Meinl Cymbals?

Rolltide

Active Member
Anybody a Meinl fan ? I have been away from drums for a bit but their lines of cymbals are very impressive . Lots of choices , unique and musical it seems- thx
 
I have several cymbals from the Byzance Traditional and M Series lines. Each line is very different in manufacturing techniques and resulting sound, but both are very high quality and the cymbals sound fantastic. I highly recommend checking them out!
 
I have no experience with Meinl's mainstream cymbals but their entry-level products are the worst I've encountered. As dreadful as Zildjian ZBT and Sabian B8 cymbals are, they are a notch better than their Meinl counterparts.

No different than any other manufacturer, I suppose. Standard messaging applies: buy used professional grade cymbals if you wish, but avoid new entry-level cymbals if you're debating between the two.
 
I like the Meinl HCS hi hat cymbals. They seem pretty good, not very expensive, good intermediate quality cymbals. I play them on a Pearl export house kit at a local bar.
 
I've never played Meinl, but online demonstrations I've heard suggest that they possess appealing characteristics. Of course, you never know what you're getting with a cast cymbal, as no two from the same series will sound alike. For a few years now, I've played Zildjian's S Family exclusively. They start in the factory as sheets rather than as liquid components. The result is an amazingly consistent weight and sound. Some scoff at the concept of sheet cymbals, but the snobbery among the cast crowd is without merit. Paiste, for example, produces almost all their products from sheets. And John Bonham recorded and played live throughout his career with the Paiste 2002 series, all crafted from sheets. Sheet cymbals aren't inferior; they're just produced through a different process.
 
I tried to like Meinls but it didn't work.

They don't speak to me at all.
 
Been playing mostly Meinl since 2006, and I've never been disappointed with their stuff, apart from the really cheap lines (Classics, etc).

The Byzance Traditional line is my personal favourite, but I've owned cymbals from Classics, Amun (discontinued), MB10, MB20, Soundcaster Custom, Byzance Dark and Byzance Brilliant. Apart from the Classics (which I bought for a gig and destroyed in the course of one set), I've liked them all.
 
The only line that has really spoke to me is the Sand stuff- and even then, most of it's too trashy for me. I REALLY like the 22" crash/ride though, it is super dark and has just a hint of trashy tonality to it to help it cut. Almost like saturation.

@Rolltide why are you asking? Are you looking to buy some?

-Jonathan
 
Their logo is so annoyingly ugly! I see it always as a "PA Meinl". I have one Byzance Jazz ride. I tend to like their some cymbals in their Byzance Jazz series.
 
The only line that has really spoke to me is the Sand stuff- and even then, most of it's too trashy for me. I REALLY like the 22" crash/ride though, it is super dark and has just a hint of trashy tonality to it to help it cut. Almost like saturation.

@Rolltide why are you asking? Are you looking to buy some?

-Jonathan
 
I have no experience with Meinl's mainstream cymbals but their entry-level products are the worst I've encountered. As dreadful as Zildjian ZBT and Sabian B8 cymbals are, they are a notch better than their Meinl counterparts.

No different than any other manufacturer, I suppose. Standard messaging applies: buy used professional grade cymbals if you wish, but avoid new entry-level cymbals if you're debating between the two.

That may be true, although beating ZBT's on that front is quite an accomplishment..

Their affordable Classic Custom Dark line is top notch! I have been playing them now for the past 2 years.
 
Lol doesn't look like your message made it when you posted.

I just realised you also started the left side crash thread, so I'll assume this is an off-shoot from that.

If you want to explore Meinl, I really like the sound of the Sand medium crash which only comes as an 18. It basically sounds like a K dark thin, but with just a hint of trash (similar to what I was describing with my crash/ride above).

-Jonathan
 
Lol doesn't look like your message made it when you posted.

I just realised you also started the left side crash thread, so I'll assume this is an off-shoot from that.

If you want to explore Meinl, I really like the sound of the Sand medium crash which only comes as an 18. It basically sounds like a K dark thin, but with just a hint of trash (similar to what I was describing with my crash/ride above).

-Jonathan
 
Thank you, it still sounds like a Zilly world to me , everything is compared to the K’s as the standard for my request it seems
 
@Rolltide, not sure if you’re aware, but you’re generating two posts instead of just one in your replies. See if this helps...

1. After clicking the “Reply” link in the message you want to respond to, do not click the “Post reply” button at the bottom of the page YET...

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3. Type your reply starting on that line and when complete...

4. If you would like to see how your reply will appear before submitting, click the “Preview” button and review the Preview area below the dialogue box...

5. THEN click the “Post reply” button.
 
Had a lot of Meinl cymbals over the years, at one time all my cymbals were Meinl's (Byzance, Soundcaster Custom, Mb10 and Mb20). But kinda wanting to try out Paiste at one point, and got bit by that bug, so I sold off a lot of my Meinl's. Still have a Byzance crash, splash, and a M-Series Heavy hat left (that last one I don't really like, to clangy sounding for my taste, not sounding all that good in semi-open position...). Really recommend them as a company though, but nowadays, in my opinion, all the big companies (and several small ones too) make great cymbals, so it's just a matter of personal taste and price/availability. One thing is for sure though, the prices of Meinl has gone up and is the same, or even more expensive, than the other big 3's (Zildjian, Sabian and Paiste) as far as I know. I remember back in the mid 2000's, Meinl cymbals were about half the price of the other companies, so I got really into them because of that. Of course, the cymbals sounded great as well, but when I can get a K/K Custom, HHX or 2002/Signatures for the same price as a Byzance.... Well, let's just say it's hard to pick a favorite brand/cymbal line out of all those choices, when pricing are equal.
 
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