Help me find my Hats!

Scottie15

Senior Member
Ok so,

A few years back I got a good deal on some 13" HHX Groove Hats in brilliant. I got them on a whim after having never tried the groove hats. I liked them, but felt they weren't ass effective for the style of music I have been playing, which is Brazilian/Latin/Portuguese Axé music (Saul Fernandes, Netinho, etc.), where the hi hats are the focal point of the groove and stick articulation is key. I felt that I had to really keep my foot as tight as possible to get the stick definition I'm looking for, and even then, the response isn't as loud or responsive as I'd like. Groove Hats Now, a few years later, and I finally have the funds for new hats. With so many hats in the market, I have found it hard to find the perfect ones for my styles of music. I am looking for hats that I don't have to play hard to get a clear and crisp response from. Hats that I can play an articulate groove on without having to apply too much pressure on the pedal to get a nice tight closed response. I am thinking that I should probably switch to a brighter pair of hats than the HHX line to get a livelier response or perhaps switch to 14" or even 15" to get what I'm looking for.

Thanks for reading my long-winded response. It's just that with so many choices in terms of hats and not enough music stores around, I'd like some experienced responses before I begin heading to the shops. Thanks again.
 
I was curious about the X-Celerators. They have the rippled bottom like the Mastersounds and Paiste Sound Edge hats. Not sure if they'd provide that tight stick definition when closed. I was also curious about A New Beats. They seem to get a lot of praise.
 
There's really no substitute for actually trying out as many hats as you can get your hands on.
Generally though, I'd say for what you want, go a little bigger and a little heavier.

I'm one of those who praise the new A New Beats, but I don't have them.
I've got other New Beats and other A's and K's.
I don't think you'd go wrong with a set of the new ones, but there must be some place you could try them out first, isn't there?
 
There's really no substitute for actually trying out as many hats as you can get your hands on.
Generally though, I'd say for what you want, go a little bigger and a little heavier.

I'm one of those who praise the new A New Beats, but I don't have them.
I've got other New Beats and other A's and K's.
I don't think you'd go wrong with a set of the new ones, but there must be some place you could try them out first, isn't there?

Yea there's a guitar center in Santa Clara. Highly doubt they carry 15" new beats though
 
Thanks for the recommendations guys!

Was able to stop by a Guitar Center today and get my hands on some cymbals. Interestingly, the 14" A New Beats and A Mastersounds caught my ear, although a tad bright. I have heard the 15" New Beats are the way to go as far a versatility. Curious about investing in Mastersounds for that crisp bite and just betting a regular New Beat bottom to alternate.

The only downside to the New Beats was their brightness, which I feel can get lost in certain genres. Immediately I thought of the K Mastersounds, but they didn't have those in stock. Based on the clips I've seen online, the K Mastersounds have a bit of bite, but very nice and dry stick definition, but have yet to play them in person.


Choices, choices, choices!
 
A little late maybe, but you're pretty much describing these hats in either 13" or 14" options:

http://www.guitarcenter.com/Zildjian-K-Special-K-Z-Hi-Hat-Cymbals-100153305-i1136093.gc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xuqKUO4Ggfk

For major articulation, put the Z on top a'la Carter Beauford or Tim Alexander.

I have a friend who used the K/Z Combos. From what I've heard, 13" is the preferred choice for the K/Z combos. I was looking for toward 14" Checked out some K Mastersound I liked and thought about purchasing a 14" Z bottom separately for more options.
 
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