What Is The Vault Crossover Ride All About?

What do you know about the Vault Crossover Ride? Have you heard it yet? So many players tell us how much they like its 'versatility without compromise' performance that we thought you might like to know more about this latest addition to the Vault collection.

The Crossover Ride was originally inspired by a request from long-time SABIAN endorser, Garey Williams. A tremendous player from Seattle, Garey is a drummer who moves between styles with ease, whether jazz, fusion, pop or rock and has the technique and feel to excel in all. He also loves cymbals.

Responding to Garey's request was SABIAN master product specialist Mark Love. "This request interested me because it was coming from Garey, a drummer who really understands music, playing and sound," said Mark. "The result is a great example of how successful innovation needn't result in esoteric and way-out sounds. The Crossover Ride is definitely a cymbal that delivers across a wide range of style without compromise."

For further insight on the Crossover Ride we put some questions to Garey.

The Crossover Ride name implies versatility, a multiple-use aspect. What inspired you to pursue this concept? Was it your experience playing different styles of music, and if so what styles do you play and what are the sensitivities you associate with those styles?
I play many styles of music: Rock, Funk, R&B, Jazz, World and a fusion of all these. I was seeking a ride that would be able to 'cross over' all these genres. This ride needed to be thin enough to produce a clear, musical and broad tone at low volumes, but also have clear stick definition at louder volumes without sounding like I was riding on a crash cymbal. The tone needed to have a vintage, jazzy quality but with the clarity of a modern cymbal so it would sound good for Rock and R&B. It also needed a bell possessing a clear, woody tone that would work well for Funk and Latin bell patterns.

How does the Crossover Ride address those sensitivities and what will a drummer feel and hear when playing this ride?
I prefer the rich and slightly more complex tone of hand hammered cymbals yet I also like the silver colored shimmer often associated with machine hammered cymbals. With the Crossover Ride drummers will hear the complex vintage tone combined with a soft feel, modern shimmer, clear bell and controlled crash. This is a very musical sounding and versatile ride that many drummers will appreciate.

When you first described the concept to SABIAN, do you recall what you said? your description of the sound? If so, what was it?
I first approached SABIAN product specialist, Mark Love with the idea of creating a ride cymbal that would combine the sound characteristics of two SABIAN HH models; the Duo Ride and the Bounce Ride. I thought combining the sound characteristics of these two would produce the most versatile ride possible.

As you were working with the Mark Love on prototypes, what was your inner feeling? After all, the lads in the Vault have worked with everyone from Neil Peart and Chad Smith to Jeff Watts and Jojo Mayer.
Knowing that these great drummers all had their hand, or more specifically their ears, involved in the creation of some unique sounding cymbals, it was a privilege and honor to have SABIAN create this ride. I feel the Crossover fulfills a real need. That was my hope and goal and SABIAN more than delivered it!

When the final prototype was approved, what was your response and how did you celebrate?
I had a photo taken of me with the ride at the NAMM show, then I took that cymbal home with me. Now every time I play it I feel good... I'm celebrating!

What do your bandmates and other drummer friends think of the cymbal?
I am a connoisseur of cymbal sounds and have tried a number of different rides with my fusion trio, Ecstasy In Numbers. When I first put the Crossover on a stand I had my band members vote, and they both enthusiastically picked it over my other rides. When different drummers hear and play the cymbal the reaction is incredible. They love the smooth tone, soft feel, clear bell and controlled crash qualities.

How would you describe the feel and sound of the Crossover Ride?
Instead of cutting straight through, it has a sound that blends with the music, both in volume and tonal color. It has a soft feel, medium-pitch and vintage 'tah' stick sound rather than a tighter, harder 'ping' response. It's also got a clear, 'woody' tone on the bell with a modern, broad shimmer to the stick definition across the rest of the cymbal. This was all achieved by combining a higher shape, 21" size, a combination on lathed and non-lathed surface areas, the medium-thin weight and both HH and HHX hammering.

Would you describe it as a Vintage or a Modern sound?
It?s actually a blend of both. I think Mark Love said it best: "The sound is as the name suggests. It not only crosses styles of music, it also has roots in vintage and modern sounds." I agree; the Crossover truly is a cymbal that connects all of drumming styles and sounds.

What types of music are you playing with this cymbal, and what aspects of the cymbal do you like for these different styles?
I play every style of music with it. Whether I am playing a straight ahead jazz gig, rock, funk, Latin or Fusion gig, the Crossover, with its vintage roots and modern clarity, does it all.

How would you describe the overall experience of working with the Vault Team to develop this cymbal and what were the highpoints?
It was a great experience!. I knew Mark through my visits to the NAMM show and the SABIAN factory, and over the years he has answered my many questions and created several prototypes for me. He, David Williams and the rest of the Vault team share my enthusiasm for creating new sounds. They are very skilled at taking a sound idea and making it into a cymbal reality. The highpoints include SABIAN believing in the concept and name I suggested, then making the cymbal available to every drummer looking for that one-size- fits-all ride cymbal nobody could ever find... until now. Thank you SABIAN!