One of the best places to look for a new cymbal is in Sabian’s HHX line of cymbals. Every cymbal in this series is a pro-quality option that will work in all kinds of settings. Although they’re a bit expensive, they always seem to last much longer than most other Sabian cymbals.
We’re going to have a look at the Sabian 21-inch HHX Groove ride, in particular. This is a fairly popular cymbal that many drummers swear by. So, standby as we break everything down relating to it to see why it’s such a good option to go with.
The cymbal is called the Groove Ride because it sounds so good when you play grooves on it. Every part of the cymbal has a beautiful shimmering tone that is a good mixture of warmth and dark washiness.
The surface has a brilliant finish, making it look incredibly shiny at your drum kit. The only part that doesn’t have that aesthetic is the bell which is unlathed. The unlathed bell has an earthy appearance that has become quite well-known with many HHX cymbals.
Tone-wise, the bell has an earthy sound that matches its appearance quite well.
The big unique thing about this ride is that it’s 21 inches. Most drummers lean towards 20” or 22” rides, so having a 21” ride gives you a sound that is fairly different from the norm.
The cymbal is made from B20 bronze which is what most high-end cymbals are made from.
Any cymbal from the Sabian HHX line is always going to have guaranteed quality. As it’s one of Sabian’s top-of-the-range cymbal lines, each cymbal sounds, feels, and looks great.
So, this HHX Groove Ride has all those qualities. However, one of the best qualities it has is its crashability. That’s the big thing that sets it apart from most of the other ride cymbals in the HHX line.
When crashing on it, it sounds like a warm and oversized crash cymbal. The crashing sound is excellent for styles like jazz, worship, funk, and even rock in some cases. However, we wouldn’t recommend using it for rock as it lacks a few qualities that a rock ride needs.
At the end of the day, it’s an incredibly high-quality ride cymbal that has extreme versatility and a beautiful crashing tone. It’s likely to become your favorite cymbal if you add it to your setup.
Unfortunately, high-quality cymbals always come at a high price. The Sabian HHX 21-inch Groove Ride is by no means a cheap cymbal. Instead, it’s priced in a similar range to all the other pro-quality cymbals on the market.
You’re going to be paying just under $500 for this ride. While that may seem like a hefty amount, the price-to-value ratio of this cymbal is still fairly high.
Since the Groove Ride has excellent crashability, it can technically act as another crash cymbal. This will allow you to save a bit of cash by not buying a second crash. You could even use this as the only cymbal along with hi-hats if you want to go for a minimalist setup.
It’s an expensive cymbal, but it’s well worth the cost due to its superb versatility and the fact that it can also act as a crash cymbal.
Speaking of versatility, let’s have a look at exactly why this ride is so versatile. It mainly has to do with its dark tone. Dark cymbals generally work well in most styles of music as they tend to blend with other instruments instead of overpowering them and sounding out-of-place.
The crashability also adds to the versatility. Being able to crash on a ride cymbal is always one of the biggest signs of versatility in that ride. It allows you to utilize it in more settings than you would if you couldn’t crash on it.
With that being said, the two styles of music that this ride doesn’t thrive in are rock and metal. The stick sound when you play the bow is a bit too mellow for heavy musical styles. You wouldn’t clearly hear the Groove Ride in a mix of distorted instruments.
So, the ride is a great option for most styles excluding any of the heavier ones.
Sabian’s HHX cymbals are some of the most loved studio recording cymbals available. The same can be said with Zildjian’s K Custom cymbals and Meinl’s Byzance cymbals. The reason for this is that high-end cymbals tend to sound amazing when recorded through microphones. They’re incredibly easy to work with as well.
So, the Sabian HHX Groove Ride is an excellent choice for studio recording. It has a warm and dark tone that allows you to lay into it without it ever becoming overwhelming in a studio mix. That’s always a sought-after sound quality with studio cymbals.
The bell provides a great contrast to the warm sound of the bow. The bell’s tone is fairly cutting, allowing you to play patterns that will cut easily through the mix if you need them to.
While the Groove Ride is an excellent studio cymbal, it doesn’t shine as brightly on a live stage if you’re playing in a huge venue. It’s not the loudest cymbal around, so it’s very easy for the sound to get lost on the stage.
However, it works excellently for intimate gigging environments or in venues that are fairly small. Just don’t expect it to be a powerful ride cymbal that will be very effective in loud choruses.
Many people think that the HHX cymbals are the highest-quality cymbals that Sabian offers. However, the Artisan Series cymbals are the true top-quality options. They’re right at the peak of Sabian’s product line, and they’re some of the most expensive cymbals you will find on the market.
All the Artisan cymbals have extravagantly good sound properties, and you’ll typically only see the top-dog drummers playing them.
One pair of Sabian Artisan hi-hats will easily cost over $700. There aren’t many other cymbals on the market that cost near that much. If you want the best cymbals possible from Sabian, the Artisan Series is what you need to aim for.
This question is a bit of a loaded one. The ultimate truth is that there is no best cymbal brand. However, there are 4 cymbal brands that have dominated the market for as long as they’ve been around. These brands are Sabian, Meinl, Zildjian, and Paiste.
You’ll find the vast majority of drummers using cymbals from these brands around the world. Even though they’re the most popular, it still doesn’t mean they’re the best. There are still some smaller cymbal companies that many drummers love.
At the end of the day, it all comes down to which cymbals you prefer and which brand makes those. The quality of sound that a cymbal has is subjective to whoever listens to and plays it.
Sabian and Zildjian have always been rival cymbal brands. In fact, the Sabian company was started by one of the original Zildjian family members. Over the years, these two companies have competed with all their products.
However, Zildjian have seemed to push ahead in the world of social media. You’ll find more drummers online playing Zildjian than you will playing Sabian. It seems as though the Zildjian company has put a bigger marketing push through social media, increasing their popularity.
Don’t count Sabian out, though. They’re still massively popular, and they’ll probably strike back in the next few years.
Some notable names of drummers who play Sabian cymbals would be Dave Weckl, Phil Collins, Chad Smith, Mike Portnoy, Ray Luzier, and Chester Thompson.
The Sabian HHX 21-inch Groove Ride is an excellent option for anyone looking for versatility and crashability. If you’re a jazz or worship drummer, this is the perfect ride for you. It will also work in countless other styles of music that need a dark and washy ride cymbal.
The fact that you can crash on this ride so nicely adds an immense amount of value to it. It definitely lives up to its name, and you should consider getting one of them because of that.
Drum Teacher
Brett Clur has a Drum Performance Diploma from Trinity College London has been playing drums for over 20 years. He is passionate about advanced concepts and uses his years of experience to teach his students about them. While he is a full-time drum teacher, he is also working on growing a YouTube channel where shares his insights. You can see him playing there, or on Instagram where he posts daily videos.
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