"lose" it? - no. The tone quality will change, though. Most of the time, a new cymbal starts out as "brighter" sounding and then, over time, some of the brash tones diminish and the cymbal "ages" and mellows. Some manufacturers actually speed up the aging process to get that more mellow tone quality from the start. Of course, lots of things factor into the equation -like how the cymbal was made and which alloy it was made from....and so forth.

I can tell you this much, I have some from the 50`s that sound awesome to these ears. So, I wander what they sounded like when they were new.:D

As a cymbal develops it`s natural patina over time, it will sound much warmer (supporting what O-lugs mentioned) than newer cymbals...

I would recommend buying vintage cymbals...I think once you try them, you will never purchase another new cymbal again!!

My 2 cents though...

Cheers

Very few exceptions,but i agree with you.

IMO any pro quality cymbal for the most part will sound good for many years if properly played and cared for.My experience with new cymbals,Zil especially is that they take a year or two to settle down/mellow.After that they still change but very gradually.I have "played out " a couple of crashes,it took 20 + years,and these were my first new cymbals,and I abused the heck out of them,what I noticed was that the cymbal became less responsive,in other words I would have to hit it harder to get the high end going,and eventually it lost most of the high end no matter how hard I hit it.The 20' crash now does time as a ride cymbal on my Niece's kit.I have no problem buying used cymbals,although I like to hear them first.

Trust your ears & don't buy junk...and if possible, always buy used. First thing you need to figure out is what bronze alloy makes you smile!...I'm a Paiste guy & the Signature alloy make me smile, it gives me the brighter tones I've always loved & mixes well with many musical genres. BUT, you may hate it...many do. I always tell students or newbies to go to Guitar Center (or fill in the blank ______ music store) and smack some...listen to the tone...than get the sales guy (or whoever) to smack them too while you stand across the store. Find what you like there & then go buy them for half the price on an on-line auction. Last but not least, don't go cheap!...with few exceptions, cymbals hold their value much better than drums, if you buy good stuff on an on-line auction at half the ________ music store price, more times than not, you aren't going to take a loss if you hate it.

Just my 2 cents!

Dan