Zildjian K Constantinople Cymbals

Carrying on from where I left off last time (in this case), I was eventually allowed to get my hands on the rest of these cymbals and not much to my surprise, they were indeed worth the wait. That was nice too, as I''ve been wanting to try some of these particular cymbals for a long time and so on that basis, this may come across as a rather enthusiastic review.

The K Constantinople line has been around for a while now, but because they''re at the highest end of the scale, they tend to be something that not everyone can get their hands on, and that is a shame because they are great to play and are very expressive instruments.

The K Constantinople line itself is very reminiscent of the famed old vintage Istabul K line in both appearance, feel and sound, but I think that''s the point. For me, there''s always been an inherent ''jazziness'' to the K Con line because of what it was based on and that was bourne out in the cymbals I tried, regardless of what music I was actually playing at the time.

Physically, the line has a clear, uniform lathing pattern and light hammering with obvious, but not overly pronounced, bells. The bells on the 15", 16", 17" and 18" crashes have been amended (as I understand) and now feature a slightly smaller ''vintage'' style cup. However, the bell of the 19" crash/ride has a fairly large domed-shape bell (similar to the bells on the Renaissance and Bounce rides) intended to give increased projection, which I''ll come to later. They''re not thick/heavy cymbals but aren''t really any thicker than the regular K line either.

14" HiHats

These are dark and almost trashy, but in a classy way. When played with the pedal, they produce a fairly bright chick sound which is nice and clear, but when played with a stick, the sound has a more darker edge to it. The pair I tried were quite reminiscent of a pair of older Ks I have, but with a thicker overall sound.

http://zildjian.com/Products/Drumset-Cymbals/Cast-Bronze-Cymbals/K-Zildjian-Series/14-K-Constantinople-HiHat-Pair#reviews

15, 16, 18 & 19 Crashes

I''ll keep this brief - these are some of the nicest crash cymbals I''ve played. Not a statement I make lightly, but it''s true, although I can''t admit to being a big fan of the 15" model because it sounds a little thin/small. Yes, I know it is supposed to sound that way, but against the 16" - which sounds much more in keeping with its larger companions - it sounds like the odd one out of the bunch.

The 16 and 18" models sound great together, and with the 19" as well, they work very well as a unit and all three are full and rich. The 16" was particularly good in this respect. Technically, the 19" is actually a crash/ride and in this respect it also works well. It''s not going to give you a thick cutting heavy bow sound, but that''s not the idea. It does, however, provide a good all round bell and bow sound which you could easily use in most settings.

Bit more information including product specs -

15" -
16" -
18" -
19" -

Ride Cymbals

These rides, from the moment I started playing them, made me want to try and do my best Steve Jordan/Ronnie Vanucci impersonations.

Ok, so I did fail to do any convincing reproductions of these guys, but the cymbals are still full of character and give a wonderful vibe when played, and that''s the important thing. While they are both thin cymbals and they''re not for bashing, they can also be played hard.

Renaissance Ride (my favourite cymbal of the whole bunch, I think)

This is a medium-thin 22" ride cymbal which was developed in conjunction with the renowned jazz drummer Adam Nussbaum, and features a smoother lathing on both sides and a bell that is unlathed underneath for better definition. It also features three rows of over hammering and four large hammer clusters give it a darker spread with overtones with a bit of ''trash'' thrown in.

I found this a wonderful cymbal to play. It has a broad wash to it and a low/medium pitch which easily sits underneath the music in a louder setting without getting lost. It also has a big sound when crashed, something I found myself doing alot.

http://zildjian.com/Products/Drumset-Cymbals/Cast-Bronze-Cymbals/K-Zildjian-Series/22-K-Constantinople-Renaissance-Ride

Bounce Ride

This model was a 20" medium thin [weight] cymbal and is a smaller verion of the 22" model that was developed in conjunction with Kenny Washington.

It has the traditional K Constantinople hammering but has more obvious lathe/tonal grooves on it, and produces plenty of sustain and wash when played. It also has a unique series of eight ''cluster'' over-hammering marks on top that are visually quite noticeable and give the cymbal a bit more ''trash and dirt'', as Zildjian calls it.

This model was also great fun to play and while it isn''t the loudest ride, it certainly has enough volume to compete in smaller venues. It''s again also very crashable.

http://zildjian.com/Products/Drumset-Cymbals/Cast-Bronze-Cymbals/K-Zildjian-Series/22-K-Constantinople-Bounce-Ride

I have always had a bit of a fascination with the K line, and the K Constantinoples too since they came out, and these review cymbals fitted in perfectly with my own small set of newer Ks. These are expensive cymbals, but more importantly they are expressive instruments, and I found it very easy to connect to that aspect, and the vibe they give off, when playing them.

In closing, these cymbals are fantastic. That''s all I have to say on the matter and I don''t care if that sounds a bit biased, it''s just true; there''s definitely some modern classics in there.

www.zildjian.com

David Bateman

August 2012