Product Review: Drum Clips

I like a fairly open sound from my drums, but invariably there always seems to be just a little too much ring or an odd harmonic I want to get rid of. So my choices in damping techniques have always been minimalistic. I wish I could get more of the Rogers clip-on dampers I picked up years ago. Similar products on offer today seem to be too ambitious -- and a poor fit with my frugal lifestyle. So when I saw The Drum Clip, I was curious to see if this little item would do the job.

The Clips are simple bits of molded semi-soft plastic, and easily clip onto a drum rim. A pad rests on the drumhead and is not adjustable. There are two sizes -- small and very small -- and each Clip comes with two stick-on pads, one felt and one foam, for three levels of damping.

I normally put a half piece of Moon Gel on my smallest tom. I swapped that out for the smaller Drum Clip and was reasonably pleased. The Clip didn't rest on the head that well, so I also tried it with the supplied damping pads. (The Clips relaxed a bit over time and made better head contact for a good result.)
I have this monster of a floor tom (14 x 14 fiberglass) and getting it under control has always been a challenge. I had a vintage Rogers damper and two moon gels on it, and it was still pretty raucous. I played around with the Drum Clips and found that the larger Clip with foam did the trick on its own.

I wanted to try the Clips because the Moon Gels were somewhat problematic. If I left them on the drums, they'd end up mashed up (or melted) in the bottom of the case or missing altogether. If I took them off and pocketed them, I'd invariably forget them next gig. The Drum Clips hold on solidly and stay where I put them. I did wonder whether they'd work with the "S-hoops" I had on my toms, but they seem almost designed for these hoops.

Drum Clips are priced at a very reasonable $6.95 and $8.95, but are often discounted. I bought mine from the creator, Keith Jones, and paid about $50 including shipping for six Clips. There is also a bass drum Clip that looks interesting.  A new product is a modified version that will accept accessories such as microphone Clips.
www.thedrumclip.com