Yup Zildjian are bringing back the Z Customs! They are a totally different disk, built upon the lessons learned of the original Z's. They are lathed and thinner to boot, they really dialled them in and are a classic 2000's sound. Nice to see them back! The original Z's on the other hand...
I swear to God, this exact cymbal is my first cymbal! It used to have some tape that was impossible to remove, so before I sold it, I had to scratch it hard! That's why there is a big clear spot near the Z ! i sold it in France in 2020 it's so random i don't have the photos i used to sell it but i still have som random picture on which you can see it !
That Z has what we inside Zildjian called “cancer”, basically some contamination & porosity from a bad melt process. Even at the perfect thickness, those inclusions that break up the pure B20 cut the sustain down a comical amount. For lathed cymbals, once you start cutting, it’s easy to visually sort out, but without lathing you can often only hear it. And I’m betting for this series, it was anything-goes on what the cymbal “should” sound like, given the target market.
So has it been a recurring problem with Zildjian? Because when I was in band from 82-86, I used Zildjian cymbals for marching band and even with softer crashes? I cracked 2 pairs during 83-84 alone. Now they did sound bright and the sound more natural during crashes, but they just cracked and fell apart. We ended up getting Sabians, not as good sounding, but heavier and more durable.
Every original Z crash I ever tried sounded like that. I always put it down to them being way too thick for what they were supposed to do - there was so much bronze there they couldn't vibrate properly.
i love the fact that, even though it’s not a good sound, it’s literally exactly what someone is looking for. someone out there has been searching for that exact sound. that’s what i love most about music and instruments, even if it’s not what you want, it’s someone else’s dream
@@bubbillusionexactly. This guy and everybody commenting is just saying that it's automatically bad because it doesn't work for the context he's using it with. If you aren't the target audience then of course you won't make it sound good. Just look at china cymbals. They sound absolutely ugly on their own but with the right player and in the right context, they can sound absolutely amazing.
Hate to say it but some cymbals are objectively terrible, this is definitely one of them. It may be someone's favorite sound if their goal is to repel entire audiences
"We've used computer assisted hammering and all of our metallurgic knowledge to make this B20 cymbal sound like you closed the lid on a trash can too hard..."
It honestly made me laugh. After he said he hated the rude at the beginning I didn’t think it sounded too bad, so I expected the Z to not be too terrible. Boy was I wrong.
Seeing all the "computer generated" marketing in that magazine ad at 0:32 I am convinced Zildjian would be marketing this as "ooooh AI designed" if these cymbals released today
The Zildjian version of the RUDE was the Impulse line before they did the Z line. Tim Alexander (Primus) still plays one. I love that the right drummer can make any gear sound good.
I like the Paiste rudes tbh. Especially the sound edge hihats… super crisp sound! Best hihat I have owned. Looking forward to buy a new pair when they are back in stock!
They reissued the Z Customs NOT the originals. Those are VERY different cymbals. 🤷 Z Customs kick ass! As a metal drummer first & foremost, I've used a Z Custom as my "main squeeze" crash (the 16" "Z Custom Rock Crash" to be specific) for like a decade now! 🌝 With me only being in the market for a replacement in my "default lineup" just recently due to its "FINALLY just too damn bad to keep ignoring" cracking/splitting. 🤦🤷 And I'm SERIOUSLY considering just replacing it with one these reissues while I still have the chance!... Although sadly the Rock Crash in particular wasn't reissued MUCH to my dismay, but at least the regular one was! (Thankfully the standard & Rock crashes are FAR more similar than different! Although I definitely prefer the louder, higher pitched, and more piercing sound of the thicker Rock crash if given the choice. 🤷 It cuts through the chugs & thugs of a kickass metal breakdown like a hot knife through buttah!!! 😁 It's almost like it has just the sliiiightest bit of quality small size china cymbal DNA in its sound profile that the standard version has less of. 🤷 Aka very loud, bright, and forward in the natural acoustic mix [aka cuts/pierces through], but also somehow without a ton of sustain for how crazy thick it is! 😳🤯 Or at least not for its primary sound anyways! Which again, makes it IMO damn near the IDEAL metal breakdown crash! Hahaha. 🤣 Although ofc on what's usually the most hard hit primary cymbal, the Rock crash's epic thickness which makes all those bits of unique goodness happen also makes it VERY liable to slowly start cracking after a few years, as I've unfortunately gotten to experience first-hand... 🤦 That could very well be part of why it wasn't reissued with the others. 🤷)
@@Cooe. I have seen some of the z custom crashes and such that sound good, but we played a show a couple weeks ago where we all shared a kit and the guy who’s kit I was using had the z custom hi hats and I couldn’t stand them personally, they were super like crashy/washy sounding. I run cheap sabian b8s and to my ear they sounded better and they’re about 400+ dollars cheaper But it’s all subjective, we both played very different styles of music and it fit the mix for what the other band was playing better
@@diezcinco Never heard/used the Z Custom hats, just the crashes & rides. And lol no cymbal lineup, no matter how good otherwise, is impervious from having a dud though. 🤷 Happens pretty commonly actually.
@@Cooe. I know it especially as big as cymbal production is now you’re gonna have duds. Like I said they sounded good with what the guy that owned them was playing, it was like some weird electronic doom type stuff with a bunch of technical drum parts. I’m playing beat down hardcore so I don’t need nothing fancy by any means
The decay reminds me more of a dark plate reverb than a crash cymbal. In fact, with a couple of transducers you could probably turn it into a reverb plate like that guy did with the IKEA table.
I turned a cheap Craigslist crash cymbal into a plate reverb in college. Don’t remember what it was, some bottom line Zildjian probably. It’s a fun project. Line-to-speaker amp, wire it a cheap speaker under the cymbal, stick a piezo to the cymbal, mic to line amp, bingo bango. You can throw a feedback line from the line out to the line in with a control knob if you want, pretty easy addition, or you can do the feedback in DAW. Probably cost like $50 plus the cymbal. It sounded GNARLY, tons of character. If it sounds fun to you, it would be.
The 16" Republic Percussion cymbal is made from B20 bronze. The hammering indicated it's a Wuhan district cymbal, just like Stagg. You'd find a lot of those under different names like CB Drums and bundled with entry level kits. To drummers out there, they may be cheap but can sound like something 10x the price!
Yes! Every time he hit it I was like omg in the right context that sad kinda bonk would add so much tension to a good nu metal song. Even industrial stuff.
Gotta say, I love the way The Drum Thing operates now. I think this is a lot more fun and engaging. Love the rework Wade! Keep up the great work, you madlad!
While it is quite horrible, i think it would be perfect for some funeral doom sort of metal project, i have heard some bands wich have this style of cymbal and it fits perfectly with the music.
Yeah, the only use I can think of is in like a big prog kit where you want a ton of different cymbals to add variety. It could be used every once in a while, but certainly not as the main crash cymbal
ABSOLUTELY agree. I test drove one of these the first month they’ve were released in-store. It was horrific sounding. At the time, though, not wanting to appear stupid, I pretended like it was going to be a game changer. Which just made me look stupid.
I'm a musician but I do not have an ear for drums at all, usually when he pulls out a nasty cymbal I'm like "sounds fine to me" until he puts it in context. When he played this thing my jaw literally dropped right away it sounds so BAD
Idk why but this video makes me want to see a CNC cut cymbal. I don’t think anyone would be willing to throw away that much bronze for something that probably sounds bad lol
Can't tell if the K at 6:58 has it too, if it does it much much quieter than the brass' ring. But I also could just be imagining it 'cause the brass one is still in my brain.
A cymbal that might take it to the Z is the Peace 12" Disc of Hate that you found at cashie's. I actually think the disc of hate has a use as a very niche effect cymbal though so i think i'd rather have that than the Z
The original Z 24" Heavy Power Ride and 22" Light Power Ride were awesome, though! Same for the Z/K Dyno Beat hi hat combo. The rest were legit the shits...
Shows how much they put into marketing. The pictures look shiny and the descriptive words give it 'power' - add a few photos of some well-known drummers and it's ready to go to market!
