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Hi Hats for recording, I know nothing!!!!


KuruPrionz

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Hi Everybody,

I am wanting a pair of hi hat cymbals for recording. I have a decent Pearl heavy duty high hat stand, it's pretty quiet in operation and smooth as silk.

 

I'll be playing a variety of styles, something versatile that records well. I have sticks, rubber mallets and brushes. I have questions.

 

In general, the difference between 13", 14" and 15" hats in terms of pitch and tone?

In general, the difference between heavier cymbals and lighter ones in terms of pitch and tone?

 

I am thinking the bang for the buck is in buying used hats, I don't need top of the line but I'd rather go with some Zildjian or Paiste or other quality makes. Used in the up to $150 for a 2 cymbal set is around my price range.

I don't care if they are dirty, would prefer to avoid cracked, dented or keyholed cymbals if possible.

 

Any and all recommendations and advice is most welcome, thank you in advance!!! :)

It took a chunk of my life to get here and I am still not sure where "here" is.
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Zildjain or Paiste are both good choices.

Light is used on most recordings. Medium at most. Avoid heavy. Light is also more easily damaged so may be harder to find a good set used.

14" is the sweet spot though you will find recordings for all sizes.

 

Also note the the type of stick used can affect the sound of the high hat and cymbles. Nylon tips have a much brighter sound and should normally be avoided.

It is better to record too bright over too dark. You can filter out highs, you cannot add them in later.

This post edited for speling.

My Sweetwater Gear Exchange Page

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Zildjain or Paiste are both good choices.

Light is used on most recordings. Medium at most. Avoid heavy. Light is also more easily damaged so may be harder to find a good set used.

14" is the sweet spot though you will find recordings for all sizes.

 

Also note the the type of stick used can affect the sound of the high hat and cymbles. Nylon tips have a much brighter sound and should normally be avoided.

It is better to record too bright over too dark. You can filter out highs, you cannot add them in later.

 

 

Good stuff, thank you!!!!

Last night I goofed about for a bit with a friend's hi hat set up. He has one of the signature Paiste sets. He likes that he can replace them if needed with another set of the same model and it will sound very close to what he has now.

 

I totally get the stick thing, that and where you strike can provide a large range of sound. The advice on the weight is most welcome and appreciated. From what I can see looking at used stuff on eBay and Reverb, weight per cymbal - light is 600-750 grams, medium is 750 up to around 1000 grams and 1000 grams + is heavy. Am I ballpark on those numbers?

14" is most common by far. I've seen some 12" and 13" sets and quite a few 15" but 14" outnumbers all others put together by a considerable margin.

 

I'm checking locally as well, we have 3 pawn shops and a few thrift stores. The thrift store cymbals I've seen so far are all really just crap and do not sound good at all.

I want something that sounds good, buy nice or buy twice. I figure a fairly priced set of Zildjian or Paiste will hold it's value if I decide I want something else so there isn't really much risk.

It took a chunk of my life to get here and I am still not sure where "here" is.
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Well, despite knowing nothing and not being able to try them out, I just bought a pair of Paiste 802 Plus 14" hi hats.

They are the 2002 bronze alloy, the top of the lower end lines of Paiste cymbals. Good shape, reputable seller - $121 delivered.

They should work out fine.

It took a chunk of my life to get here and I am still not sure where "here" is.
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Nice, and a nice price. I have three sets. All came with cymbal sets. Three years in a row I went to Gear Fest and picked a cymbal set that had a big discount for Gear Fest. It was a good way to build a collection of high hats and cymbals. Also have a full set of silent cymbals and V-Drum cymbals. The V-Drum set was the most expensive high hat setup and my least used. Why am I telling you all of this? Because many times someone will buy a cymbal set for the cymbals and sell the hi hats really quick. It is a good way to pick up an almost new set for a good price. My most used set is Zildjian 14" New Beat. By the way, they are not what I would recommend for recording. You can, but they are a little heavy. Medium top and heavy bottom. These are made to hold up to years of playing. :)

This post edited for speling.

My Sweetwater Gear Exchange Page

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Thanks, I am looking forward to playing with these. Like everything else, the variations are endless.

I should be able to get some good sounds with these, maybe someday I'll get more cymbals. I am an opportunist, if I see a deal I may grab it.

 

The other thing I've noticed is that there are lots of bottom cymbals for sale but not very many top cymbals. I guess drummers bash them to death?

It took a chunk of my life to get here and I am still not sure where "here" is.
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The hi hats came. The clutch was not assembled properly, I figured it out and redid it.

 

The Paiste 802 + set is closer to heavy with a 980 gram top and a 1200+ gram bottom. The pitches and harmonics are different but work well together.

I've been tapping away, seeing what sounds are in there. When you record one track and one instrument at a time, which is probably what I will do most of the time, then you don't really have any volume constraints.

No band, can play softly with mics up close. In my mind it increases the variety of sounds that instruments are capable of delivering.

 

I'll use these and see what happens. I might hunt down a lighter 13" set and see what those are like too.

It took a chunk of my life to get here and I am still not sure where "here" is.
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  • 2 weeks later...

I got a simpler clutch, the Pearl one is nice but a bit complicated.

 

I also ordered cheap set of Meinl 13" hi hats but FedEx botched the delivery to the point that they've decided to return the package.

I will never use them to ship anything again, this could have been simple but they totally failed.

 

I still don't know much of anything about hi hats.

It took a chunk of my life to get here and I am still not sure where "here" is.
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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 2 months later...
Meinl are quite decent. I have some of their cymbals. Some respected drummers are playing Meinl.

 

I ended up getting them, FedEx figured it out and un-failed. They are another heavy set of high hats. They do sound good and are different than the Paiste set.

 

AND, I added a set of Zildjian ZBT 13" hats that are much lighter plus a small pair of Paiste "accent cymbals" that have finger straps so you can play them with your hands instead of a high hat stand. Those are light and have a beautiful bell tone plus all the fun sounds you can make by bringing them together.

 

That's probably enough for now, I have options including a bit of mix and match.

It took a chunk of my life to get here and I am still not sure where "here" is.
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  • 1 month later...

My current set of go-to hats is the top from a set of Zildjian Quick Beats (I have the bottom, also) and the bottom (I think) from a 60s Zildjian set. They work well together, dry and tight with a great open/close sound and good variety of sounds with stick placement, I'll even hit the bell for accents. The Quick Beats I got locally on CL for $80, the bottom was a pawn shop find, I think it was $20.

 

I typically avoid nylon tip sticks.

 

I'm a lot more like I am now than I was when I got here.

 

 

 

 

 

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