Drum noise - anyone try fixing the sticks, instead of the pads?

[Victor_Spoils]

Seen some good ideas for muting drums that all revolve around getting different drum pads. Has anyone tried the route of doing something to the drum sticks? What's worked best? How much can you do before you start affecting the bounce / feel / responsiveness overall?

We go the rubberbands / cloth kind of direction here, but it doesn't seem like enough. Gotta wonder about those big-ass marshmallow-lookin' things, like you see on the drumsticks for those giant kettle drums in orchestras...

[Fluffykins69]

you mean Timpani's...lol anyway those type of mallets would work for a period of time but youd probably get crappy gameplay cause many of those mallets have such a soft tip that the sensors might not pick up a stroke unless you nearly bash it in, plus the material eventually starts to fray all over the place, quite a mess to keep in good condition.

[Cutlass]

Taping felt over the drum stick heads will work well.

[hamboneFSR]

I have had pretty good success with foam rubber. (the yellowish foam stuff in some pillows and eggshell mattresses) I have a piece about the size of a golf ball taped on the ends. It doesn't seem to effect the drums picking up the hits, but when I start playing hard and expert, I have trouble with some of the drum rolls. The heads end up hitting each other and messing up my rhythm, but I think with some work I can adjust the way I play and avoid it.
Now most of the noise comes from the drums themselves. The plastic ring around the rim pushes down and slaps the base. It's still a lot quieter but I've been thinking of finding a remedy for that too.