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Paiste hi-hat advice, 602 and signature

D

dickie

New Member
Alright I’m in the market for new hi hats, but my local dealer only brings in high end Paiste lines when you order them. So I don’t have an opportunity to try them out.
I play a mix of folk-rock, pop, and some heavier rock music. My bands newest album has some disco tracks on it as well, so I’m looking to get a brighter, crisper, and more sensitive set of hi-hats than the sabian hhx stage hats I’m using.

I've always liked new beats and I was planning on getting a set, but then I started listening to Paiste sound files and I’m thinking I want to try out something from their 602 classic or signature lines.

The 602 classic sound edge 14s sound the best to me but I am concerned they will be too quiet for full band use at outdoor festivals.

The signature medium 14s also sound really nice to me, but I’m concerned about the same problem.
They make a sound edge version of the signature which would give a nice solid foot chick for disco music, but in the sound files they sound a little too shrill/harsh to me. I’m worried they won’t work for our softer folk/country songs, or for smaller indoor gigs.

There’s also the 602 classic heavy 14s, which don’t sound as good to me but definitely seem like they’d be a better match volume wise. I’m not sure if I like their tone more than new beats or not though. And they don’t have that bright sizzling quality of the medium weight sound edges. I really wish they’d just make a heavier sound edge 602.

Has anyone compared these cymbals in person? And can anyone tell me how well the signature mediums do on stage with a full band?
Please hurl your opinions at me if you have them, thanks.
 
I think I am going to go with one of the 602 sets instead of the signatures anyway. I've got a 60's avedis zildjian ride that i really like, and i think they'll work better with that.

Still can't decide between the 602 heavy and the sound edge, and the more sound files i listen to the more I like them both.
I've never used a sound edge before, and I've heard mixed opinions about them from everyone.
 
Stroman said:
I'm not sure about the Sigs, but the 602 sound edge should be plenty loud enough for any reasonable usage. They're not timid, by any measure.

The only thing I don't like about those 602s is the price!
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Pai$te!
 
Have you considered Paiste 2002 sound edge? I own 14” 602 sound edge and 14” 2002 sound edge and I’m in love with both of them. But if I was forced to make a decision, I would choose the 2002. When played lightly, or medium, with the tip of the stick, they sound gorgeous to me. If you need to get loud, there’s obviously no problem there too. I also believe the 2002 are more durable than the 602.

Paiste once claimed in their own literature that the 602 sound edge are not meant for heavy players. Meaning, if you read between the lines, that you could easily damage them. Where the 2002 SE can be played heavily and lightly with great results. Just my 2 cents.
 
Paiste Sig. Dark-Crisp hats are a great set to try out. I love mine.
I think these would be great for the quieter gigs but could blend beautifully with the kit under the mic's. I'll sometimes place a Sig. Medium top cymbal I bought off eBay over the bottom of this set when I want to play harder. They sound really good.
 
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Ruok said:
Have you considered Paiste 2002 sound edge? I own 14” 602 sound edge and 14” 2002 sound edge and I’m in love with both of them. But if I was forced to make a decision, I would choose the 2002. When played lightly, or medium, with the tip of the stick, they sound gorgeous to me. If you need to get loud, there’s obviously no problem there too. I also believe the 2002 are more durable than the 602.

Paiste once claimed in their own literature that the 602 sound edge are not meant for heavy players. Meaning, if you read between the lines, that you could easily damage them. Where the 2002 SE can be played heavily and lightly with great results. Just my 2 cents.
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+1
The 2002 SE's are exceptionally sensitive cymbals with just the right amount of brightness and harmonic complexity. The 602's should be similar.
A word about Sound Edges - they may not give the most concise "chick" sound when played very lightly. The medium, "airlocked" cymbals might work better. At normal volumes this should not matter, and you can enjoy its sonority becauseof the reduced airlock.
 
If you truly want more volume, get a larger diameter set of hats.

As with all things Zildjian, tone varies between cymbals of the same make/model. I’ve heard nice New Beats, and not so nice.

15” 602s or Modern Essentials would be my recommendation. The Dark Crisps are great, I wish I could find a 15” set.

Not a fan of the Sound Edge, because of the ringing after they’ve been closed, and the extra brightness when played loosely.

The 14” sigs and the 2002s will be crazy bright, and not much else. The HHXs are full of gorgeous tones, by comparison.
 
Signature Dark Crisps are some kind of perfect. They're a bit like a pair of really great hollow-logo New Beats, but with a Swiss accent.

I actually just sold my New Beats for a pair of fairly heavy Ks from 1998, but that's a story for another day...

Most of the normal 602 hats don't do much for me; they're a little too thin yet high pitched for me, and just kinda lack authority to my ear. Clearly with the purchase of the Ks, I think I must enjoy hats on the heavier side of things. 602 Heavy is a great pair of hats (the late-career Jeff Porcaro special), and so are the 602 Modern Essentials. My 15" 602 Moderns are some of my absolute favorite hihats; the normal 15" 602s have nothing on the MEs. If Paiste ever make 602 Modern Essentials Heavy Hats, I'm getting a pair as soon as I can afford it.

I've tried to like Sound Edges, but they're not sloshy if I want them to be, and that's important to my playing style; not to mention, I had a pair of 15" 2oo2 Sound Edge hats, and they were even louder than my snare drum!
 
Some good advice so far, thanks everyone. Considering I'll have to order without trying them, I guess I'll probably stay away from sound edges since i've never played them. At least if i get regular hi hats they'll be familiar to me. And I'd like to stick with 14" hats just due to personal preference. I always find 15s to sound weirdly low pitched.

I hadn't considered the signature dark crisps very much since like I said I'm shooting for a brighter tone with these ones. But after listening to a few sound files they are pretty nice sounding. I've got mixed feelings about them though.

Alright that leaves me back with 3 options again. The signature dark crisps, the signature mediums, and the formula 602 heavy.

I'm leaning more toward the 602 heavy but that might just be because I've been listening to Toto for the last hour. The signature mediums sound the best to me from sound clips, but I feel like they might be excessively bright with the rest of the band. If anyone has a pair of those I'd love to hear their thoughts.
 
I have a pair of 14” Signature Sound Edge hats and a pair of 15” 602 ME hats. The Sigs definitely have more cut and brilliance to their sound than the 602 ME. Both are plenty loud, but I’d rate the Sigs Sound Edge louder/more cutting than the 602 ME hats.

One thing for sure: the Paiste sound files on their web site are very well done and Paiste is the best at matching their cymbals to their specific sound. What you hear is what you get.
 
I have owned a lot of Paiste Hihats - 2002 SE, Signature SE , Signature Dark Crisp , Dark Energy , 602 SE and the best hihats I have ever played and currently own are the 15” 602 Modern Essentials . I was first given the heads up on these by Shane Kinney of Drum Center of Portsmouth . They are so superb and versatile . Worth every penny . Find the cash for these , they are worth it .
 
I own quite a few Paiste HH's.
So far ,meh.
2002 SE I found very dry and lacking character,602 SE not as dry ,but nothing knocks me out,
14 inch 602 blue labels are OK,602 modern essentials another meh.13 inch Dark crisp ,meh,14 Sig med OK,14 inch Sig SE precision OK.
What did impress me was taking a 14 fast crash sig ,mating it to a sig SE bottom and it was nice.
 
pgm554 said:
I own quite a few Paiste HH's.
So far ,meh.
2002 SE I found very dry and lacking character,602 SE not as dry ,but nothing knocks me out,
14 inch 602 blue labels are OK,602 modern essentials another meh.13 inch Dark crisp ,meh,14 Sig med OK,14 inch Sig SE precision OK.
What did impress me was taking a 14 fast crash sig ,mating it to a sig SE bottom and it was nice.
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Hey man, you might have the wisdom to help me. I'm contemplating get some 13" signature hats, I'm between the Dark Crisp, Medium, and Dark Energy Mark I. According to your experience, which one would work best for mostly home use and small gigs?
 
erreguerrero said:
Hey man, you might have the wisdom to help me. I'm contemplating get some 13" signature hats, I'm between the Dark Crisp, Medium, and Dark Energy Mark I. According to your experience, which one would work best for mostly home use and small gigs?
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I have no experience with the Dark Energy's but suspect they would be best for quieter gigs.

I have a set of 14" Dark Crisp hats, and those can be pretty loud. However, they are quite....dark and crisp. Played carefully, they can work for just about any volume gig.
 
brady said:
I have no experience with the Dark Energy's but suspect they would be best for quieter gigs.

I have a set of 14" Dark Crisp hats, and those can be pretty loud. However, they are quite....dark and crisp. Played carefully, they can work for just about any volume gig.
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Thanks for the answer, Brady. Have you ever tried the Zildjian KZ combo? I currently have those ones and I'm not sure if the switch from those to the dark crisps or mediums would be ok... I'm just kinda obsessed with the signature line tbh.
 
“Raw energy and cutting power”. Plus Paiste uses the word “medium” to describe cymbals that weigh 1.5 times the equivalent from Zildjian. Also, just to be very clear, I have owned many Dark Energy cymbals, from hats to crashes to rides.
 
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