Consensus on Indoor Bounce Flash

Now, I've researched this topic heavily for quite a while now and I've tried different methods using gels, diffusers, bounce cards, different settings.. and I guess I've come to the conclusion that different things work for different users. In the end I've been the most content with using Av mode with a bounce card and have the flash sync mode (C.fn I-7) set to Auto. Depending on my FEC I believe that this basically gives me an extra stop or two of light.This gives me a fill flash while retaining that ambient light look as I'm not too fond of using an on-camera flash as my key light.

So what would you use if you were in a house event with low while ceilings with mostly tungsten light? I ask this question because a lot of people point to using Manual mode, but I feel like I get too much of that flash key light look doing that or I'm doing something wrong! I'm just curious as to what everyone else would typically do.

Me:
Camera Setting: Av mode +1ev
Flash Setting: ETTL - 1ev
Flash Modifier: Built-in bounce card
Gels: None

In my experience, most of the indoor ambient light at night is crap. I set my camera to manual exposure, keep the ambient at least 2 stops under, and let the bounce flash do the heavy lifting. I usually keep the flash set to ETTL+2/3 if the walls are white. I've been playing with black foam on the flash head to keep light from hitting the subject directly. Bounce off walls and ceilings to your side. Manually zoom your flash. There's a lot you can do to vary the look.

I'm normally bouncing light backwards or sideways and up so don't use the built in bounce card often. I do normally use manual settings but sometimes I'll use Av with the custom function setting set to limit the shutter speed to a minimum of 1/60th. Normally I'll use ETTL as it has worked pretty well for me so far.

I've been trying a number of cheaper fixes for getting better results with my indoor flash photography. I've tried out a couple diffusers and reflectors, and I've found one that I really like. It's called Cateye Flash Reflector from a company called Eckstein Engineering, and I got it for very cheap on amazon.co.uk. What's great about it is that it acts as both a reflector and diffuser, so it gives great soft light with no flash compensation. It was easy to use and so far (had it for about a month), it's proven to be super durable. I'd really recommend it to anyone who's having trouble with harsh flash, and wants to fix it on a budget.