29 October 2026
Artisan Cymbal Buying Guide: How to Choose Yours
Artisan Cymbal Buying Guide: How to Choose Yours
An artisan cymbal is a handcrafted cymbal, hammered and lathed by a person rather than stamped out identically, so you should buy it by ear and not by catalog number. Start with the music you play, narrow by size, weight and finish, then audition several examples of the same model with your own sticks. This guide walks through each step, including how to set a budget and how to judge a used cymbal.
TL;DR
- Choose by the music you play first, then by size, weight and finish. Brand and price come last.
- Handmade means variation: two cymbals of the same model and size can sound noticeably different, so audition more than one.
- Bring your own sticks and, if you can, your current cymbals, so you hear the new one in context.
- Buy used only when you can inspect the edge, bell and center hole in person.
- Set your budget around the cymbals you will play most, usually the ride and hi-hats, and add crashes later.
Table of Contents
- What “artisan” really means for a cymbal
- Start with the music, not the cymbal
- Size, weight and finish: what each choice does
- Why two cymbals of the same model sound different
- How to audition artisan cymbals
- Choosing cymbals that work together
- Setting a budget
- Buying a used artisan cymbal
- Our perspective
- Where to start with Temple of Sound
- FAQ
- Sources
What “artisan” really means for a cymbal
The word gets used loosely. In practice it points to cymbals shaped with a lot of human input: hand hammering, hand lathing, and usually bronze alloys that reward that work. Machine-made cymbals are consistent by design. Handcrafted ones trade some of that consistency for character.
That has a practical consequence for you as a buyer. A catalog description of “dark, complex, medium weight” tells you where a model sits, not how the specific cymbal in the box will sound. Treat the description as a shortlist filter and your ears as the final decision.
Many handcrafted lines use B20 bronze, an alloy of roughly 80% copper and 20% tin. It is the traditional choice for professional cymbals because it takes hammering well and produces a rich, layered tone. Our own B20 hand-hammered cymbals are made this way, and the guidance below applies to any handmade cymbal you are considering.
Start with the music, not the cymbal
Before you open a single product page, write down what you actually play and where. A cymbal that sounds beautiful alone in a shop can vanish in a loud rock band or sound harsh in a quiet jazz trio.
A useful rule of thumb: brighter, higher-pitched cymbals cut through and suit pop, rock, metal and fusion. Darker, drier cymbals sit lower in the mix and suit blues, funk, R&B and jazz. Most players live somewhere in between, and that is where handmade cymbals shine, because the hammering can pull a cymbal toward warmth without making it dull.
Ask yourself:
- How loud is the room? A cymbal that speaks quickly and decays fast works in a small club. A big, washy crash needs space.
- Are you miked? Engineers often prefer darker cymbals because bright ones can turn brittle through a microphone.
- What do you play most? Ride-heavy styles need a ride you love. Backbeat music leans on hi-hats and crashes.
- What else is on stage? A guitarist with a lot of top-end will fight a very bright crash.
If you are unsure which side of the spectrum you lean toward, our guide to dark versus bright cymbals helps you place your kit.
Size, weight and finish: what each choice does
Three physical choices shape most of what you hear. Learn them and the descriptions in any catalog start to make sense.
Size
Smaller cymbals are higher in pitch and faster to speak and decay. Larger ones are lower, wash more and sustain longer. A 16-inch crash is quick and punchy. A 19- or 20-inch crash is broad and builds. For rides, 20 inches is the common all-round size, while 22 inches adds spread and a deeper stick sound. Hi-hats are most often 14 inches, with 13 and 15 inches as useful alternatives for tighter or darker responses.
Weight
Thin cymbals open up quickly, sound washier and crash easily, but can feel unfocused when played hard. Heavy cymbals give a clearer stick definition, more volume and more pitch, but they take more force to wake up. Medium is the safe middle. Players who hit hard or play loud music usually go heavier. Players who play lightly or want a lot of crash character go thinner.
Finish
Natural finishes are unpolished and show the lathing marks and the color of the bronze. They tend to look and sound a little darker and drier. Brilliant finishes are polished and generally look brighter and sound slightly more shimmering at first. Finish changes sound less than size and weight do, so use it as a tiebreaker, and remember a natural finish will age and darken with use.
The bell
The bell is the raised dome at the center, and it has an outsized effect on how a ride behaves. Larger bells generally bring richer overtones and longer sustain, while smaller bells speak more quickly. If you plan to use the bell for accents, test it on every candidate. We measured this effect in detail in our piece on how bell size affects overtones.
Why two cymbals of the same model sound different
Hand hammering shapes each cymbal individually. The size, depth and density of the hammer marks change how vibrations travel across the surface, and a player’s hand never repeats exactly. Lathing, the process of cutting grooves into the surface, adds another layer of variation.
The upshot is simple. If you are buying online, a good retailer will let you return a cymbal or choose from several. If you are buying in person, ask to hear at least three of the same size and model. Differences of a few grams, or a slightly different bell, will show up as a different pitch, a different wash and a different feel under the stick.
This is not a flaw. It is the reason to buy handmade. You are choosing a specific object, not a specification.
How to audition artisan cymbals
The audition is where the decision is actually made. Do it properly.
- Bring your own sticks. A cymbal sounds different under a thin 7A than a heavy 5B, and under mallets or brushes if you use them. Use the tools you play with every week.
- Compare the same model and size. Line up three examples and play them back to back, with the same strokes at the same volume.
- Use a kit close to yours. Mount the cymbal at your usual height and angle on a stand similar to your own. A different stand and felts change sustain.
- Listen from the front. Ask someone else to play while you stand a few meters away. Under your own hands you hear mostly stick and attack. Out front you hear the wash and the decay that the audience hears.
- Play in your style. Do not just crash and walk away. Play your normal groove, the fills you actually use and the dynamics you need, from ghost-quiet to full volume.
- Take your time and come back. Leave for ten minutes, then return. Your ears fatigue quickly.
We lay out a repeatable version of this process in our four-step audition guide.
What to listen for, cymbal by cymbal
- Ride: stick definition (the ping), the wash that builds underneath, and how the bell sounds. Check it does not blur into noise when you play steady quarter or eighth notes.
- Hi-hats: how crisp they are closed, how they open and release, and how the foot chick sounds. Always judge them as a pair, since top and bottom interact.
- Crashes: the initial impact, how quickly the sound blooms and how it decays. A crash that lingers forever may be wonderful in a studio and exhausting on a small stage.
- Effects cymbals: splashes, chinas and stacks need testing for how fast they cut off. We cover a quick method in our guide to testing effects cymbals in 30 seconds.
Choosing cymbals that work together
A cymbal rarely lives alone. The best single cymbal in the room can still be the wrong purchase if it clashes with the rest of your set.
Bring your current cymbals, or at least a recording of them, and judge the whole set for balance, blend and contrast. Ask:
- Does the new crash sit apart from your ride, or do they smear into one wash?
- Is there enough contrast between your crashes, for example one fast and one broad?
- Do the hi-hats feel like part of the same family as the ride?
Mixing handmade cymbals from different makers is common and often sounds great, as long as you plan for contrast. Matching a full set gives you a consistent voice. We compare both approaches in matched sets versus mixed brands, and if you are building a first setup, the cymbal pack guide covers a 14/16/20 configuration step by step. If you are torn between buying a pack or picking individual cymbals, see which cymbal pack to choose.
Two other considerations once you have chosen:
- Mounting matters. Over-tightened wing nuts choke sustain. Use felts and sleeves, and leave room for the cymbal to move. Our cymbal stack setup guide shows combinations that give repeatable tone.
- Control, if needed. Handmade cymbals can be lively. A small dot of dampening can tame a ring without killing the sound, as we explain in cymbal resonance control. If you practice at home at low volume, compare low-volume cymbals with mutes before buying anything.
Setting a budget
Handmade cymbals cost more than machine-made ones, so allocate your money where it matters.
Buy in order of use. Most drummers hear their ride and hi-hats more than anything else. Spend there first. Add crashes and effects over time as you identify gaps.
Buy fewer, better. Three cymbals you love beat six compromises. A ride, a pair of hi-hats and one crash covers a surprising amount of music.
Count the hidden costs. Stands, felts, cases and bags add up, and a cymbal bag is a worthwhile protection for a handcrafted piece. If you buy from overseas, import duty and courier charges can add to the total, which is one reason many experienced buyers prefer to buy locally where they can.
Consider membership if you buy regularly. We run a free tier and two paid memberships for drummers: Pro Member at £4.99 per month and VIP Member at £9.99 per month. Details of what each includes are on our membership page.
Buying a used artisan cymbal
Used handmade cymbals can be excellent value, and a good one improves with age. They also carry risk, since damage can be hard to spot. The MusicRadar guide to buying second-hand music gear recommends buying locally so you can check the item and collect it yourself, and it notes that international purchases may bring import duty and courier charges.
When you inspect a cymbal in person:
- Edge: look closely all the way round for cracks, chips or flattened sections. Small hairline cracks on the edge tend to spread.
- Surface and grooves: check the lathing grooves for dents, pitting or signs of repair.
- Bell: a crack here is serious. Check both sides.
- Center hole: look for keyholing, where the hole has stretched into an oval or an elongated slot from years of overtightened mounting. It can be reduced by careful reaming, but it should lower the price.
- Warping: lay the cymbal on a flat surface and check it sits level. Visible warping usually means a poor-condition cymbal.
- Sound: tap it with a stick and listen for a clean tone. A dead or buzzing sound can mean a hidden crack.
Price a used cymbal from what similar ones have actually sold for, not what sellers are asking. Asking prices are often optimistic. Then discount for any flaw you find, and walk away from anything with a bell crack.
Our perspective
We distribute handcrafted cymbals and sticks, so we hear the same story from drummers all the time: they bought the cymbal that looked right on paper and then spent months trying to love it. Our advice is to reverse that.
First, decide the sound you need in your actual playing situation. Second, narrow by size and weight. Third, listen to more than one example, because every handmade cymbal is its own instrument. We would rather you take a cymbal home that you have played in your style than one that matched a description.
We also believe in starting small. A ride you love, a pair of hats that feel right and one good crash is a better foundation than a full set bought in one go. You can always add the rest once you know what your kit is missing.
— Will
Where to start with Temple of Sound
We are the exclusive UK distributor for Alchemist Cymbals, a range of handcrafted B20 cymbals, and for London Drumstick Co. sticks. If you are ready to look, browse the Alchemist collection or the full B20 hand-hammered range. Pair your cymbals with sticks from the London Drumstick Company, or design your own with our custom drumsticks. Drum shops can also buy through trade accounts.
If you would rather read more before you buy, our blog has the full set of cymbal guides referred to above.
FAQ
Are artisan cymbals worth the extra cost?
They are if you value tonal character and are prepared to audition. Handcrafted cymbals are more individual and often more complex in sound than mass-produced ones. If you mostly play loud rock in large rooms and want a consistent, replaceable sound, a machine-made cymbal may serve you equally well.
What is the best first artisan cymbal to buy?
For most players it is a ride around 20 inches in a medium weight, because it is used constantly and sets the character of the kit. If you play a lot of backbeat music, a good pair of 14-inch hi-hats is an equally strong first choice.
Should I buy artisan cymbals online without hearing them?
It is possible but riskier, because individual cymbals vary. If you do, buy from a seller with a clear returns policy, read the weight and size details carefully, and compare with a cymbal you already know. Where you can, listen in person first.
Do natural and brilliant finishes sound different?
Slightly. Natural finishes tend toward a darker, drier sound, and brilliant finishes toward a brighter, shinier one. Size, weight and hammering have a much bigger influence, so use finish as a final tiebreaker.