Reviews
"The 18" may sound small for a ride, but believe me, it's got some great punch! The ride part sounds nice and bright, although is deep and dry enough to work as it should, with a decent size bell. And when you hit the edge, the crash sounds bright yet washy, equivalent to maybe a smaller size thin crash." - Owen Liversidge
"I have mostly dark sounding cymbals, and the crash on the omni though 18" sounds like a 14" or 15" with an almost china-like quick decay. The bell is a bit quiet for full-stage playing, but serves nice in quiet settings." - weevilboy
"Dry, dark stick, not overly loud on the 18" version. Fast (both attack and decay), shimmery, washy crash." - G.C.H.
"When mounting the Omnis, the thinness of the edges contrasts with the overall weight of cymbal - the 18" model actually flexes if grabbed with one hand. When crashed, the smaller Omni doesn't just open instantly, but leaps straight to its fullest point. The note is fairly high-pitched and contains elements of trashiness, but the overriding characteristic is one of smoothness. This impression is strengthened by a notably clean decay. Playing the inner unlathed portion of the cymbal with the tip of a stick finds the sound immediately drier and more precise - ride-like, in fact. The pitch remains high, but the clarity of the stick sound is striking. Moving on to the bell reveals another level of separation, with wash at a bare minimum. This riding prowess is matched by the cymbal's crashing capabilities. Crashing and riding at the same time is easily done, with the two competing actions seemingly unaffected by one another." - Adam Jones
"How should the whole thing sound if it's neither ride nor crash? Well, this statement is more than misleading, because the Omni Cymbals are supposed to offer grown-up ride sounds and veritable crash sounds at the same time. Is it? That works, and how! Let's start with the 22 ″ model, which, due to its size, suggests more frequent ride use. The area below the bell offers a very discreet but defined stick with a dark, dry color. The sustain is quite short, transparent and also rather dark. When played with the tip of the stick, the bell looks fine and dry, with the shoulder of the stick it gains in presence and overtones. The response is very direct, and even when playing very quietly, the full potential of this elegant sound is achieved. This is recommended for the classic jazz trio, i.e. a very intimate, acoustic context. But there is more, because if the cymbal is used as a ride in its two playing zones, it can also use a more powerful style of play and remains clear and transparent up to a certain point - very well suited for R'n'B, soul, funk. If you reach out vigorously, the thin, bowed edge naturally swings open and adds a certain, subtle background noise to this sound, which really has its own character. If you then use the bowed edge area as a ride, a dark, rather gentle noise is created, and fine overtones and a slight shimmer in the attack develop here. Depending on how, where and with which sticks you use this cymbal as a ride, a lot of sounds are available. And should that result in a solid crash sound? Yes, that works too! A short, full and powerful attack swings into a dark sustain. Despite this color and the size of the cymbal, the sound is lively enough. First of all "hats off"! The 18" model is tonally much higher and has a pronounced presence. For this reason alone, when played vigorously, the cymbal then forms a fine rustling shimmer on the top and adds this to the bright, clear attack. " - Ralf Mikolajczak
"The AAX Omni cymbal could be described as a crash/ride, but that would compare the cymbal unfairly to all the crash/rides that have preceded it, many of which have been the result of compromise. The AAX Omni is Sabian’s attempt to create
a new genre of all-purpose cymbal. To quote Jojo Mayer, who helped develop the AAX Omni, :This is a go-anywhere, play-anywhere cymbal, and ultimately you can play any gig with just this one cymbal on your kit." The Omni AAX is a medium-weight cymbal with an unlathed bell and inner half. The bell is similar to that of the AA Raw Bell Dry Ride, while the inner section
has a machine-hammered finish. The outer half of the cymbal has a lathed finish that tapers to an extra-thin edge. The result is two completely different tonal areas of the cymbal with which to work like getting two cymbals in one. In a small-group setting, I found the cymbal to be remarkably diverse. Riding near the middle of the cymbal produced an appropriate amount of stick definition,
and when I moved further to the edge, the cymbal started to get washier. I was still able to ride on the thinner, lathed outer edge, but during the louder passages I would have to move back in toward the center a bit. When I needed any type of actual crash,
I moved to the edge of the cymbal and with a bit of shoulder from the stick was able to produce enough crash. The Omni AAX is on the brighter end of the spectrum, but the crashes did not overwhelm the group as long as I laid back a little while digging
in. Even with the unlathed bell, I could apply a bit more velocity to the stick than I originally thought I'd be able to without upsetting the blend of the mix." - Matt Kern
