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Reviews (1)
10 February 2013
20" Sabian AA Rock Ride does its stated job quite well. It rocks!
I bought this 20" Sabian AA Rock Ride in my never-ending quest (every drummer's never-ending quest) for THE ride. Now, I knew this wasn't THE one; not for me, anyway. But the price was great, and I wanted to compare it to other rides I owned and think about where it might fit in, what applications it might have for me.
Rock, of course. That's its main use, and for that it is more than adequate. My cymbal is from the earliest days of Sabian: the hollow-logo days (1980s). So it isn't the same exact cymbal you'll hear if you listen in a shop (which I recommend) or go to Sabian's website (also recommended).
Of the six AA rides on Sabian site as of this writing (Feb 2013) my cymbal sounds closest to the sound clip for the 20" Metal Ride. Clip for the 20" Rock Ride sounds inauthentic. I'm sure they don't manipulate the sounds too much, but the 20" Rock clip has a woodiness that to me is misleading.
That woodiness was the sound, frankly, that I hoped I was getting in this cymbal. I should have kept in mind that it was a heavy beast (3034 g; I knew weight before I bought), and that heavy = high-pitched. In other words, a ping ride.
I regularly listen to jazz radio and hear cats playing pingy cymbals all the time. At the same time, it has to be said that a cymbal this close to one end of weight/pitch spectrum (heavy/high) is NOT as versatile as a medium-weight cymbal.
Cymbal (mine at least) is too thick to make a pleasing crash.
That's all the down sides. The up sides are:
*Very commanding cymbal. You'll be heard, and your sticking will be heard. If you rock, you've come to the right place.
*Killer bell. People always say this, but here it's true, it's true. Bell measures 6" across and sounds excellent.
*Good ping sound (think a GOOD Zildjian A Ping Ride) over a pleasant, very controllable wash that has no weird overtones (at least my cymbal doesn't).
*I've played, bought, sold, traded every major professional cymbal maker except a few of the boutique Turkish ones. When you buy a professional-grade Sabian cymbal, which this is, you are getting the best balance of craftsmanship and price currently available.
*If the sound isn't just what you want, try a different stick tip, maker, wood, etc. Sounds obvious, but I just hit mine with 7 different small-tip sticks and got 7 different sounds.
Hope this helps, and remember, there is no substitute for listening to actual cymbals, in person, before you buy. (Take your own sticks with you.) If considerations of price require that you buy sound-unheard, at least listen to some in a shop (as many as they have) before buying elsewhere. If buying off craigslist, meet and play the cymbal before buy. If buying off ebay, (politely) request a sound sample before bidding or buying or making an offer.
Finally, remember that, fine-nuance-wise, most of what you love and everything you hate about the sound of a cymbal is going to disappear in the sound of a band (even a small jazz trio). So the sound will be different when you play alone in your basement from when you're with other musicians. So think about your uses and applications.
Happy drumming!