Sabian has certainly cemented itself as one of the major cymbal manufacturers along with Zildjian (my personal fave) and Paiste. Sabian is a relatively newer company (although many companies are newer than Zildjian, which was founded in 1623 - yes, you read that right).
One of the lines of products I think highly of is Sabian’s HHX line, which is somewhat analogous to Zildjian’s K series. HHXs are mostly darker in tone, more geared towards jazz than rock, although you will find many rock players with Sabian HHXs on their kits.
Here’s a quick initial impression of the Zen China, which is a model I’ve had my eye on for awhile. This model is one of the lightest I could find, weighing in at 1314 grams, which is really thin for a 20” cymbal. Choosing lighter models is just one oft own personal preferences.
Lighter cymbals when compared to heavier cymbals of the same make, model and size tend to have slightly darker tones. In other words, when choosing between two 20” Zen Chinas, the heavier cymbal tends to have a slightly higher pitch than the lighter cymbal.
No matter what your friends/peers say about how they perceive the sound of an instrument, ask yourself does it sound good to your ear? Let that be your guide.
We’ll do a follow up once the studio is open and we can open this one up properly! Stay tuned.