I also found a terrific substitute for the damping material. To help the keys ring well, you have to nullify the entire body of the drum from ringing and overpowering them when you play. On “Little Boy,” my previous 8-key A-minor drum, I used a chunk of garden hose wrapped 7 times around the center, anchoring the ends with metal screws. On this one, I found that self-adhesive rubber strips used as non-skid-plates for stairs worked perfectly – and fit in beautifully with the aesthetic.