This cymbal does sound excellent. It's dark tonality really opens up when crashing. I moved to this cymbal from a Zildjian 19" K Custom Hybrid Crash and found that it has a lower pitch than the hybrid.
One thing I would stress about this cymbal is to play it following Zildjian's user guidelines. Unfortunately, this cymbal cracked within 8 months. I had followed the instructions set by Zildjian, and I don't even hit my cymbals hard at all, yet a crack formed between the edge and the bell of the cymbal. I can only imagine how sooner the crack would have appeared if I had the cymbal tight on its stand and set in a horizontal position.
Do not let this put you off however, the benefit of this cymbal is its sound. On stage and in the studio the quality of the sound is incredible (resonance, volume, pitch, projection). And, under stage lighting it shines and glimmers and looks amazing.
With some large crashes you will find that you can use it as a ride cymbal, however, if this is something you like to do, then this cymbal isn't the one for you. Its riding characteristics are too tinny, and lack projection. The cymbal does have a strong bell which is nice to include every now and then.
I have given 3 stars for quality only because of how quickly it cracked given the circumstances. I have given 5 stars for sound because there is no denying how great this cymbal sounds.
