An effects cymbal is a cymbal

Cymbal

Cymbals are a common percussion instrument. Cymbals consist of thin, normally round plates of various alloys; see cymbal making for a discussion of their manufacture. The greater majority of cymbals are of indefinite pitch, although small disc-shaped cymbals based on ancient designs sound a...

 used in a drum kit

Drum kit

A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....

 for a special effect or accent. Effects cymbals include splash cymbal

Splash cymbal

In a drum kit, splash cymbals are the smallest accent cymbals. Splash cymbals and china cymbals are the main types of effects cymbals.The most common sized splash has a diameter of 10", followed by 8"...

s, china cymbal

China cymbal

thumb|right|China type cymbals from three continentsIn western music, china type cymbals are cymbals manufactured to produce a dark, crisp, trashy, and explosive tone...

s and many other less common types.

This classification is widely accepted but enigmatic. When pang and swish cymbal

Swish cymbal

The swish cymbal and the pang cymbal are exotic ride cymbals originally developed and named as part of the collaboration between Gene Krupa and the Avedis Zildjian Company...

s are used as ride cymbal

Ride cymbal

The ride cymbal is a standard cymbal in most drum kits. It maintains a steady rhythmic pattern, sometimes called a ride pattern, rather than the accent of a crash...

s they are not considered effects cymbals, despite their exotic tone. On the other hand, the most common six-piece cymbal setup consists of hi-hats, ride, two crash cymbal

Crash cymbal

A crash cymbal is a type of cymbal that produces a loud, sharp "crash" and is used mainly for occasional accents, as opposed to in ostinato. The term "crash" may have been first used by Zildjian in 1928....

s of slightly different sizes and possibly weights, one splash

Splash

Splash may refer to:* Splash , sudden disturbances on the surface of water* Splash, in erosion, is the detachment and airborne movement of small soil particles caused by the impact of raindrops on soils-Computing:...

 and one china type, so effects cymbals must be considered a standard part of an extended drum kit.

Splash cymbals

Splash Cymbals range from 6" - 12". They are relatively quiet and don't last for long, but have a high pitch sound.

China cymbals

China Cymbals range from 12" - 26". They are one of the loudest cymbals for the drum kit. Where you hit the china makes a huge difference to its sound. They are basically a smaller version of a Chinese gong

Gong

A gong is an East and South East Asian musical percussion instrument that takes the form of a flat metal disc which is hit with a mallet....

 (where its name originates from). China cymbals can be used up-side down to produce a 'cleaner' noise. When used the right way up, china cymbals produce more 'attack.'

Others

There are many other custom effect cymbals, in great variety from different makers.

Drumbel cymbals are designed to rest on the top skin of a snare drum

Snare drum

The snare drum or side drum is a melodic percussion instrument with strands of snares made of curled metal wire, metal cable, plastic cable, or gut cords stretched across the drumhead, typically the bottom. Pipe and tabor and some military snare drums often have a second set of snares on the bottom...

 to modify its tone.

Rocktagon cymbals by Sabian are a unique eight-sided design, midway between a crash and a china.