Heh heh! healthy cynicism is a good thing! I put an aftermarket ('non-silent') sprocket on mine when I went down a tooth and didn't notice a damn difference from stock...since then I wondered if it was my slight hearing loss from years of not wearing earplugs to blame, though
The way I read it the rubber makes contact, so must lift the chain ever so slightly...so the rubber must wear out, anyway
though I know what you are saying grumps - the cush drives' main purpose is to interface the drive, but secondary I always thought was to smooth things oot, including resonance. However, I am now thinking that I have
supposed much of this, without really researching it!