We need a "nothing" option. I let my kick drum sing with all it has to offer. Although it took me a fair bit of practice to get it to sing the right way. Muffling only takes away from the drum in my opinion. Same for snare, no muffling for me. The overtones make the drums sound full and open. But I guess it depends on your sound too, and I've definitely owned drums that would never sound decent without a bit of muffling. But generally I won't put anything in my bass drum.
If I do, however, I prefer felt strips. Or bacon, if I haven't used it all in my pre-gig sandwiches.
