Rock Band Gum Rubber Drum Mod Review
By Kev • About: Gaming, Pro Tips, Xbox 360 at 11:17 am on January 6 2008Like many Rock Band owners, I was sick and tired of the loud “clacking” sound and horrible rebound that is offered by the stock Rock Band Drum controller. After spending some time on the official Rock Band forums, and even our very own AltGN forums, I came across a mod that promises to solve both problems: The Gum Rubber Drum Mod. Gum rubber is often used on practice drum pads and even electronic drum pads, so the material should prove to be quite useful in this situation. I went ahead and PayPal’ed the $30 (which includes shipping) and received my package a few days later. The “kit” comes with 4 pre-cut 3/16″ natural gum rubber pads that include pre-applied adhesive strips that make installation as easy as it gets. Just clean off each drum head, peel off the top layer of the 3 large strips on each pad, and apply. The adhesive strips are nice because they allow the pads to be easily removed in case you need to send your drums into EA for repair. The pads are also cut slightly smaller the the drum head itself, allowing you to still see the colored ring around each drum head.
After the 2 minute installation, I fired up Rock Band in order to test out my new mod. The first thing I noticed is how quiet my drums sounded tapping through the menus. These new pads literally reduced the sound of drums by at least 60%. I did, however, notice a very slight decrease in sensitivity. Nothing that will hinder gameplay at all, but I did notice it. After fiddling around in the menus, I finally selected Nine Inch Nails - “The Hand That Feeds” on Expert. After a few seconds in, I was completely satisfied with my purchase. My sticks were rebounding back to me with ease, and the I could not hear my drum hits over the song anymore. Problem solved! I continued to play more and more songs to get acquired with the new feel of my drums. The rebound really does help with the fast drum rolls and overall playing of the drums. I even finally beat a few songs I was having trouble with in the last few tiers on Expert. One thing I did notice though, was that the rubber tends to make some “squeak” sounds if you drag your drum sticks over them. Of course, you aren’t constantly dragging your drum sticks while playing, but I did accidentally do it on occasion, and was presented with a few squeaks here and there. I’m sure as you wear them in, the squeaks will be reduced. The pads also seem to be durable, as they showed no signs of any dents or damage during my 2 hour experience with them, although I tend to hit lighter on the drums that most people.
Overall I am very satisfied with my modification to the original Rock Band Drum controller. The gum rubber allows for increased rebound with the drum sticks, making the tricky fast parts much easier to play, and significantly removes the “clack” sound and replaces it with a much more subtle “hit” sound. I highly recommend all Rock Band owners who are interested in the drums to consider purchasing this kit. Your hands and ears will thank you.
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Tags:Drums, Loud, Mods, Rebound, Rock Band
Kev is AltGN's resident gadget whore, who spends most of his time researching, buying, and tinkering with a plethora of tech gadgets. When Kev is not whoring in the gadgets, he is probably getting in a debate about them.
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Very cool. You know I’ve seen that site 100 times but just now saw the order button! Ordering today! My yellow pad is cracked pretty bad, so when I get my replacement I’m sure these will help protect them as well.
Okay, I’m convinced. Buying!
Good to here, mine have been shipped. Should be here tomorrow or tuesday….
Yeah, got mine a few days ago and am equally satisfied with them. I notice you also have the kick pedal mod someone posted. I might have to get my hands on that if my foot-action ever gets out of hand. Still playing on mostly medium leaves me not worried, but as I progress into Hard and Expert I find it’s a necessity that I hit the foot thing with force to get the action I’m looking for.
Also, I haven’t noticed the sensitivity issues you’ve mentioned.
Then again, I hit the drums with more force than you, based on what you’ve said.
I had to read through this whole post before realizing that…It is my friend that wrote it! :P what up Kevin, nice post. Makes up my decision to pad up my drum set.
I’ve been using these for months now and the only problem I have with them is the adhesive starts to come undone after awhile, leading to floppy pads. I eventually superglued them down, but that may not be an option for everyone.
god damn they built some shitty equipment! ever since the game came out, all I see is people trying to fucking fix the controllers, lol.
I’m on my fifth controller (or so) and the blue pad is double-hitting…
Fuckers.
“I went ahead and PayPal’ed the $30 (which includes shipping) and received my package a few days later.”
Well, I went ahead and PayPal’ed the $30 and didn’t hear anything for two weeks. I sent an email to rockbandpads@gmail.com asking for my order status and did not get a reply. At this point, I’m going to have to dispute the charge on my credit card. So, buyer beware.
I don’t think this is a legitimate company. I think it’s a college guy selling stuff out of his dorm room for extra beer money.
Good luck…
Totally gonna go buy some rubber padding and cut it myself. < cheap bitch
“Totally gonna go buy some rubber padding and cut it myself.”
Yeah, that’s what I ended up doing. Just google for sheet gum rubber in your area. I found mine at a company that makes gaskets. One lineal foot (1′ x 3′) sheet of 1/8″ gum rubber was less than $10. It’s enough to cut about 5 or 6 pads from. I cut mine a little extra big so they totally cover the color rings on the drum heads.
They’re kind of difficult to glue down, which would still be an issue if you bought them pre-made. You will want something more than sticky adhesive backing to keep these things in place. I used a combination of Probond glue and Super glue. Looks ugly as hell, but those pads aren’t going anywhere, ever.
Oh, and btw, don’t bother getting 1/4″ gum rubber sheets to make pads from. Way too thick. I don’t know about 3/16″ pads like the ones sold by rockbandpads, but the 1/8″ is really great. Very little if any loss in sensitivity, great rebound, and much quieter.
Same as with Zangad. I ordered over THREE weeks ago now, still have not received the pads, and am not getting any response to my e-mails.