The sound of these hot-rods are alright, you can really hear the individual strands hitting the skin, which makes the sound a bit hollow. The rubber rings offer a good amount of options in terms of sound, and (currently) they do not unintentionally slide of the wood while playing. The manufacturing quality is the real con of these hot-rods. The wood was already splintered when they arrived, and brand name on the grips was already faded away. They basically looked used the moment they arrived. To thomann's credit, when I sent a complaint they sent me another pair, which was pretty much in the same state. Anyhow, 2 used pairs = one new pair, right?