleaning your cymbal will make it sound better, and it will look nicer
 
The only disadvantage to cleaning a cymbal is, well, doing it. It ain't like doing your laundry, you know.
 
I like to clean my cymbals because they look professional that way. I use Groove Juice myself (Zildjians) and it works wonders. Just spray on and rise off and all the fingerprints, stickmarks go away. I used to have that Zildjian polish which while shining cymbals, ruined a bunch of towels, was hard work, and left greasy coating [did affect sound]. The Groove Juice just cleans them though and doesn't affect the sound at all. Yes it is true that a 30 year old cymbal with heavy patina and tarnish built up all over it will sound different than an identical cymbal clean, but only a subtle difference. Take care of your instruments, clean those cymbals! You don't have to polish them, but at least keep them clean. Paiste alloys probably work with Groove Juice, but I haven't heard definitely. Be safer with the Paiste cleaner (which I believe contains that protective coating stuff or maybe that is a separate product). As for the protective coating nonsense, cymbals were made for decades without it and as long as you keep them clean you aren't going to see any negative effects. Chrome polish is nice for hardware and certain snares as well.
 
I find that whenever I clean my cymbals I found they sound and project better because removing grime and dirt makes the sound waves more around more and not flying all over the place. I use DamoSyzgy's method for cleaning cymbals. What is good about his method is that once you wash the soap off you can see if you need to use the cleaner or not. I think the soap will get the liquid stain right off. If notice your cymbals starting to go green (which is the metal oxidizing) get some cymbal protector and put it on. I clean my cymbals once every 2-3 months.
 
I like to clean my cymbals because they look professional that way. I use Groove Juice myself (Zildjians) and it works wonders. Just spray on and rise off and all the fingerprints, stickmarks go away. I used to have that Zildjian polish which while shining cymbals, ruined a bunch of towels, was hard work, and left greasy coating [did affect sound]. The Groove Juice just cleans them though and doesn't affect the sound at all. Yes it is true that a 30 year old cymbal with heavy patina and tarnish built up all over it will sound different than an identical cymbal clean, but only a subtle difference. Take care of your instruments, clean those cymbals! You don't have to polish them, but at least keep them clean. Paiste alloys probably work with Groove Juice, but I haven't heard definitely. Be safer with the Paiste cleaner (which I believe contains that protective coating stuff or maybe that is a separate product). As for the protective coating nonsense, cymbals were made for decades without it and as long as you keep them clean you aren't going to see any negative effects. Chrome polish is nice for hardware and certain snares as well.

Ditto; I use Groove Juice on my Armand A Zildjians after using brasso for years. GJ is faster, cleaner, and gets them shining like new.
 
I find that whenever I clean my cymbals I found they sound and project better because removing grime and dirt makes the sound waves more around more and not flying all over the place.

I noticed that too. I also like the look of shiny cymbals. I personally feel that musicians should look after their instruments. We are very fortunate to have the opportunity and ability to play drums. The craftsmen and women made the instruments for us, and I will repay them for their efforts by taking care of my drums, cymbals and other percussion.

Long live those who manufacture instruments! Many thanks.

GJS
 
Cleaning cymbals removes the dirt and grime that accumulates on them, which allows them to move more freely, which allows more freedom of vibration, which allows the higher frequencies to be produced easier, which makes them sound brighter.

...with that said, some people like mellower sounding cymbals and don't mind the non-shiny appearance.
 
ive heard that if you polish a cymbal will give it a brighter sound, is that true, like would it make a dark cymbal sound brighter?
 
thanks i cleaned it it sounds a Tad brighter
 
Cleaning a cymbal DOES change it's sound, but only very very slightly. Dirt and grime and crap on a cymbal changes the sound, cleaning it will make it sound brighter. So if you like a bright sounding cymnbal, clean it, if you like the slightly muffled (i guess), darker sound, let em get dirty

ive heard that if you polish a cymbal will give it a brighter sound, is that true, like would it make a dark cymbal sound brighter?

not brighter than it originally was
 
Drums32. - As you've found out, cleaning a dirty cymbal will allow it to be a bit brighter. Maybe think of it like taking tape off of a tom head...less stuff (even dirt or beer) on it allows it to move better.

Just one thing though...we only reccomend Paiste cymbal cleaner. Many of the products out there are acid based and will take the protective coating off of your cymbal. Paiste coating is very strong, but those types of cleaners tear it up.

If you get an old cymbal (any brand) that has had the coating removed, we offer a cymbal protector that essentially puts a coating back on the instrument. Having a thin protective layer keeps fingerprints under control and also keeps the cymbals from tarnishing.

I am by no means trying to talk bad about the other cleaners, I've used them on other brands and they work great, they just aren't for your Paistes.

Happy playing!
 
Drums32. - As you've found out, cleaning a dirty cymbal will allow it to be a bit brighter. Maybe think of it like taking tape off of a tom head...less stuff (even dirt or beer) on it allows it to move better.

Just one thing though...we only reccomend Paiste cymbal cleaner. Many of the products out there are acid based and will take the protective coating off of your cymbal. Paiste coating is very strong, but those types of cleaners tear it up.

If you get an old cymbal (any brand) that has had the coating removed, we offer a cymbal protector that essentially puts a coating back on the instrument. Having a thin protective layer keeps fingerprints under control and also keeps the cymbals from tarnishing.

I am by no means trying to talk bad about the other cleaners, I've used them on other brands and they work great, they just aren't for your Paistes.

Happy playing!

thanks:)..............
 
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