numberthirty wrote: Tue Feb 22, 2022 10:32 pm

GuyLaCroix wrote: Tue Feb 22, 2022 9:54 pm FM#30, are you referring to the new one on the left or the old model?

Irregardless, I think I've chosen to pass. Might as well put that money toward a box that does one thing well, rather than several things okay.

The old OD-20.

(Seems like I've seen folks who were fans of the "Space Echo" that was built in that same housing having reliability issues as well...)

No judgement on the "One Versus Many..." aspect.

It's kind of an odd time where there are a few worthwhile "Many..." options, but I still totally get "One Thing Well..."

Yeah the early era of digital modeling showed one good analog circuit to be better than a programmed swiss army knife. Excitingly people have come to understand the components of our most beloved circuits that they can combine them in one housing. Look no further than Dr. Balls example of a dual circuit overdrive. Or more complex examples like 3rd Power Amps who can house a credible Vox and Marshall circuit in one head that allows a player to switch or blend those tones, or in recording technology a company like overstayer makes outboard gear that has interactive saturation, compression and eq controls.

penningtron wrote: Wed Feb 23, 2022 10:17 am I had 13" New Beats for many years, but now recognize them instantly and not in a good way. I personally wouldn't go smaller than 15" at this point, which I realize makes an expensive purchase even more expensive. But bigger cymbals generally mean lower pitch and won't fight with the guitar frequencies so much. I also like that slow, sloshy sound when closed.

$ no object: probably Paiste Giant Beats. On a budget: Dream has some 15" pairs or I can get lucky again and re-buy my 16" Sabian SR2s.

Yeah I think 15” is worth looking at too. I’d also recommend weighing your New Beats as thinner cymbals I think would get you closer to what you describe. Obviously going to a larger diameter will throw that formula off, but it might be a useful baseline.

I’ve said this before and I swear I’m not getting kickbacks, but there are some really awesome small cymbalmakers out there who have terrific sounding products. Nicky Moon, Mongiello, Ottaviano, cymbal Utopia, F. Madejski - I follow them on Insta and every day I’m blown away at what they’re doing.

Sometimes you can find fun stuff that’s ostensibly “low end” like old Krut and I think some other Italian stuff? that doesn’t necessarily sound crisp and pro on its own, but has a nice wash in context and isn’t too bright.

Good luck and keep us updated. You’re in Chicago, Tommy? Are there good drum shops in the area? It’s been a long time since I was in the city with time to mess around hitting music shops.

twelvepoint wrote: Yeah I think 15” is worth looking at too. I’d also recommend weighing your New Beats as thinner cymbals I think would get you closer to what you describe. Obviously going to a larger diameter will throw that formula off, but it might be a useful baseline.

Good point. If sticking with 14" hats (which will open up a lot more options), thinner/lighter, more raw/hand hammered are good qualities to look for. Anything to fight brightness.

I've never looked much into 'boutique' cymbal makers/refurbishers but should change that.

penningtron wrote: Wed Feb 23, 2022 2:51 pm

twelvepoint wrote: Yeah I think 15” is worth looking at too. I’d also recommend weighing your New Beats as thinner cymbals I think would get you closer to what you describe. Obviously going to a larger diameter will throw that formula off, but it might be a useful baseline.

Good point. If sticking with 14" hats (which will open up a lot more options), thinner/lighter, more raw/hand hammered are good qualities to look for. Anything to fight brightness.

I've never looked much into 'boutique' cymbal makers/refurbishers but should change that.

Excellent suggestions from the both of you. I had already considered lighter means mellower, but I hadn't considered jumping to 15" to get them lower pitched. I went down a rabbit hole of hi-hat listening at all of the better miked drum chops. Those 15" Giant Beats are definitely in the neighborhood of what I was hearing in my head. So are the K Custom Dark.

Now to start scouring for used, because price is most definitely a consideration. Are those smaller cymbal makers cost-prohibitive?

They seem to be in the neighborhood of Ks and Sabian HH types. Premium line prices, but not like outrageously more than that. With pandemic and inflation and stuff I honestly have lost track of what the big 3 are charging these days for their stuff but I’d probably be shocked.

I had 15" giant beat hats and wasn't crazy about them, kinda clunky, heavy...maybe I had a dud set.

I have 15" K light hats and they are fantastic, a little darker of course, but swishy and mellow in their sizzle while still cutting well enough. By far, my favorite hats are Bosphorus masters 14". They are just lovely.

I've always bought all my cymbals from Chicago craigslist and I gotta say, the last few years, there are hardly any used cymbals for sale anymore, and almost no really good deals on cymbals. People used to just unload them all the time for peanuts, especially when the thin, smoky cymbals became so popular. Lots of people dumped their Zildjian As and Ks. I love the smoky cymbals too, but in a rock band, they just don't cut at all.

yard barf wrote: Wed Feb 23, 2022 7:09 pm I had 15" giant beat hats and wasn't crazy about them, kinda clunky, heavy...maybe I had a dud set.

Yeah after posting that.. I watched a few demos to remember what I liked about them, and only one of the videos kinda confirmed that. The others did not.

I've been meaning to buy truly nice hi hats for a few years, but the price always scares me off (looking at you, K Keropes). Plus I'm not a big hi hat player anyway and mask them with a ching ring these days.

If you happen to have light or medium 16" crashes around (or know of some you can borrow), try them out as hats..

Capitalist Death Cult pedals:
https://www.instagram.com/capitalistdeathcult/

Have you tried/bought one his pedals? What you think?

Looking for a small mixer, 6-8 channels. Two aux sends for effects. Home recording and live stuffs.

Any hot recommendations?

ErikG wrote: Wed Apr 06, 2022 8:05 pm Looking for a small mixer, 6-8 channels. Two aux sends for effects. Home recording and live stuffs.

Any hot recommendations?

It seems like the new smaller profile mixers are all made by the typical big companies: Mackie, Yamaha, Sound craft. I'd expect decent performance from any of those at which point you just need to count direct outs, xlr ins, aux sends, eq bands or whatever specs you need. As well as price difference if more than one fits the bill.

Last I looked, over half the market for handy smaller stuff was swept into on board digital multi fx, which is annoying if that's not something you're looking for.