I have a sizable HH collection - and have spent plenty of time swapping. In addition, I have flipped even more and thus have played numerous hihats. Zildjians, Sabian, Paiste, Italians, German, Swiss, MIJ ;) - you name it. I have played for 30 years and for about 25 years I have been a proud owner of a pair of Zildjian hollow-logo New Beats. I agree with most drummers who assert that the gold standard of hihats are the Zildjian New Beats.
Often when drummers are evaluating HHs they compare them to the gold standard - the NBs. Several months ago, I acquired a pair of Pearl CX-500s and for some reason - did not think they were anything special. Again, for some reason, (perhaps now that I have recorded them) I have revisited them and I have to say.......
get ready......this will shock some and perhaps even provoke some criticism.........
Of ALL the Hihats that I have played......when eliminating the variable of metal composition (leaving it wide open to all, not just B20), I have found that the Pearl CX-500s are the closest thing to New Beats I have ever played on. Terry Keating (AKA Bonzoleum) believes that the Paiste Medium 505s are the best sounding B8 hats and closest to the NBs. I invite him to evaluate the Pearl CX-500s. The sound is most definitely different (than the 505s) and I would have to say that I may even put the Pearls above the 505s in terms of overall sound (and I am a BIG fan of the 505s!)
Check out my video and hear for yourself. This will play right where I throw the Cx-500 top on (after the CX-900 was on top). CX-900 on top sounds good, but not as good as the 500. Without a doubt, due to induced wetness, the CX-500 bottom is superior to the CX-900 bottom.
Check it out here.......and indeed check it out if you have a pair or if you know someone with a pair of these. I am seriously looking forward to reading the comments that follow.
**If this video starts at the beginning, skip to the 10:27 mark to see where I switch out the HHs (to the CX-500 T and B)
[ame]http://youtu.be/xXMKmq6ApSg?t=10m27s[/ame]