Best Wuhan Cymbals Review. Perfecting a Roll Inexpensively

Posted in Cymbals | Last Updated on July 12, 2021

Excellent sound quality for a nominal price. That is what Wuhan cymbals are all about. Made from cost-effective sheet metals, Wuhan has paved the way for every drummer to own excellent cymbals without burning a hole in their pockets.

Loved by a vast crowd of drummers, these cymbals are handcrafted using a 2000-year-old manufacturing technique and uses high-grade B20 alloy, which is the gold standard for cymbal making. This means that the alloy is made of 80% copper and 20% tin for traditional cymbal sounds and durability. (Read more about cymbal alloys here) Most high-end cymbals from top cymbal companies use the same alloy.

If you look at Wuhan’s cymbals catalog, you will see 5 broad categories, namely Western Cymbals, China, Gongs, 457 Cymbals, and other FX Cymbals. There are even stands for Gongs. I am going to give you my experience with Wuhan cymbals.

Western Cymbals

The western cymbal series has 4 significant cymbal ranges, and it is the most sought out owing to its ability to sound like other top-end cymbals. The 10” splash, 14” hi-hats, 16” crash, and 20” ride is what you can expect in the pack. Luckily you can also buy this as a set online.

Wuhan WUTBSU Western Style Cymbal Set with Cymbal Bag

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You can pretty much set up your rig with these cymbals as they offer everything you need. With around 20 years of experience as a drummer, I can confidently say that these are one of the best I have ever played on. There is something about Wuhan’s B20 alloys that can produce stunning sounds in smaller cymbals.

Starting with the splash, you can choose between 8” to 14” according to your liking and can never go wrong. About hi-hats, I usually use a 14” top for hi-hats, and this brand made me enjoy playing it as it has that “top sparkle.” With a deep and slightly trashy sound, the 16” crash can even be a good option for jazz. The 20” ride comes in two types. Medium and medium-heavy. I have used the medium-heavy, and I can vouch for the clean sounds that it can make.

The bell sounds very distinct, and it also crashes reasonably well. What I think may go wrong with these cymbals are its inconsistency in tone repeatability. As all Wuhan cymbals are hand-made, it is most likely to have subtle differences in tones that a trained ear can easily spot.

WUHAN WU457 Hi-Hat Cymbals Pack

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The 457 series is considered a beginner’s pack and comes with 3 different cymbal sets. The 14” hi-hats, the 12” crash and the dark sounding 20” ride. What will surprise you is that despite its branding as a beginner’s pack, these cymbals can compete with the top-end models of other cymbal brands owing to its ability to sound rich and crisp. Perfect for rock music, the crash and hi-hats bring out the dynamics. Hi-hats have a cool chick sound on foot and the crash is lovely, bright and washy.

Although care is going to be much needed to get durability and longevity out of these cymbals, my first impression is that it is worth every penny you pay for.

Check out our piece on which we spent hours reviewing the top cymbal packs on the market.

FX Cymbals

Wuhan has a wide range of FX or effects cymbals, and China cymbals are probably the most loved ones. Having manufactured in China, you cannot go wrong with Wuhan’s China cymbals. There are few other options in the FX cymbals catalog namely; Linear Smash Crashes, Linear Series effects, Bells crashes, Riveted splashes, Tian Jin crashes, and the He Nan crashes. I have used and a big fan of the China cymbals and the XK Linear Smash.

China Cymbals

As a kid, I grew up listening to drummers like Phil Collins and Bill Bruford, who had China sounds in their cymbals. I needed to have these sounds in my kit and took me a while to figure out the right cymbals to get there. Wuhan Chinas perfectly emulate the sound that was there in my head. This is undoubtedly the best China cymbals you could get. The Chinas that I used are the 12”, 14”, 16” and 18” and the sound gets bigger, louder and washier as the size gets bigger. These are best suited for progressive rock music.

Check out the different Wuhan China sound-bytes

XK Linear Smash 18” crash

The idea of FX cymbals, especially the ones that has multiple holes is that if a mass is removed from the cymbal, the vibration propagation can be manipulated, producing different sounds. The XK Linear Smash has unique 3 slots and multiple round holes patterns that create a unique trashier tone with a fast attack and a medium decay. You will find its tone to be somewhere between a crash and a China which works beautifully for contemporary rock music.