Best Hi-Hats for Metalcore 2026 | MetalForge Expert Guide

Frequently Asked Questions

What hi-hats are used in metalcore?

Matt Halpern of Periphery and Matt Greiner of August Burns Red both use 15" Meinl Byzance Extra Dry Hi-Hats for controlled, low-sustain response. Alex Bent of Trivium uses 14" Meinl Byzance Brilliant Hi-Hats for a brighter, faster attack. Jay Weinberg of Slipknot uses 14" Zildjian A Custom Hi-Hats for explosive projection.

What hi-hats does Matt Halpern use?

Matt Halpern of Periphery uses 15" Dark Hi-Hats from the Meinl Byzance Extra Dry Series, part of his broader Extra Dry cymbal setup that also includes 18" and 20" crashes, a 22" Transition Ride, and an 18" China.

What size hi-hats for metalcore?

14" is the standard metalcore hi-hat size, used by Alex Bent and Jay Weinberg. Matt Halpern and Matt Greiner both prefer 15" for extra surface area and control on tightly muted, syncopated breakdown riffing.

Best hi-hats for breakdowns?

Dry, controlled hi-hats with a defined chick handle breakdown patterns best. Meinl Byzance Extra Dry (Matt Halpern, Matt Greiner) is the genre's technical benchmark. Meinl Byzance Brilliant (Alex Bent) and Zildjian A Custom (Jay Weinberg) offer brighter alternatives for more melodic or aggressive breakdown-adjacent material.

Dry or bright hi-hats for metalcore?

Both work at the highest level. Dry hi-hats (Meinl Byzance Extra Dry, Halpern and Greiner's choice) suit breakdown-heavy, technical metalcore. Bright hi-hats (Meinl Byzance Brilliant, Bent's choice; Zildjian A Custom, Weinberg's choice) suit melodic or aggressive, nu-metal-influenced metalcore. Choose based on which subgenre and production style you're chasing.