Sabian22" XSR Monarch

This ride is exactly what I’ve been hearing in my head. Dark, dry, and mellow. I’m not a heavy hitter, so the light weight is perfect. Unlike a lot of light rides, the wash never overtakes the stick sound. It can still crash when I need it to, but the crash is controlled. The stick definition is woody and never washes out or loses control. However, unlike a lot of completely unlathed “dry” cymbals, the underside is lathed so you get some washy overtones underneath the stick sound. With a slight crash you can draw these tones out, but they never overtake the stick definition. I can really lay into this ride without hurting my ears. The bell is also perfect for me. It’s small, but it still has a separate sound from the rest of the cymbal that cuts through in a dark, gnarly way.Despite having a very specific sound and feel, I think this ride could be very versatile across a variety of genres. Just know that it is a mellow, quiet cymbal that won’t cut through a wall of guitar distortion in a thrash metal band. But if you value finesse and musicality over sheer power and volume, this ride is definitely worth checking out.

Great low tone/note, low-mid volume cymbal. Not quite enough stick definition for me. Got a good price used but had to return because it arrived damaged beyond that advertised. Would have kept it if not for that.

I have 3 other top of the line rides and this is my favorite. I can’t believe how good it sounds for the price. Stick definition is perfect. It’s dry but not absurdly so. Crash ability is excellent. Very low pitched. This is absolutely my new favorite cymbal line and what I will be recommending to anyone.

Personally, I really like this cymbal a lot. It has an interesting sound, dryer, and with a little less ‘ping’ to it then your garden variety ride cymbal, but it still has enough viberato and body to crash on. It also has a really cool look to it, with the whole unfinished patina thing it has going on, and though I’d advise any drummer to place visual aesthetic waaay down on their list of priorities when buying hardware for their kit, if you happen to find something you like that also that also looks the part, well then all the better. One other thing about this cymbal is relative to other cymbals made by Sabian from the same line, this one is much cheaper than say the nova, or phoenix, etc. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.

Great stick definition... I like it a lot▶️⚜

Cool

Easily the best dry, dark ride on the market for the value. You could pay 450 bucks for a Meinl sand ride, 550 for a K Custom, or you could get this. Beautiful dry crash, raw bell sound, fantastic stick definition and ride-ability. Not to mention the aesthetics, I mean this cymbal looks sick beyond belief. Sabian should be making a killing with this line, I have no idea why these aren't the gold standard right now. The value is absolutely unreal.

I ended up returning this just so that I could buy the 21 inch brilliant rock version. Just an FYI, this is an AMAZING line of cymbals but this monarch dark is a very dry cymbal meant for jazz. I didn’t research it enough before I bought.