New ride arrived today.......meh.

fess

Senior Member
Ever see a used cymbal advertised, its got a sound file attached. You play the file over & over. It's exactly what you have been looking for. You finally make the leap and press 'add to cart'. You wait excitedly for days for it to arrive. You rip open the box, run to your kit, put it on the stand, sit down and.......eh.....it's.....OK.
Well, I'm sure the next one I order will be the perfect one
 
Find someone else to play your kit so you can stand 20 feet away and see if that changes your perception.

On top of that, just give your ears some time to get used to the new sound, and put the cymbal through its paces. Learn what it can (and maybe can't) do and have some fun with it. Maybe in a couple weeks you'll grow to love, or you'll still feel "meh" and you can begin the hunt again.
 
The sound file of course is not in your drum room and there are too many variables to even mention. what did you buy?
 
A site i was on showed how to eq drums.. and after seeing that i don't trust any sound files ever at all.. you could honestly make anything sound good in a video its ridiculous..

And if you can return it.. return it and order another :) i am a bit unhappy with my ride everytime i sit down.. didnt return it and now it haunts me.. some nights i hate my whole kit though and others i love it
 
I bought a Paiste Dark Energy Ride. It's OK. I think it will grow on me. I guess it's often hard for the reality to live up to the anticipation.
 
I bought a Paiste Dark Energy Ride. It's OK. I think it will grow on me. I guess it's often hard for the reality to live up to the anticipation.
I was going to say, don't rush to judgement.
For me, it takes a while to make the adjustments when playing a new cymbal, especially a ride I have to figure out how to get the sounds I want by adjusting strike zones and force. I'm still finding the dark corners on my B&G HHX Phoenix. It has so many interesting qualities that are different from the rides I've played before.
 
Sometimes a road trip is necessary. I have a couple of cymbals like that, both old, both Zildjians. I pay attention to weight and all of that but I've decided that if I want another cymbal I'm checking them out in person.
 
ya room is critical with sound files, witness some of the awful youtube videos of people cymbals
 
I was going to say, don't rush to judgement.
For me, it takes a while to make the adjustments when playing a new cymbal, especially a ride I have to figure out how to get the sounds I want by adjusting strike zones and force. I'm still finding the dark corners on my B&G HHX Phoenix. It has so many interesting qualities that are different from the rides I've played before.

I would second this.

Listening to sound files and videos on the enterwebs can be fairly true, ballpark, or just misleading. But, to be fair I look at many new cymbals like a relationship. Some are love at first listen. Some sound like a cat vomiting. Yet, others, given time really come around.

My Zildjian 24" Medium Ride was like the Soundgarden song, "Love Hate Love". I have really come to dig that cymbal. But, if you asked me 5 months ago, I would have said ditch it.

Try different rooms, sticks, paying attention to tip selection, and give it an opportunity to win you over. If it doesn't, trade it out.
 
Ever see a used cymbal advertised, its got a sound file attached. You play the file over & over. It's exactly what you have been looking for. You finally make the leap and press 'add to cart'. You wait excitedly for days for it to arrive. You rip open the box, run to your kit, put it on the stand, sit down and.......eh.....it's.....OK.
Well, I'm sure the next one I order will be the perfect one

After many years of doing this I don't get any better at picking cymbals.
I will still buy a cymbal after careful thought and listening, and it will still not work out the way I envisioned.

Cymbal appreciation falls into the Goldilocks effect. When you get it just right, it's superior satisfaction.
 
Don't worry. If you paid a lot for it, you will inevitably love it to death sooner or later, it's cognitive dissonance :)
The opposite may be true as well, you love it first and after a few months you start to hate it. This happened to me several times.
Don't spend time thinking about it now. Play it. You may or may not sell it again after a few months.
 
Ever see a used cymbal advertised, its got a sound file attached. You play the file over & over. It's exactly what you have been looking for. You finally make the leap and press 'add to cart'. You wait excitedly for days for it to arrive. You rip open the box, run to your kit, put it on the stand, sit down and.......eh.....it's.....OK.
Well, I'm sure the next one I order will be the perfect one

We've all been there. Give it some time. I (like many here) have searched for my perfect ride too, and there have been some which after initial uncertainty have turned out to be favorites, and others that I have loved initially that I ended up returning.
Take some time to explore it and let your ears adapt to it before deciding.
If it's still not the one, well you still learned something.
It really is a relationship with each cymbal, and it can change over time!
 
My Zildjian 24" Medium Ride was like the Soundgarden song, "Love Hate Love". I have really come to dig that cymbal. But, if you asked me 5 months ago, I would have said ditch it.

Try different rooms, sticks, paying attention to tip selection, and give it an opportunity to win you over. If it doesn't, trade it out.

Alice in Chains song actually (sorry, I'm a grunge nerd). But yes, particularly different tips can make ride cymbals sound very different. I use two different types of stick with nylon and wood tips of similar size and shape, and my ride has a distinctly different tone and feel depending on which stick I use. Keep it for a while and give it some time to grow on ya. Especially if you got a good deal on it.
 
Paiste cymbals always sound better from 20 feet away.

I did this with a Sabian 16" XS-20 crash. It was brand new. It turned out to be meh with my gig kit sound scheme. So I switched it with the 16" A Custom on my other kit, and it blended well with the sound scheme of my other kit's cymbals. The 16" A-Custom worked perfect with the gig kit's cymbal sound scheme too. All's well that ends well.
 
Paiste cymbals always sound better from 20 feet away.

I did this with a Sabian 16" XS-20 crash. It was brand new. It turned out to be meh with my gig kit sound scheme. So I switched it with the 16" A Custom on my other kit, and it blended well with the sound scheme of my other kit's cymbals. The 16" A-Custom worked perfect with the gig kit's cymbal sound scheme too. All's well that ends well.

It's funny you say that... when someone else played my paistes i loved em.. when i sit behind the kit and play they sound like ice picks.. sad thing is i only play for me.. so i keep trying to find ones that sound better behind the kit :)
 
It's funny you say that... when someone else played my paistes i loved em.. when i sit behind the kit and play they sound like ice picks.. sad thing is i only play for me.. so i keep trying to find ones that sound better behind the kit :)

Yeah, they're deceiving. Make sure to record yourself from 20 feet away, I guess, so when you listen back, it will sound good. Unless there is another dimension being overlooked.

My Sabians sound good no matter where I am in the room.
 
Alice in Chains song actually (sorry, I'm a grunge nerd). But yes, particularly different tips can make ride cymbals sound very different. I use two different types of stick with nylon and wood tips of similar size and shape, and my ride has a distinctly different tone and feel depending on which stick I use. Keep it for a while and give it some time to grow on ya. Especially if you got a good deal on it.

Ha! You are correct good sir!

That is one of my favorite AIC songs too. Don't know how I mixed that up. I saw them open for the clash of the titans tour with Slayer, Megadeth, and Anthrax. That was a cool show. Also the Alpha 24" is rocking on my kit now and has unseated my 2002 24" Ride. Thanks again. The bell is brutal.

The 24" Alpha Rock Ride is another example of not being 100% sold on a cymbal upon arrival. I give them a few opportunities to make the cut before they get the boot.
 
I've tried a couple of different types of sticks and I have recorded it. It's definitely growing on me. I'll bring it to the next band practice and Get a better feel. The previous owner had installed some rivets. I removed them and that was an improvement.
 
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