Paiste 900 Series Cymbals

95
WWW.MUSICRADAR.COM/RHYTHM SUMMER 2017 |
PRICE
10" splash, £69.59;
12" splash, £76.79;
14" china, £104.39;
16" china, £142.79;
18" china, £172.79;
16" crash, £142.79;
17" crash, £160.79;
18" crash, £172.79;
19" crash, £191.99;
20" crash, £208.79;
16" Heavy crash,
£142.79;
17" Heavy crash,
£160.79;
18" Heavy crash,
£172.79;
19" Heavy crash,
£191.99;
20" Heavy crash,
£208.79;
20" ride, £208.79;
22" ride, £254.39;
20" Heavy ride, £208.79;
22" Heavy ride, £254.39;
24" Mega ride, £305.99;
14" Medium hi-hats,
£208.79;
14" Sound Edge hi-hats,
£208.79;
14" Heavy hi-hats,
£208.79;
15" Heavy hi-hats,
£244.79
CAST OR
PRESSED
Pressed
ALLOY USED
B8 bronze
FINISH
Buffed
COUNTRY OF
MANUFACTURE
Switzerland
DIAMETERS
AVAILABLE
10", 12", 14", 15",
16", 17", 18", 19",
20", 22", 24"
MODELS
AVAILABLE
Hi-hats, rides, splashes,
crashes, chinas
SUITABLE FOR
Rock, pop, metal, dance,
funk, hip-hop and
anything else inbetween
Essential spec
Moving onto the Heavy rides brings a stick
sound that is closer to glassy – a strong ping
over a more controlled wash. A fl ick onto the
bell brings an equally unequivocal response
that will be heard in the loudest of settings,
particularly the 22". Which brings us to the 24"
Mega ride. I’m unsure whether to class it as a
musical instrument or an aural weapon; let’s
just say earplugs are mandatory.
Of the four pairs of hi-hats three share 14"
diameters while a solitary 15" pair makes up
the quartet. The regular 14" pair are crisp and
controlled, erring on the bright side but not
without a degree of warmth. Continuing with
the theme, the 14" Heavy hats would slot
seamlessly into the role of narky older
brother with their more aggressive response
and insistent tone. Completing the 14" trio is a
pair of Sound Edge hats. The distinctive wavy
bottom cymbal brings with it no small
increase in speed and clarity. With eyes
closed, you’d be forgiven for mistaking them
for a smaller diameter, such is their sharp and
precise nature. The single pair of 15" hats are
designated Heavy and the fat note they elicit
is capable of swaggering through pretty much
any backline. They have a depth and
broadness beneath the attack, and sizzle
assertively half open. I enjoyed the 15" the
most and I am a little mystifi ed as to why
there isn’t a regular weight 15" pair. Yet.
Between them, the three chinas tick the
boxes marked dark, dirty and trashy. Not
particularly nuanced, they’re accent cymbals
VERDICT: The 900 series is hugely
impressive – well crafted with stunning
looks, a generous selection of
diameters and a quality of sound that
belies the price-point. A few light
additions to mirror the Heavy models
would be good.
BUILD QUALITY
PLAYABILITY
VALUE FOR MONEY
RATING
ideal for adding punctuation in an impossible-
to-ignore manner. The 18" is unsurprisingly
the loudest, but the 14" and 16" models both
pack a lively punch.
CRASH SPECIFICS
Regular crashes are medium weight
while their Heavy brothers sport deeper
lathing grooves and more pronounced
bells as well as the extra weight
SWISS TIMING
Paiste conceived,
developed and refi ned
the 900 series without
word getting out, only
revealing their existence
on launch day
ALLOY OF THE GODS
Paiste’s legendary CuSn8 (2002)
bronze is cast into sheets before
being cut to size to create
individual cymbals
RHY271.gear_paiste.indd 95 13/07/2017 12:01