What does a crash cymbal do?
The cymbals on a drum kit fall into two broad groups by role. There are the hi-hats and the ride, which keep time. And there is the crash, the cymbal you hit for a big accent at the turning points of a song.
The top of a chorus, the end of a fill, the last hit of a song. A crash sounds at the moments in the music that say “right here.” What it needs is a sound that opens up the instant you hit it. Compared with a ride, which is built for keeping time, many crashes are on the thinner side, and that makes them respond faster.
It is played differently, too. On a cymbal, the raised dome in the middle is the cup, the surface sloping down and out from it is the bow, and the outermost part is the edge. When you keep time on a ride, you play the bow with the tip of the stick. A crash is played on the edge. The shoulder of the stick, the thicker part just behind the tip, meets the edge at a glancing angle and sweeps on through. That wide sound of the whole cymbal speaking at once starts here.
How its role differs from other cymbals, such as hi-hats and rides, is covered in Types of Cymbals.
How does size change the sound?
Cymbal size means the diameter, and it is given in inches. One inch is about 2.5 cm, so a 16-inch cymbal is about 41 cm across and an 18-inch is about 46 cm.
Cymbals sold as crashes run from roughly 14 to 20 inches. Within that range, 16 and 18 inches are the standard sizes.
The relationship between size and sound follows a clear tendency.
- The larger the cymbal, the more volume it has. The pitch is lower and the sustain is longer
- The smaller the cymbal, the faster it responds. The pitch is higher and the sustain is shorter
It runs the same way as with drums: the bigger the drum, the lower it sounds.
| Size | Sound tendency | Typical uses |
|---|---|---|
| 14–15 inch | High and short. Very fast attack | Lower-volume settings, short accents |
| 16 inch | Fast response, crisp and tight | All-round accents. One of the standards |
| 17 inch | Between a 16 and an 18 | When you want a sound between the two |
| 18 inch | More volume and sustain, with a wider spread | All-round accents. One of the standards |
| 19–20 inch | Low, loud, and long | Loud playing. Sometimes played like a ride |
This is a general guide. Even at the same size, the impression changes with thickness, which comes next.
16-inch vs. 18-inch: what is the difference?
Which one suits a first crash depends on the music you play, the size of the room, how hard you hit, and your taste. Here are the differences between the two, side by side.
A 16-inch has a fast attack and a shorter sustain. It speaks quickly and gets out of the way quickly, so you can go straight back to the groove after an accent. Its volume is moderate, too, which makes it easy to handle in smaller rooms.
An 18-inch is louder and lower in pitch. With its longer sustain, a single hit has more presence, and it is less likely to get buried when everything around it is loud. In a small room, it can feel loud.
In summary:
- For crispness and ease of handling, the 16-inch
- For the spread and impact of a single hit, the 18-inch
- The 17-inch in between is another option
A 16 and an 18 are also the standard pairing when two crashes are set up together. Whichever you choose first, the other can be added later.
Same size, different thickness, different sound
After size, the next thing that shapes the sound is thickness. If a product name or description includes words such as “Thin,” “Medium,” or “Heavy,” that is the guide to its thickness. It is sometimes called the “weight.”
A thin cymbal speaks right away, even with a light touch. It responds fast, its sustain is on the short side, and its volume is modest.
A thick cymbal is the opposite. It needs a firm stroke to open up fully, but in return it is louder and sustains longer. It cuts through a loud mix.
At the same size, the thicker cymbal has the higher pitch. For a lower sound, go larger or go thinner.
In other words, size and thickness multiply each other. Even among 18-inch cymbals, a thin one and a thick one differ in response, pitch, and sustain. The size number alone does not determine the sound.
One more point. Thickness labels such as “Medium” have no common standard across manufacturers. The same “Medium” is not necessarily the same actual thickness from one maker or series to another. A thickness label is a scale for comparing cymbals within the same series.
Finish and holes change the sound, too
Some differences you can see also affect the sound. One is the surface finish; the other is holes.
Look closely at the surface of most cymbals and you will see fine grooves, like those on a record. There are finishes that keep these grooves, with a calmer sheen, and there is the finish called “brilliant,” polished like a mirror. Polishing smooths the grooves down, so the way the sound comes out changes a little as well. That said, the difference is not as large as with size or thickness. Compare the two at the same size and you can hear it.
A crash with holes changes more noticeably. The holes reduce the vibrating surface, so the response tends to be faster and the sustain shorter. A rough, raw component also tends to mix into the sound. It is a type often chosen as a second or third crash, to add a sound of a different color. How holes work is also covered in What Is a China Cymbal?.
| Appearance | What it is | Relation to the sound |
|---|---|---|
| Finish with the grooves left on | Fine grooves visible on the surface. A calmer sheen | The reference sound for comparison |
| Brilliant finish | A surface polished like a mirror | The sound comes out slightly differently. The difference is small |
| With holes | Holes cut into the playing surface | Tends toward faster response and shorter sustain, with a rougher component in the sound |
Where you play, and how loud
Where you play and how loud you play shape the impression about as much as the sound of the cymbal itself.
For a small room or lower-volume playing, smaller and thinner cymbals fit well, because they speak properly even with a light touch. A large, thick cymbal does not open up fully when played softly, so its real sound is hard to bring out.
On the other hand, in a loud band, a small, thin cymbal tends to get buried. When there is not enough volume, one approach is to go up in size or thickness.
| Setting | Direction that tends to fit |
|---|---|
| Small rooms, lower-volume playing | Smaller and thinner (around 14–16 inches) |
| Studio rehearsals, a typical band | 16–18 inches as the baseline |
| Loud bands, large venues | Larger or thicker (around 18–20 inches) |
This, too, is about tendencies. Some players in loud bands deliberately use a small crash for a sharp accent.
Adding a second crash
With two crashes, you can give your accents a high and a low. The more the two differ in sound, the easier it is to use them for different things.
The simplest difference is size. Pairings about two inches apart, such as a 16 and an 18, are common, because the roles split clearly into the higher one and the lower one.
There is no rule about placement, but a layout often seen in right-handed setups puts the smaller one on the left (the hi-hat side) and the larger one on the right (the ride side).
When cymbals are bought as a set, too, one standard is the four-piece combination of 14-inch hi-hats, 16- and 18-inch crashes, and a 20-inch ride. The VEQUS MasterCollection cymbal sets use this combination as well.
Size is not the only way to create a difference. You can change the thickness at the same size, or make one of the two a model with holes. The idea is to add a sound the first crash does not have.
Comparing by ear
So far this has all been words, but the fastest way to understand a sound is to hear it. Playing the cymbals in person is ideal, yet videos can show the differences, too. Here are three conditions that make the differences easier to hear.
- Recordings made under the same conditions. A different room or microphone makes even the same cymbal sound different
- Earphones or headphones. Smartphone speakers do not reproduce low frequencies well, which makes size differences harder to hear
- The sound within a groove. A cymbal heard on its own sounds different from the same cymbal in the middle of playing
The videos below show the crashes of the VEQUS MasterCollection -Brilliant- in order: 16, 17, 18, and 19 inches. Because they are different sizes from the same series, you can hear what size changes.
The other video is a comparison of the 18-inch crashes in the MasterCollection. Even at the same size, the sound changes from series to series.
The sounds of other series and sizes are collected on the SOUNDS page.
In closing
What shapes the sound of a crash is size first, then thickness, and then finish and holes.
The standard sizes are 16 and 18 inches. The size and thickness that fit depend on how loud the place you play is. With two crashes, a pair that sounds different is easier to use for different things.
In the end, the ear decides. We hope this article gives you something to go on when you compare.