New Beats

[AtlantaDrumGuy]

I find that I keep coming back to new beats. 14 or 15s. Even the new ones. I still have some vintage pairs. I’ll use larger made up pairs at times, but man, I don’t really find anything that tops the stock “off the shelf” new beats. Personally, I don’t find them harsh. I think they work very well in context of the music.

So even though Z comes up with all of these K varieties of hats...I don’t find anything better. Of course, this is just my opinion.

 

[Redbeard77]

I'm a New Beat fan as well. I have a early 70s set of 15s and a post-13 set of 15s. Even after the redesign, the new ones are still a little heavier than the vintage ones, but the sound is similar and I feel like the new ones project a little better. I do a lot of sloshy stuff, and I feel like they are perfect for that.

 

[felis]

Every drummer needs a set of New Beats.

And most don't need any other hi hats besides those.

 

[Mongrel]

I'm a New Beat fan as well. I have a early 70s set of 15s and a post-13 set of 15s. Even after the redesign, the new ones are still a little heavier than the vintage ones, but the sound is similar and I feel like the new ones project a little better. I do a lot of sloshy stuff, and I feel like they are perfect for that.

Curious if you have weights on those early 70s 15s?

I have a set my dad bought me in '77 I would like to compare them to. I am at work, but I can oost the weights when I get home.

Ou, yea, New Beats the "answer" to a lot of hi hat questions!

 

[bongomania]

I also keep coming back to New Beats... or at least 14” hats with NB weights, if not from big Z. I posted a thread recently about “dark yet crisp” hats, and damned if a NB style set didn’t take the prize.

I prefer other sets for sloshier, deeper, or more subtle sounds. And if I played hard rock/metal, I’d look at something else for that too. But whenever I’m trying to find that perfect balance point, it’s an NB style set.

 

[AtlantaDrumGuy]

Every drummer needs a set of New Beats.

And most don't need any other hi hats besides those.

Agreed.

 

[dcrigger]

After doing the 13" KZ thing for many years - I came back to a set of 14" New Beats that I've had forever. Maybe five or six years ago.

 

[Redbeard77]

Curious if you have weights on those early 70s 15s?

I have a set my dad bought me in '77 I would like to compare them to. I am at work, but I can oost the weights when I get home.

No, I keep meaning to pick up a cheap scale from Harbor Freight or something and compare the two sets. I also need to photograph the stamps for Zenstat and see if he can help pinpoint the era of the vintage ones. I'll be sure to post up when I do.

 

[Mongrel]

Thanks!

Mine are:

Top- 1105g
Btm- 1485g

Purchased new in 1977. No ink other than "New Beat Top", "New Beat Bottom". Long gone now.

 

[funkypoodle]

I scored another pair of 14" NBs yesterday, 70's Made in Canada and was A/Bing them against my 70's Made in Usa pair. The Meductic, NB pair are a bit darker, sloshier & the concentric A hammering is slightly less apparent on them compared to my USA pair. Both pairs are total keepers.

Like AtlantaDrumGuy said, New Beats are very musical. They also have a familiar, classic sound that we recognize, like a Supraphonic or an old A ride in an ideal weight. Hard to beat for a timeless sound.

 

[Tama CW]

I love the late 60's to mid 70's New Beats. I have 14's and 15's. Those still have some of that darker and sloshy vibe when at medium weights. For me the ideal weights are listed below. And if you get anything around these weights, they are nearly always just wonderful and very versatile.

15's at 1000/1400 gm.
14's at 825/1150 gm.
13's at 715/1000 gm.

50 gms either way (or maybe even up to 100 gms) doesn't make a big difference. And as others have said they'll work for nearly anything. I find some of the newer ones a bit harsh when they get to 1050/1350 on the 14's and 1100/1500 on the 15's. I have a pair of early 1970's 14's at 880/1320 that are just a tad harsh....but they work beautifully with my 12/14/18 bop kit so that I can easily hear the hi hat close and open. The lighter bottoms don't quite get that job done.

I've run into pairs of early 60's "new beat" styles at desirable weight spreads so the concept was out there well before the "new beat" ink stamps were applied by 1966-68.

 

[TheMattJones88]

I like my redesigned 15" New Beats. They're super warm and sloshy. Not sure about weights though, I don't have a scale that does grams. They sit really well in my redesigned A cymbal setup though. (15" NB's or 14" Mastersounds, 18" Thin Crash, 19" Thin Crash, 21" Sweet Ride or 23" Sweet Ride)

 

[zenstat]

No, I keep meaning to pick up a cheap scale from Harbor Freight or something and compare the two sets. I also need to photograph the stamps for Zenstat and see if he can help pinpoint the era of the vintage ones. I'll be sure to post up when I do.

I need to completely rewrite my old New Beats History page

A Brief History Of New Beats

because I've got lots of new information which has modified the years a bit. That page concentrated on 14" weights and ratios and I've also got enough 15" data (and maybe 13") to report those as well. The rewritten page will go into Cymbal Wiki.

Avedis Zildjian - Cymbal

www.cymbal.wiki

which is just getting fleshed out. It is a big retrospective conversion so it is taking time.

 

[gbow]

My go to hats are an old set of 15" Zs that I purchased used in the late 70s. I think they are new beats, but all the writing had been cleaned off before I got them. They are definitely not Ks.

Did Z make anything in an A hat that wasn't a new beat in the 70s? They weren't really old when I bought them, so I'm sure they aren't 60s hats. I've always referred to them as 15" new beats, but I can't swear that's correct. From the web site listed above they look like the pic of the 1st gen.

I also have two other sets of 14" new beats. Each of them are permanent fixtures in two studios I do work at. The new beats are the standard in my book.

gabo

 

[AtlantaDrumGuy]

I’ll admit I deviated by just adding some K Sweets to the bag. But will still have the trusty NBs as well!

 

[Bri6366]

New Beats jut have it. I haven't had a set in years, but like just about every pair I play. They are the Supra of hi hats or maybe the Supra is the New Beat of snares.

I don't currently own a set of 14" hats and my other hats are 13" & 15" Sound Edge. My first inclination is to get a set of Paiste hats, but before long I'm usually checking out New Beats.

 

[James Walker]

I still own and use the 14" New Beats my parents gave to me as a Christmas present back in 1979 or 1980. I tend to use my 602s or Sound Creations more often, but the NBs split the difference beautifully. Whenever I put them back up, I find myself wondering what I ever found lacking in them in the first place.

 

[scaramanga]

Raise your hand if your mom bought you your first pair.

 

[Burps]

My very first set of good hi-hats were the 14" New Beats from the mid 1980s, after using Krut hats for years, (which I didn't like at all). I absolutely loved the NB's. After a while, I grew bored with the NB's and eventually became a Paiste freak. For years I hardly touched the NB's. Not too long ago when I listened back to a few old church recordings of my NB's, I realized just how amazing they were! I fell in love with them all over again.

 

[jptrickster]

Most often it’s 70’s New beat top over a cut down 18 602, adds a splash of glitter and sparkle to the sound. Not better but different in a good way. Once in awhile i still use the matching bottom might even throw the flat quick beat down under for yet another sound and feel. It’s all good. I’ve played many others that could be on the stand as well as you know the flavors and combos are endless like Ben&Jerry’s.