Dampening the Drum Sound - Official Think Tank

[The_Hump_Monsters]

Alright,

Great day. Skipped work. Traveled from Toronto at 7:00 a.m. Walked into Walmart in Niagara Falls at 9:07. There were two left. Tried to buy both so I could bring one back for any Canadian board member (I have so much sympathy), but the lady wouldn't have it. Still feeling generous, I checked a few more stores and they were all sold out. Sorry fellow Canadians, I tried.

Anyways. I love the game. I love the drums. I love the guitar (I don't get all the haters). Only issue is the noise of the drum sticks hitting the pads. I know we've talked about this in previous threads, but since everyone has it at home now and can try out different ideas (ie. mouse pads etc.), let's try and communally come up with the best solution.
So post them here. I'm looking around my apartment for things to try, but can't find anything.

I can see my girlfriend and my neighbors not liking the clackity clack clack at 3:00 in the morning.

[MJDoja]

Mouse pads

[logicalnoise]

kettle drum mallets they're very soft but solid on the inside.

[kleners]

im going to buy some drum sticks that have the poly on the ends. that should take some of the snap out. and hopefully prolong the drum heads

[Bakkster]

I will try mousepads and electrical tape and post the results here in about 3 hours.

[Radjago]

Mallets sound like a good, but expensive option. I'm thinking mousepads will dull the sensitivity, so you'd actually have to hit harder. Something thin and soft would probably work best.

[SteppinRazor]

I am very curious about this, although I don't have, and probably won't get the game for another month.

I have a 1 year old dog who is not into noises like hammering or door-knocking. I imagine she'll get used to the drumming eventually, but if there was an effective way to muffle the noise a little bit, that could only help.

I love this dog, but boy can the barking get old fast if the neighbors are having their roof re-done, etc.

So, please post back with whatever results you can find.

[MJDoja]

essentially its the perfect material if you can get the right amount of thinness and you might need a couple of them to cover a good portion of the pads.

[MJDoja]

I am very curious about this, although I don't have, and probably won't get the game for another month.

I have a 1 year old dog who is not into noises like hammering or door-knocking. I imagine she'll get used to the drumming eventually, but if there was an effective way to muffle the noise a little bit, that could only help.

I love this dog, but boy can the barking get old fast if the neighbors are having their roof re-done, etc.

So, please post back with whatever results you can find.

they ARE drums... not gonna do for the clacking much beyond the mouse pads bud. dont kill yourself by trying to bang out rock tunes with MALLETS.. please.

try tape on the ends of your sticks.. they will feel more weird the more you layer on there, but you can tape enough so it will cut the sound a bit. you will also have to hit a bit harder.

"Only IF there were way....!"

[TheStrokes]

Try this, I'm actually going to buy it.

http://www.guitarcenter.com/Vic-Firth-Single-Sided-Practice-Pad-102079340-i1139986.gc

[logicalnoise]

Try this, I'm actually going to buy it.

http://www.guitarcenter.com/Vic-Firth-Single-Sided-Practice-Pad-102079340-i1139986.gc

those things are rubber on wood and won't stay put. I practiced on them with the nylon tipped drum sticks I bought for rock band at guitar center.

[vtjustinb]

Hard felt tenor mallets would be a lot quieter, although you may feel a little goofy using them. :P

Here's a model made by Vic Firth:

http://www.vicfirth.com/products/images/MT2A.jpg

http://www.vicfirth.com/products/corpsmaster_tenor.html

[JesusSilencio]

Try this, I'm actually going to buy it.

http://www.guitarcenter.com/Vic-Firth-Single-Sided-Practice-Pad-102079340-i1139986.gc

That's a really nice practice pad, but you won't be able to use it to soften the rock band drums. You could use it to play around on when you're not playing rock band though, since it is pretty silent and has really good rebound.

I was planning on getting these sticks, but more for extra rebound than softening the drums.

http://cgi.ebay.com/PROMARK-TXXB1-X-BEAT-PRACTICE-TIP-PAD-RUBBER-DRUM-STICK_W0QQitemZ220149429308QQihZ012QQcategoryZ4145 6QQrdZ1QQssPageNameZWD1VQQcmdZViewItem

[Grayshadow]

I have these on my kit when I practice. They're very similar to spungy mousepad material, they're just cut to the exact diameter of standard drum heads. Not sure if you could get the right diameter for the Rock Band drumset seperate from the complete pack though.

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/HQ-Percussion-Muffler-Set-Prepack?sku=446671

[Nilsen581]

I think i'm going to cut mouse pads to the shape of each drum pad.

[Ultrace]

I think i'm going to cut mouse pads to the shape of each drum pad.
Be sure to let us know how this works. I'm really curious to know...

[Nilsen581]

i did a little test, taking the mousepad i actually use for my computer and just resting it on the drum pad...

it worked well from what little i could tell... ( i ran home and played during my lunch break...lol)


i only have 2 crappy mousepads lying around, so i'll have to pick a couple of em up on the way home from work (1 hour and 13 min...arghhh!!)

[The_Hump_Monsters]

I grabbed a plumbing foam sleeve for $0.45 and cut off some small pieces and wrapped the tips of my drum sticks. I just used scotch tape and it works really well. The sticks have a lot more bounce to them with this type of foam, and the noise is reduced significantly. I had previously tried the 'egg carton foam mattress stuff' on the actual drum pads. It did dampen the sound, but my sticks didn't bounce very well, and some notes didn't register.

[Eastwood]

Washable Chopsticks. Heavy enough to register, light enough to not make too much noise.

[XeroTalent]

Drummers all over the world are disgusted with your wanting less volume while behind the kit.

Be ashamed.

[theacademyis...]

do you guys think something like felt on the tips or some soft material on the tips of the sticks would work

[jordan15b]

the noise doesnt bother me but once my mom goes to sleep no more drumming for me

[dougpr]

I went ghetto style and folded up washcloths into 4th's and taped them to the front. Helped quite a bit. I will try the mouse pad thing though. That seems like a better solution.

I also ordered a pair of these:

http://www.drumsonsale.com/xymoxdeadbeatsrubbertippedpracticedrumsticks-p-1978.html?currency=USD

But I haven't received them yet to try.

[gates69]

I went ghetto style and folded up washcloths into 4th's and taped them to the front. Helped quite a bit. I will try the mouse pad thing though. That seems like a better solution.

I also ordered a pair of these:

http://www.drumsonsale.com/xymoxdeadbeatsrubbertippedpracticedrumsticks-p-1978.html?currency=USD

But I haven't received them yet to try.

Let us know how those sticks are once you get them.

[SmokaCola]

All I had was once mousepad... So quick thinking I line the drumstick up on the edge of the pad, fold it over just enough to make it wrap around the drumstick. Then I cut it where the measurements were and took the mouse pad piece, rolled it up (um an exmample would be the "hotdog style" if anyone has heard of that) and then wrapped scotch tape around it, Then I forced the little mouse pad piece onto my drum sticks and it cut back on the sound a good bit. And the rebounb is still there.

[i5hawn]

if any of you live near an ikea, they sell mouse pads for like...25 cents

[crustyjuggler]

Here's a mouse pad for you....enhance the experience

http://store.drumbum.com/skuMP-3.html

[AGDZ]

The only problems with the noise dampeners people have linked for real drums is because those are pads put on the drums so the head of the drum won't vibrate. So your basically putting a pad exactly like the pad you have, on your pad.

I would suggest rods might help the initial hit, or something over the tip of the stick.

http://www.guitarcenter.com/Pro-Mark-Hot-Rod-Sticks-100271956-i1137418.gc

[Brew78]

I went ghetto style and folded up washcloths into 4th's and taped them to the front. Helped quite a bit. I will try the mouse pad thing though. That seems like a better solution.

I also ordered a pair of these:

http://www.drumsonsale.com/xymoxdeadbeatsrubbertippedpracticedrumsticks-p-1978.html?currency=USD

But I haven't received them yet to try.

heh.. i did the washcloth thing too but not even that complex. took four washcloths and just draped them over the drum pads. they fall off all the time but take just enough of the smack out of the sound to not interfere with the song, and are thin enough that even gentle tapping still works.

some double-sided tape and it might even work pretty well.

washcloths come in many different thicknesses so that'll affect how they work.