AAX Xplosion Vs AAX stage crash Vs HHX evolution (16") (2024)

siddhant said:

Hey guys so I'm in a sort of a dilemma, I need you help. I'm a semi hard to hard hitter depending on what music I'm playing, and I'm looking for a versatile crash with great sound, punch and musicality. Cheers!

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HHX Xplosion or HHX Evolution. Both amazing crashes

siddhant said:

Hey guys so I'm in a sort of a dilemma, I need you help. I'm a semi hard to hard hitter depending on what music I'm playing, and I'm looking for a versatile crash with great sound, punch and musicality. Cheers!

Click to expand...

I have a feeling that HHX/AAX X-Plosions are thin, so they may not be best for you (although they do sound amazing)

Ollie Bonugli said:

I have a feeling that HHX/AAX X-Plosions are thin, so they may not be best for you (although they do sound amazing)

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Agreed. I own both and while they are both amazing cymbals they are both on the thinner side. An extremely hard hitter might destroy an evolution. Of course technique plays a huge factor. That being said, all 3 you mentioned are versatile with great sound. My favorite are the evolutions but an AAX-Plosion and stage are also fantastic cymbals. Can't go wrong with any. I do know Musicians Friend has a sick deal on a 16" HHX Power crash..I think it's $129. Might want to check that out too.

Ollie Bonugli said:

I have a feeling that HHX/AAX X-Plosions are thin, so they may not be best for you (although they do sound amazing)

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Xplosions are actually medium-thin in weight. In my opinion, medium-thin cymbals are the hardest to break out of any weight. The would also open up much better than a "power crash" or other super heavy cymbal.

Superman said:

Agreed. I own both and while they are both amazing cymbals they are both on the thinner side. An extremely hard hitter might destroy an evolution. Of course technique plays a huge factor. That being said, all 3 you mentioned are versatile with great sound. My favorite are the evolutions but an AAX-Plosion and stage are also fantastic cymbals. Can't go wrong with any. I do know Musicians Friend has a sick deal on a 16" HHX Power crash..I think it's $129. Might want to check that out too.

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I own a 21" AA Rock ride so will an AAX or an HHX go better wih that? AAX are bright like the AA series

siddhant said:

I own a 21" AA Rock ride so will an AAX or an HHX go better wih that? AAX are bright like the AA series

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AAX is a bit brighter than the AA series. AA has more of a vintage sound. HHX is a bit more darker. I have a mix of 2 AA crashes and Splash with 2 AAx crashes, and hats right now. They compliment each other well. I don't have any AA rides , but I do own a 21" Zildjian A ride (similar to an AA) and while it has been in my pouch for over a year, I do remember that the AAX cymbals sounded fine with it.

siddhant said:

Hey guys so I'm in a sort of a dilemma, I need you help. I'm a semi hard to hard hitter depending on what music I'm playing, and I'm looking for a versatile crash with great sound, punch and musicality. Cheers!

Click to expand...

Hi siddhant. I replied to your other thread regarding the AAXPlosion and the A Series, so read that if you get a sec, for info on the XPlosions.

'Great sound' is of course a subjective phrase, but of all of those, AAXPlosions would probably be the punchiest, and also likely the AAX Stage would be the loudest, with the most sustain.

One thing drummers don't consider enough though, is how do each of these cymbals FEEL to play? Two of those cymbals are thin weight, whereas one is a medium weight. Your existing setup is important to consider, because if all of your other cymbals are 18+ in size, you will struggle to hear the 16's and will likely hit them harder than you need to in order to get more volume out of them, which they cannot deliver. This could force a clenching of your hand, and produce a stiff movement through the cymbal, which potentially results in cracking.

My advice would be to take your cymbal setup to a store and set them up on a kit (call ahead first!) Then try a whole bunch of sizes, weights and brands until you find something that fits with your setup in terms of pitch, sustain and overall feel. Until then, you really cannot know which is going to be best for you, and its likely that NONE of those cymbals mentioned above will end up being 'the' right one.

Hope this helps.

siddhant said:

I'm looking for a versatile crash with great sound, punch and musicality. Cheers!

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In my opinion, that's the description I'd give the Evolution. I own the 18" and it's a pretty dark, but very clean cymbal. While on the thinner side, it's incredibly durable (I used to have crappy technique which would cause my cymbals to crack quickly, but it still outlasted all my other ones, [and I also heard somewhere that Dave Weckl wanted the Evolution crashes to be a more durable version of the Zildjian K dark thin crashes]), really speaks and projects as a larger sound. It has a quick decay, and it's very punchy.

I owned a 20" HHX X-Plosion crash, and the decay is very long, but they produce a wall of sound (maybe because it's a 20"). Less punch for sure, I'd use them as a crash for sections where you're playing quarter and 8th notes, rather than as an accent cymbal, due to their sound and long decay.

Stage crash, not a fan. Played one in a shop, and it sounded real hollow and tinny, not as full as the other two.

Considering your other cymbals, I'd go for the Evolution for a bit of contrast in your sound, but something that still sits comfortably, and meets your description.

Ignoring the names and marketing descriptions for a minute, what you're looking at are three cymbals with different weights.

Stage Crash: medium
Xplosion: medium-thin
Evolution: thin

This factor, more than anything else, will determine how loud it is, how much sustain it has, its tonal character, and how hard you need to hit it.

The Evolution will max out with a medium force hit, but with a lot of nuance below that. It's asymmetrical hammering, while smoothing out the tone, also robs it of some of its volume potential.

At the other end, the Stage Crash is pretty heavy and stiff under the stick, so it won't work as well as the Evo for lower to mid volume stuff, and will tend to sound a little harsh without a band behind it. But it will definitely cut through.

The Xplosion sits right in the middle and does both loud and quiet pretty well. IMO, the name of this cymbal is misleading since it evokes something more aggressive than it really is, and is a lot mellower than the Stage Crash. I think the Xplosions are gorgeous cymbals that are among the most versatile Sabian makes.

But for me, I'm not too big on smaller cymbals like the 16" because they tend to sound too much like large splashes, so despite my general preference for Xplosions (and medium-thins in general), if it had to be a 16", I'd go with the Stage Crash and always hit it hard.

siddhant said:

Hey guys so I'm in a sort of a dilemma, I need you help. I'm a semi hard to hard hitter depending on what music I'm playing, and I'm looking for a versatile crash with great sound, punch and musicality. Cheers!

Click to expand...

I prefer 16" AAX Xplosion fast crash.. AAX X-plosion fast-crashes are unbelievable awesome symbals.. I have now 18" and 16" x-plosion fast crashes and one 14" Xplosion crash.. I would trade that to 17" X-plosion fast crash some day... When I afford that and find that somewhere..