this is always an interesting topic to read about.

I prefer wood tips, 5a,7a variety although I have been a Nylon tip guy for way too long.

When I started playing my vintage kit the wood just worked, and it opened a whole new world of sound from my cymbals as well.

For me Im a big fan of the VF Kizashi Oak sticks, although the tips seem to lose their hardness over time and sound softer.

Every once in a while I will rotate through my sticks and see which one "does it" for me at that time.

Im always open to new sticks and the link above seems cool, thank you.

Yea i usually prefer the bright pingy sound. When I hit it again and again really fast with a wood tip it just never sounds separated enough for what I want to hear. If I need to I can easily hit the side to get a nice full sound if needed.

Not to say I don't like wood tips, it just varies on the music you play. I will break out the wood tips when I play to older music where you want a old feel and sound. Newer music always I stick to my trusty nylon though.

I don't play jazz so that part is kinda irrelevant to me but good knowledge to build up in case you ever need to know one day ;)

When I started playing, nylon tips SUCKED.

I used wood, and usually the largest tips I could find. But I always found that I would chip the crap out of the tips.

I still chip wood tips. And I think I play with more sensitivity these days than back in the "day". Now that nylon tips stay on the sticks, I love them. I want to try those wood-like nylon tipped sticks. Yes, someone makes them; however, they could easily be a gimmick...

My problem has always been hitting them to hard and breaking the tips apart. I started to use the nylon and just liked the sound better. I have calmed down though over the last few years. I can play with a wood tip all day long but it just doesn't separate the notes the way I personally like for some of the things I do.

7a all the way nylon do they still fly off in the middle of a song i use wood too

When I test out cymbals that I'm going to buy, I don't even use sticks. I crash it at several volumes with my finger and listen to how the overtones line up, if they're consonant or dissonant. This has been the best way for me to pick out nice-sounding cymbals. Of course, the true test comes when you play the cymbal at gigs or in the studio.

I'm a wood tip kind of guy. I have so many different kinds of sticks that I use. Tips have different articulations, and weights open up cymbals to different degrees. It's amazing what changing the stick (AND your grip) will do to your sound...