Best Tom Mufflers?

[gm5k]

using some Evans' e-rings right now for my toms...not very satisfied, i am getting annoying buzz from the rings it seems. anyone have any opinions on the best all around tom mufflers for great round tone? thanks

[bigbone]

Moon gel are pretty cool.........

[warhead]

Moon gel.

War

[Nu-tra]

moon gel on top and gaffers tape for the bottoms if that's your style

[gm5k]

thanks for the responses so far. moon gel is looking like the winner

[Slim ManDjango]

I haven't used any rings other than Aquarians and they're sounding great on my toms but one keeps falling off my snare when I do cross-sticks. To the other drummers here, what does Moon Gel have/do that others don't?

[drumzealot]

I never use those rings for same reason.

Moon gel is good. I like to cut them in half and experiment with placement.

I've had great results placing 1/2 inch wide strips of duct tape around the edge of both the top and bottom heads. This tends to decrease the higher frequencies and accentuate the low end.
3M makes a clear duct tape that I am rather fond of.

[xmostynx]

rings always buzz, moon gel always falls off after a while

gaffers tape- works like a charm and did is say...it works like a charm!

[Horsemouth]

Moongel and/or Gaf tape. Those O rings provide a somewhat specific sound and can be really cool, but for general muffling they tend to muffle waaay too much. Don't forget to let the drums breathe! Overtones and ringing can be a wonderful addition to a drum sound.

[Jules]

Moon Gel

Gearwise - a Transient designer works wonders for really equally matching up tom sustains, if you have a problem tom, TD can help it get into the same zone as the other toms..

[joeq]

Maxi-pads

[biggator6]

Moon gel is the greatest thing since gaffers tape and maxipads.
"-)

[Energie]

Gel

haven't had issues with them falling off, I cut them up to smaller peices when needed.

tape on the bottom works well too.

[joeq]

Originally Posted by Energie

tape on the bottom works well too.

I knew a guy who put a layer of shredded garbage-bag 'confetti' in the bottom of his toms.

when he hit the drum, the confetti would bounce up, allowing the drum to ring, and then fall back down, cutting off the resonance of the bottom head. It was so long ago, I can't remember what it sounded like, but it seems like something I would try if I had a lot of time on my hands.

[GrooveMerchant]

Moon Gel is great for adding what percent of muffle you need. I like micing the toms from the bottom with moon gel top - pretty good tom sound - I prefer that to a top mic.

[arizonadrum]

Originally Posted by warhead

Moon gel.

War

moon gels are great, but pricey. you can also get the job done with gaffe tape. i usually tear of a strip about 6" to 7" inches long, and i roll/fold the tape to about 1" wide.

[AKCSTUDIO]

good drum gate

[earldrum]

My first comment is to make sure that both heads are in good condition and tuned up properly.

Then dampen the heads with:

Moon gel (come off the head easier over time). Also cut the moon gel in half this IMHO works better than using the whole piece and you can use place the pieces in a few places on the drum like at 2 - 10 o'clock.

Or use duct tape and make a 1" tape loop and place it at 2 and 10 o'clock to start. Use duct tape if you don't care about about the look. Both equally work well. Also, I find that a well tuned drum might not need much muffling at all.

[drumzealot]

This may sound a bit far fetched: take a stick of butter and smear it along the edges of the heads. Be sure to apply enough pressure so that you get a good thick coat.
This works.

[CB_Photo]

Originally Posted by gm5k

anyone have any opinions on the best all around tom mufflers for great round tone?

For studio work I've used Moon Gel with great success.

In another situation, I was setting up a Gretsch kit for a live performance and the resonance in the house (a large church) was overwhelming. All head were new (Evan CE2 coated) and even with Gel on the batter head I couldn't kill the WONNGGG sound. I ended up placing a quarter of a gel on the resonant head, inside the drum. One piece, placed about 1/2 inch from the bearing edge did the job. It was like night & day. The FOH sound tech bought me dinner he was so happy.

[nandoanalog]

Tuning.

[MicSlut666]

+1 for Moon Gel thumbsup

[chrisso]

gaffa tape and tissue.
It's cheap and readily available.
I've never used moongel in my life.

[CB_Photo]

Originally Posted by chrisso

gaffa tape and tissue.

Nah, the tissue eventually shreds causing a buzzing noise. Moon Gel. Git sum today.

[chrisso]

Originally Posted by CB_Photo

Nah, the tissue eventually shreds causing a buzzing noise. Moon Gel. Git sum today.

Over how long a period?

I've recorded for weeks at a time using this method with no problems.
Of course you can always remove shredded tissue and replace the damping.

The biggest factor for me.....

Every studio and every gig in the world has gaffa tape and toilet roll available (free).
You have to find a drum shop to acquire moongel and you have to pay for it.

[Slim ManDjango]

I used to use tape and tissue and it was pretty lasting and effective, but cotton wool was recommended to me instead of tissue because it gives more room for the drum to breathe. The tissue (cheap quality) lasted ages before shredding.

Since my last post here though, I've got a new kit, and I prefer studio rings for my old kit and on my new kit I put moon gel only on my floor tom because it's resonance is much longer than the others.

This proves to me that the "best" tom muffler depends on the tom. The reason I got rid of the tissue and tape was because I started getting serious gigs and it looks quite cheap. Sure, moon gel and mufflers are relatively expensive, but once you have them you need not replace them and they look decent on the drums.

On a side note, I have a spare snare that I only really like the sound of if I put on both moon gel AND a studio ring, as well as tissue and tape gently muting the snares at the bottom! It was because of the snare head though - the original sounded stunning for five years until the day it broke and no replacement head sounded good on it without extensive muting. Ah well...

[lowfreq33]

Originally Posted by drumzealot

This may sound a bit far fetched: take a stick of butter and smear it along the edges of the heads. Be sure to apply enough pressure so that you get a good thick coat.
This works.

It's also delicious!

[666666]

I love those "zero-ring" things for snare... but they aren't very good for toms, they indeed buzz, sometimes even fall off, no good.

"Moon-gel" type products I find jump off almost immediately... I'm a hard hitter though. I've tried several of these types of products, they all flew off after a couple of hits.

When needed, I just put a ring of high quality electrical tape around the outer edge of the top tom heads. The end result is kinda like a "zero-ring" that adheres to the head. No buzzing, no flopping off. If you need more dampening, add another layer of electrical tape until things are just right. Only downside to this is that once the heads are shot, the electrical tape goes in the trash along with the heads... after a while good electrical tape can add up $... but it's not that bad. This method puts even dampening across the entire head as opposed to taping a moon-gel pad or tissue paper etc to just one spot off to one side.

If you're having a lot of ring issues, you may want to do some more experimenting with tuning and/or different heads. I try to avoid muffling at all costs in general via use of proper heads for the situation and good tuning. I always have a zero-ring on my snares though.

[sleeps]

I have never been a fan of the rings around any drum. However, if that's what is needed to get the drum to sound good, then go for it! thumbsup

My drum tech and I (I hire the same guy every project, he knows what I like and is able to achieve what I describe to him) start a kit with cotton squares and gaffers tape. Most of the time, we'll just adjust how much of a loop in the tape there is to get the sound we are after. If we are looking for very dead tones, we'll add some cotton squares (moving them closer to the center for a more dead tone). A few times, we have placed cotton inside of a tom so the intial hit will come through and then begin to die.

I am very picky about toms sounding similar (tone & sustain, not pitch). Tuning a kit and getting it to sound fantastic in the room is a great time!

[Superdrumskills]

A big hoorah For moon gel