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Ahh, drum dampeners. Without you, our drums would ring on for ages and never sound quite right. And there are a lot of drum dampener and muffler products out there to choose from, too. From Moongels and their limitless imitators to special kick drum pillows, to drum heads with muffler rings built into them. How do you figure out which are the best drum dampeners of the lot?
Let’s talk drum dampeners and mufflers. We’ll explore some of the more popular options you can buy at your music shop of choice. And we’ll take a look at some low-cost and no-cost options too. And not just because we’re being thrifty. When it comes to finding the best drum dampeners for your personal needs, the best option might not cost you a dime.
Are Moongels the best drum dampeners out there?
Moongels have been a percussion industry standard for quite a while now. These mildly sticky blue or clear goo squares can be plopped down on a drum head or a cymbal for immediate dampening action, and they definitely work quite well. One Moongel on a snare or tom can entirely change its tone and resonance. And they don’t leave behind a sticky, yucky residue, either.
Moongels have a lot of imitators out there, including some from popular brands, such Evans EQ Pods and Meinl Drum Honey. We can’t really say any one brand is better than the others—I personally use Moongels, but mostly through force of habit.
You’ll also see lots of low-cost options on sites like Amazon, and some of these work just as well too. Though you should be wary of the fact that many of these are applied directly and more permanently with adhesives. They may not come off easily, and they might even damage your drum head when you try to remove them. So if you plan on keeping those heads for a while, find a non-adhesive option.
Cheap and free alternatives to Moongels
Not in the mood to spend money on Moongels, EQ Pods, or Drum Honey? There are lots of cheap alternatives out there, and some free ones too.
Drummers have been sticking duct tape or electrical tape to drum heads since time immortal. It may not look pretty, but it gets the job done. And some drummers simply toss a wallet on their drum heads, or even put a t-shirt over them.
Of course, you’re not usually getting great dampening with these methods, but it’s handy to remember in a pinch. Sometimes the best drum dampeners are whatever you have quick access to. And you may even find these options are perfect for the sound you’re going after. It never hurts to try!
Muffler rings/ drum dampener rings
Most drum head brands also produce muffler rings, also sometimes referred to as dampener rings. Remo, Aquarian, Evans—they all make these rings, which you can drop on your head without any adhesive or stickiness and remove on the fly.
Muffler rings often come in packages containing several popular drum sizes. For instance, you might find a package with 10″, 12″, 14″, and 16″ mufflers. If you’re looking at packages like that, be sure to check what sizes you’re getting so you know they’ll fit your drums.
The Snareweight M80 Dampener probably belongs in this segment, too. This leather device sits on the head and the rim, with two foldable wings that can be laid out for more dampening options. You can also flip the dampener upward to disable it. They bill it as a tool for snare drums, but they work just as well on mounted toms and floor toms, too. I’ve not used the M80 personally, though I’ve spoken with a few other drummers who say they easily rank among the best drum dampeners out there. So I think they’re certainly worth a mention here.
Other stuff to learn: How to Clean Cymbals
Best drum dampeners for your kick
Let’s change gears a bit and talk all about that bass. Well, the bass drum, anyway. What are the best kick drum dampeners out there?
Story time! As a teenager, I was gifted a blanket from Nepal by the Mom of Parlor City Sound co-creator Colin Z.-Wilson, back when he and I were in the band Stargrove together. It was meant specifically to use in my kick drum. That same blanket has migrated from one kit to the next, and currently resides inside the Ludwig kit I use for recording, where it will stay forever. Every show and every recording I’ve done these past 30+ years (wait, thirty? 😬) has had that blanket in the kick drum.
All of that is to say you don’t need a fancy tool for managing your kick drum sound. Blankets, pillows, towels, old shirts, your grandmother’s Beanie Baby collection—it all works just fine. But they do make specialized kick drum dampeners, too. And there’s no denying that these tools can be easier to work with and arguably more functional than that now-ancient blanket I’ve been dragging all over the place like that one kid from Peanuts.
Take a look at the DW Bass Drum Muffling Pillow, the EASTROCK pillow (which looks almost identical to the DW one), and the Evans EQ Pad, which shouldn’t be confused with their EQ Pods. I’ve also seen drummers line the inside of their kick drums with acoustic foam panels. All of these options work just as well, or maybe even better, than the cheap or free alternatives. And they’re usually a lot easier to remove than all of those aforementioned Beanie Babies.
Built-in drum dampeners and muffling rings
If it’s time to replace your heads and you’re sure you need permanent drum dampening, there are a great many options on the market for drum heads with built-in dampeners and mufflers. I’ve been playing Aquarian Performance II heads on my toms for ages. I’ve been using Remo Controlled Sound heads on my snare since the 90s.
These heads with built-in dampeners are great at limiting some of the ring. And that’s a good thing. You don’t really want the head to over-dampen your drum. Instead, you should see these as a one-two punch—the head reduces the resonance without stifling it, and other dampeners (Moongels, muffler rings, etc.) let you fine-tune the dampening even further. And when one song calls for more dampening than another, you can pop more dampening on or off on the fly.
Which are the best drum dampeners for you?
Figuring out the best drum dampeners for your kit is one of those things that’s equal parts science and guesswork (and sometimes, a bit of sorcery). What works for one drummer on one kit in one space won’t work if you mildly swap any one of those variables.
I’ve been playing drums for quite a while, and I’ve never been entirely satisfied with my drum sound. I’m always tinkering and experimenting. And drum dampening is one of those things I’m forever toying with. They’re relatively inexpensive tools that can dramatically change the sound of your drums and cymbals.
So that’s the real takeaway here: experiment. Figure out what works for you personally and what doesn’t. There are no hard rules for dampening and muffling. The best drum dampeners are always the ones that work best for you, your sound, and your budget.
Feel like reading some more? Check out our guide on how to record drums in a home recording studio!
