[ignarukih]

There definitely is a difference between the sound of a kick with a tom mount and without owing to the weight of the toms reducing the resonance of the kick. However, you really aren't gonna notice this unless you're in a studio - and even then, like Ibenez said, it's pretty negligible.

I'm pretty sure you can also get bass drum-mounted tom mounts which don't pierce the shell of the kick - Id' probably go with this if I were you. I can't remember the brand though. Will try and hunt it down for you cause it could be a good compromise.