Last year, a student of mine picked up a pack of Sabian HHX's (20 ride, 14 hats, 16 and 18 crashes) for $750, and that's the best deal I've ever seen in my life. We tested all the cymbals in the pack before buying, and even though it was the student's first cymbal purchase, he could easily tell the difference between the HHX's, some Zildjian A's, and Paiste 2002s. He said they sounded more "sophisticated". The Zildjian A's were on the bright side, and Paiste 2002s much brighter, and glassier. To the uninitiated, a brighter cymbal sounds louder, and that could be interpreted as "better", but the hard truth is that cymbals are already louder than your drums, so louder isn't a necessary or desirable quality. So when you listen to those demos, do not mistake brighter for better. Nearly all drummers who are out playing gigs on a local level are searching for ways to keep our volume low, and balanced with the band.
$500 is not much money for cymbals. It would take lots of searching, testing, and experience to make that work. You would have to find quality used cymbals, and have developed taste well enough to hear a good find through a crappy recording. Do not waste money on Paiste 101s, ZBTs, B8s, B8Pros, etc., which will have bright, tinny, nasty overtones. If you listen closely to the YouTube demos, you can hear it. It's much more obvious in person.
I think you should double your cymbal budget, and get a pack of HHX's, K Custom, or K Custom Dark. The cymbals will hold their value well enough, and you can just relax and not have to think about better cymbals for another 5 years. Why are cymbals like this more expensive? More labor and better metal. The hammering is more thorough, the alloy is nicer, and the quality control is higher.
Peace and goodwill.
