I've been thinking about starting a project similar to your #1. Hanger would be nice for reducing the part count, but I'm thinking about creating a mod to auto-strut cargo inside fairings. It might be possible to utilize what's been done for quantum struts. I've used the method detailed in this
in the past for payloads that just wouldn't launch, but it was a massive pain (I haven't tried the quantum struts yet, so maybe those will be easier to use).