Cymbals · Models

Model

Istanbul Agop 30th Anniversary

Cymbal · Turkey

The 30th Anniversary series is hand-crafted in Turkey from B20 bronze to commemorate Istanbul Agop's history. Each cymbal begins with a hand-shaped bell, receives deep, comprehensive hammering, and is finished with a proprietary pre-aging process, yielding a warm, rich, complex sound reminiscent of vintage K Zildjians across hi-hats, crashes and rides.

Model

Istanbul Mehmet Sultan

Cymbal · Turkey

Sultan is Istanbul Mehmet's classic thin, dark, hand-hammered line, made the way the Istanbul workshop made cymbals before the company divided.

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Bosphorus Master Series

Cymbal · Turkey

Master Series is Bosphorus at its most classical: cast B20, fully lathed, hand-hammered individually, and weighted toward the thin end. The rides wash rather than ping, which is the point.

Model

Turkish Classic Series

Cymbal · Turkey

Classic is Turkish Cymbals' general-purpose hand-hammered B20 line, lathed top and bottom, and covers the widest set of diameters and weights in the catalogue.

Model

Agean Natural Series

Cymbal · Turkey

Natural is Agean's standard hand-hammered line, and like most of the catalogue it can be ordered to a specific weight rather than taken from stock.

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Amedia Old School

Cymbal · Turkey

Old School cymbals are made to a pre-war specification: thin, low, and washy, with irregular hand hammering and a finish left deliberately uneven.

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Anatolian Ultimate Series

Cymbal · Turkey

Ultimate is Anatolian's top line: cast B20, individually hammered, and finished across a range of weights from jazz-thin to rock-heavy.

Model

Diril Raw Series

Cymbal · Turkey

Diril casts its own bronze rather than buying blanks, and the Raw series shows it: unlathed, heavily hammered cymbals with a dark, complex, short response.

Model

Masterwork Custom Series

Cymbal · Turkey

The Custom series is Masterwork's professional hand-hammered line, covering the standard range of crashes, rides, and hi-hats in traditional weights.

Model

Bosphorus Turk Series

Cymbal · Turkey

Turk cymbals are left largely unlathed with heavy hammering, producing a dry, short, trashy voice with almost no sustain — the cymbal equivalent of a muffled drum, and a studio staple.

Model

Istanbul Mehmet Samatya

Cymbal · Turkey

The Samatya series is thin, warm, and quick, named after the quarter of Istanbul where Turkish cymbal making has been concentrated for generations.

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Meinl Byzance Jazz

Cymbal · Turkey

The Jazz line runs thin across every diameter, including the wide, washy Medium Thin rides and the small, fast hats that acoustic playing needs.

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Istanbul Mehmet Nostalgia

Cymbal · Turkey

The Nostalgia series aims at the pre-war Turkish cymbal sound: low pitch, immediate wash, and a stick sound that sits under rather than on top of the cymbal.

Model

Meinl Byzance Dark

Cymbal · Turkey

Byzance Dark is fully lathed but heavily hammered and pitched low, sitting between the bright Traditional finish and the raw Extra Dry.

Model

Istanbul Agop Traditional

Cymbal · Turkey

The Traditional series covers Istanbul Agop's standard weights and finishes — medium, thin, dark, and the Original hi-hats — and is the widest part of the catalogue.

Model

Bosphorus Traditional Series

Cymbal · Turkey

The Traditional series covers the widest range of the Bosphorus catalogue, from paper-thin crashes to medium rides, and is the line most Bosphorus players start from.

Model

Meinl Byzance Vintage

Cymbal · Turkey

Byzance Vintage includes the Sand series developed with Benny Greb: thin, low-pitched cymbals with irregular lathing and a very fast decay.

Model

Istanbul Agop Turk

Cymbal · Turkey

Turk cymbals are heavily hammered and left largely unlathed, producing a dry, dark, short sound with a strong papery attack.

Model

Bosphorus Black Pearl

Cymbal · Turkey

Black Pearl cymbals combine an unlathed upper surface with a lathed underside, giving a dark stick definition over a dry, controlled wash.

Model

Istanbul Mehmet 61st Anniversary

Cymbal · Turkey

Made to mark the founder's years at the trade, the 61st Anniversary cymbals are thin, hand-hammered, and finished with a heavier lathing pattern than the Sultan line.

Model

Turkish Millennium Series

Cymbal · Turkey

Millennium sits at the bright, cutting end of the Turkish catalogue: heavier weights, tighter lathing, and rides with a defined bell.

Model

Turkish Jazz Series

Cymbal · Turkey

The Jazz series runs thin through every diameter, with rides that open quickly and crashes that respond to a brush as readily as a stick.

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Agean R-Series

Cymbal · Turkey

R-Series cymbals are left raw, with the cast surface and hammer marks visible, for a dry response with a fast decay.

Model

Bosphorus New Orleans Series

Cymbal · Turkey

Built with the second-line and traditional jazz idioms in mind, the New Orleans series is thin, opens instantly, and has a low pitch relative to its diameter.

Model

Bosphorus Antique Series

Cymbal · Turkey

The Antique series is finished to look and sound old — dark, low-pitched, and quick to open — and is aimed at drummers chasing a 1950s ride sound without a 1950s price.

Model

Istanbul Agop Xist

Cymbal · Turkey

Xist is Istanbul Agop's more affordable line, still cast B20 and hammered in Turkey but produced in larger runs and offered in brilliant, natural, and dry finishes.

Model

Istanbul Agop OM

Cymbal · Turkey

The OM series is thinner than anything else in the catalogue, made for low-volume playing where even a thin traditional cymbal is too loud.

Model

Istanbul Mehmet Legend Dark

Cymbal · Turkey

Legend Dark cymbals carry visible, irregular hammering and minimal lathing, giving a dark, dry response that suits low-volume playing and close microphones.

Model

Meinl Byzance Extra Dry

Cymbal · Turkey

Extra Dry cymbals are left raw with deep irregular hammering, giving an unusually short, dark, papery response. The 18" Thin Crash and the Dry Ride are the models most often seen.

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Amedia Vintage

Cymbal · Turkey

The Vintage series is finished to a darkened patina and weighted toward the thin end, aiming at the recorded cymbal sound of the 1950s and 1960s.

Model

Anatolian Expression Series

Cymbal · Turkey

Expression is the mid-catalogue line, lathed top and bottom with moderate hammering, and the range Anatolian sells most of.

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Masterwork Troy Series

Cymbal · Turkey

Troy brings Masterwork's manufacture down to a price where a first cymbal set can still be cast bronze rather than stamped sheet.

Model

Masterwork Resonant Series

Cymbal · Turkey

Resonant is the bright end of the Masterwork range: tighter lathing, higher pitch, and a longer sustain than the Custom line.

Model

Diril Jazz Series

Cymbal · Turkey

Diril's Jazz cymbals are thin enough to open under a brush and are pitched low for their diameter, aimed squarely at acoustic small-group work.

Model

Istanbul Agop Mel Lewis

Cymbal · Turkey

The Mel Lewis ride was reproduced from the cymbal the big band drummer played for decades: thin, dark, and washy, with almost no bell definition. It has become a reference point for jazz ride sound.

Model

Anatolian Baris Series

Cymbal · Turkey

The Baris series is Anatolian at its driest — minimal lathing, visible hammering, and a decay short enough to work under close microphones.

Model

Turkish Raw Series

Cymbal · Turkey

Raw cymbals leave the workshop with the casting surface intact and the edges as hammered, giving an extremely dry, short, trashy voice.

Model

Diril Dark Series

Cymbal · Turkey

The Dark series is lathed but weighted low and hammered heavily, producing a warm ride wash with enough stick definition to survive a band.

Model

Istanbul Agop Signature

Cymbal · Turkey

The Signature series is Istanbul Agop's most traditional: thin, hand-hammered, low-pitched cymbals made in small numbers in the Istanbul workshop.