To swish or not to swish?

Bo Eder

Bo Eder

Platinum Member
First world problem: do I get a swish or not?

Most of you know I've bought an entirely new set of Paiste cymbals after 50 years of playing nothing but Zildjians, and while I have the basics covered (hats, crash, ride), I feel like I should add another crash to balance out the set, but then feel like the crash and ride I have can serve the purpose of two crashes when I need to do that (my ride is a thin, so it crashes and washes probably more than anyone here wants it to). When I played my Zildjians, I have the 22" Swish Knocker which is a sweet cymbal for riding and crashing. But part of me feels like the swish sound is so cliche'd because of how the jazz players use them (or how Neil Peart used his), and I don't think I'm doing it any great justice when I use it. People hear this exotic riding going on in the background, but who knows if it's too much for the audience?

But I've discovered that Paiste makes the 2002 24" swish cymbal (that JR Robinson really likes), and it does sound quite glorious. I'm just afraid to spend the $470 for a cymbal I know won't get played all the time. But I'm not kidding when I say it's glorious! If you recall Billy Cobham on his debut album, "Spectrum" he used that swish to great effect for years (I think his was a 26"!). Part of me says it will be a cool investment, but the practical side of me doesn't know where it would actually get used in my current cover-band situations.

So this is really just a question of want vs. need. Would you invest the $470 for the swish goodness that you may not use all the time? Or would you just get another regular crash to balance the kit out visually?
 
SYMBOLIC DEATH said:
Why not just use the swish you have? No one but you will know.
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The Paiste 24" has a much lower pitch than the Zildjian 22" swish knocker. In swish terms, it's more of what I like (I was always a fan of Cobham 26" from back in the day). But like I said, back in 1973, it was a relatively cool sound against what the big band jazzers were doing with their swishes back then, but now part of me feels like both of those uses have been overdone and put away. But there's always the possibility that the sound is so out-dated and unused, it may be new again. I could put the thought out of my mind and......wait.....no, I can't.
 
Perhaps get it, try it out and return it if you don't like it?
Couple of shops have a 30 day no questions asked full refund return policy (yeah ok, maybe not break it or leave it soaking in battery acid)

Liked the idea of a swish too, but i don't really have a need for it (besides that i had no place to mount one in the first place hehe)
 
iCe said:
Perhaps get it, try it out and return it if you don't like it?
Couple of shops have a 30 day no questions asked full refund return policy (yeah ok, maybe not break it or leave it soaking in battery acid)

Liked the idea of a swish too, but i don't really have a need for it (besides that i had no place to mount one in the first place hehe)
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Oh I have a few cymbal stands lying about 😉
 
Take a deep breath, then count to ten ......

Seriously, it's not just a matter or need and/or want. It may also depend on your mood at the time. I just took out my 2002 22" china for the first time in years after not quite knowing how and where to apply it, and it suddenly makes sense for all sorts of things.
 
Bo Eder said:
Oh I have a few cymbal stands lying about 😉
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Heh, i meant that the right side of my big setup was full with other cymbals/hardware xD

I did play my Zildjian A 18" China Low bell up for a while and loved the sound you'd get when riding it. Also sound better that bell down on a stand, but the sharp edge was murder on my sticks. Did start my interest in swish cymbals though!
Love the pingy and distinctive sound of a ride and that you can ride a swish for like bridges or verses etc. just like a guitar player would use a pedal.
 
That sounds really good to me, no rivets sounds beautiful

I heard somewhere about a swish type cymbal Dizzy Gillespie owned and made his drummers use under his solos. So there has been at least one non-drummer who likes the sound
 
KenDoken said:
That sounds really good to me, no rivets sounds beautiful

I heard somewhere about a swish type cymbal Dizzy Gillespie owned and made his drummers use under his solos. So there has been at least one non-drummer who likes the sound
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Bob Florence was the same way. I saw their band rehearse and Peter Donald shows up as the drummer. When Bob got there, he has one of Nick Ceroli’s swish cymbals and gives it to Peter to use. When they were done, Bob took the cymbal back and left.
 
This is rather polite swish and sounds applicable to many things, it's a freaking awesome 24. If I were to switch from Zildjian to Paiste, even though I love my Swish Knocker, this would be one of the first things I get :)

For the SK, I end up playing on the outer edge more so get the most rivet excitation at a lower volume but then inner for more articulation. I do like the rivet sound overall and weirdly very playable bell. It's a cymbal to get to know for sure.

Would you add rivets?
 
s1212z said:
This is rather polite swish and sounds applicable to many things, it's a freaking awesome 24. If I were to switch from Zildjian to Paiste, even though I love my Swish Knocker, this would be one of the first things I get :)

For the SK, I end up playing on the outer edge more so get the most rivet excitation at a lower volume but then inner for more articulation. I do like the rivet sound overall and weirdly very playable bell. It's a cymbal to get to know for sure.

Would you add rivets?
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Not sure. It sounds great without them. I’d try that little chain off the bell first, but maybe four rivers would be enough. The 20 rivets on the SK seems a bit much.
 
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