which is the best sounding exhaust?

[m571032]

Hey guys I would like your opinion on which exhaust systems sound the best. For right now I think I would be installing a cat back system. thanks

[nckissfan]

Bassani


if you are looking for more affordable, Magnaflow

[03slidewayzSVT]

Bassani all the way......

[InfamousSVT]

In my honest opinion each person has their own preference, BUT I do have to agree with the above Bassani is nice. I had the full Bassani set-up on my 04 before I went solid axle and I now have a Magna Flow magnapak catback which I believe sounds the same to me.

www.completeexhaust.com (http://www.completeexhaust.com) if you want the Magnaflows, best price anywhere :thumbsup:

[pdogkilr]

I have the full Bassani rig - mid-lengths all the way back. I had a mechanic tell me, "That's the way a muscle car should sound."

[Big Daddy]

Bassani is it! Sounds great and doesn't sound raspy and rough, it's a nice growl! :thumbsup:

[puzzle13]

Hated the Bassani!!! The tone was irritating, way too loud, and induced headaches. I now have BBK full length headers, BBK h-pipe, and Magnaflow cat-back exhaust and I believe there is a huge difference. Magnaflow ... a bit deeper, Bassani ... more fast & furious like the imports.

Just my opinion and I do have a convertible, I think it makes a big difference.

[nckissfan]

that's a first, hearing Bassani sounds like fast and furious. They are loud, that's for sure. On the Hot Rod Power Tour, Greg was probably 6 cars ahead of me, and it sounded like he was directly in front of me. Killer tone, in my opinion.

[Eric_red94]

On my 331, bbk equal length headers, bbk off-road 2.5" x-pipe, flowmaster 2.5" catback with 3 chambers. Pretty awesome sound at full throttle, not too loud at idle.:bounce:

[jjraiser]

I have a Borla cat-back system. At idle, nothing special...legal, but nothing special. At 3,000 and above, you'd think there were no mufflers at all. Easy to install and sounds great!

I can't compare to others, but the Borla is a minimum-restrictive system and it sounds like it. :thumbsup:

[Big Daddy]

that's a first, hearing Bassani sounds like fast and furious. They are loud, that's for sure. On the Hot Rod Power Tour, Greg was probably 6 cars ahead of me, and it sounded like he was directly in front of me. Killer tone, in my opinion.


I appreciate the props on the sound of my car. I'm partial to it but then it's mine! ;) :D I have gotten other comments about the tone of my exhaust all good.

I don't think Bassani or Magnaflow or Flowmaster or most other exhaust systems on Cobra's sound "FAST AND FURIOUS". F&F stuff is little 4 bangers with nitrous and used 10lb coffee cans on the back. You know it sounds like an angry bee hive! :rotf: :rotf: ;)

What a person likes or dislikes is a personal thing. I would say that unless you have the exact same setup as another person the sound out of any system will vary. Listen to several at car shows and pick out one that is on a car that is setup like yours.

HAVE FUN, ENJOY!

































Fast and furious my big backside! :eek: :eek: :eek: :mad: ;) :D

[ausie]

If you keep this in mind, after you install that exhaust cat-back may be louder than you want at first. Once it seasons in it will become more tolerable or even quiet. The sound will return eventually but will not be as harsh as it was right after you installed it. I have had two SLP loudmouths so far (two different cars) and each had their own characteristic (the 04 Cobra was not as loud as the 01 Cobra) and in both cases, it was intolerable for the first 2 to 3 weeks of driving even at idle. Now it sounds great and not much drone on the highway (although cruising through town there is some drone which depends on posted speed limit). I may have taken them off for a short while only to put them back on since I prefer to have some sound than no sound as well as better gas milage.

Definately what Big Daddy said :thumbsup: go to some car show events or even a local drag strip there is sure to be a cobra at one of those to compare too and if you like the sound I am sure the owner of the car would be more than willing to talk about it.

Other things to note: LT headers, and high flow cats or no cats will increase the volume of the exhaust. Xpipe will increase the tones, an H pipe with the smaller crossover will create more bite in the tones, a larger cross over will deepen the tones. Some mufflers were designed to cancel out low pressure pulses with baffling and some were design to reintegrate the low pressure and high pressure pulses to accelerate the exhaust flow (usually termed a resonator which has no internal baffles but uses an integrated air foil to equalize the pressures). The resonance in the pipe is also related to the pipe diameter (smaller pipe higher pitched sounds, larger pipe lower tones).

[99SVT3753]

I did many sound bytes with H- and X- pipes..


all sounded good at idle .. the worst setup at WOT and Decelereation -- BASSANI! YUCK!

talk about popcorn .. and for the money you pay .. it was totally disappointing.

h- with Flowmaster best sound all over - just dont do long drives on the highway (some Popcorn at deceleration)

x- with magnaflow - quiet inside still loud at WOT (and keeps the Cops off your back) :)

Performance - h-pipe makes ya feel more torquie below your power curve
x-pipe puts you in your seat when ya hit 4500+ RPMs

all of these test were done on 1999 4.6L Cobra with stock (3.27) and aftermarket (3.73) gears.

[nckissfan]

those soundbytes on the internet really don't do the tones justice. Drive behind somebody on the highway really tells the sound.

[beerkat]

I like Borla cat back with the stock H-pipe.

[sssvtcobra]

Just my honest opinion here. I didn't care for the Bassani either. I still have the Bassani o/r x-pipe on, but swapped out the catback for an SLP loudmouth 2. I will be changing out the x-pipe for an SLP one here soon. The tone and sound is much better with the SLP on, than the Bassani in my opinion. Bassani does have great quality, and a good fit though.

[mojosvt]

Just like it has been stated before, and will be time and time again, it is all personal preference. I have had my set up on both my 01 and 04 cobra. It is the same at idol, but at WOT, the 04 is twice as loud. I fricken love it. But everybody has their opinion. If I get on it hard, and let the rpm's drop on deceleration, mine had quite a bit of rumble and pop, but I like that, some don't. But one thing that I can say, you get what you pay for. SLP, Bassani, other higher price pieces are nice, quality and fitment, other...not so much.

[tomsgarage]

Steeda!

Nice while on the interstate cruising, but when you open her up :bounce:

[cobrabitn]

MAC Off road H-Pipe and Catback! :thumbsup:

[puzzle13]

I guess I offended some with the "Fast and Furious" comment concerning Bassani. So sorry to those of you. I originally put on the Bassani xpipe w/cats along with the Bassani cat back because I had heard it on a 2001 and it sounded good. When I put it on the tone was higher than I would have liked and it was very loud. You could not enter a subdivision without being heard from a good distance and that was if you were being nice. Don't get me wrong ... the fit and construction was the best of all I tried, but I started to develop headaches and didn't like driving the car. I got rid of the Bassani & tried the Flowmaster. The tone was deeper which I liked, but the construction & fit SUCKED, so off it came. After a recommendation from another Cobra club member, I ordered the Magnaflow cat-back. Installation was easy, fit was good, and the sound was deeper and not as loud while still being a straight thru muffler design. I have since added BBk headers & a BBk hpipe w/cats. It is actually a little quieter when just cruising, but when you get on it, it opens up and you can really hear it. The sound is still deeper and lower than the Bassani and that could be due to the h-pipe vs. the x-pipe. I would not go back to Bassani or Flowmaster for anything. I also have Magnaflow on my truck & excursion and will be adding it to my 66' convertible in the future.

Just my opinion which we all have one, and sometimes they offend.

Best construction & fit ... Bassani hands down.
Best sound ... Magnaflow!

:bounce:

[Big Daddy]

You didn't offend me I actually thought it was kind of funny. I was just joking around with my comments back. Like I said it's all personal preference and the same system can sound different on two different cars. So it's all good! :thumbsup:

[nckissfan]

didn't offend me, either. I, just, have never heard it referred to that way. To each his own.

[ausie]

Most sound clips do not have the full spectrum and amplitude of the actual exhaust. Most of them were done in the vehicle and some were done as drive-by or drive away recordings (most likely using a video camera and usually they are not the best when it comes to quality audio).

popcorn, hmm I get that with the SLP and also heard it when I was experimenting with a factory 01 cat back (although not as prevalent due to the muffler and backpressure).

If you like what you hear from outside the car, may be a different story inside the car. I can only think of how my car sounds from the outside since I have yet to be standing on the road side as my car drives off. I may get some idea while the windows are open and passing through a narrow street but not the same since most of the sound is from behind you.

[Riversnake]

I had the Borla Stingers on my 03....LOVED IT!!!! Guy in town has the SLPs and I would take the Borlas anytime. Granted they are a little loud under acceleration, but cruising around town, I thought they were great. A little drone at 85 on interstate though, but hey, roll the windows down a cruise on :bounce:

[CobraSusie]

I have the cat-less Prochamber off road h-pipe with bassani cat back, and I Love the sound my car makes ;)

[rpalmer]

I prefer:


no drone on the highway
no popping on deceleration
a quiet, mellow idle that doesn't wake the neighbors
good quality, great fit and easy driveway installation
reasonable price
WOT that sounds like WOT should


I got the Magnaflow cat-back and am totally satisfied.

The Bassani's I've heard sound good too, I don't think you'll go wrong with either one. Just a matter of personal preference.

I HATED the Flowmasters that came on the car. They had absolutely none of the first 3 things I listed. They droned terribly, popped like mad coasting down, and were obnoxiously loud at startup and idle.

-RP

[m571032]

thanks for all your input guys. now any ideas on how to talk my wife into letting me borrow the check book!

[ausie]

Just tell the truth about it. Considering how hight gas prices have become, a good free flowing exhaust will improve overall gas milage (all depends on how heavy your foot is and how much of your driving is highway). A good cat back should get you at least 70 miles more per tank on the highway and about 20 to 30 miles more for mostly city. This is what I have seen in comparrison to an SLP catback and an 01 cat back. highway at 80mph average SLP 298miles, 01 exhaust 225 miles, intown and mixed spirited driving SLP 220, 01 exhaust best was 186 for the same route. I normally fill up when the gas guage is between empty and 1/4 tank so my figures are based on overall average over time. Keep in mind that the 01 exhaust will be less restrictive than the stock 04 cat back.

Note: the milage listed above was obtained having the stock sized wheel and tires on all 4's (275/40-17).

[Eric_red94]

If you have a proper x-pipe, 3-chamber flowmaster setup, the drone and all the bad things you mentioned are not that bad.

[smashedheadcat]

I don't think there's a catback out there paired up with the stock h-pipe that sounds as good as the borla stingers. Also, I don't think you could beat the growl of borla stingers paired up with a catless prochamber either. But, keep in mind, all these muffler systems are going to gain power. Pick the exhaust you want based on price, fit, which tips you like the most and sound quality.

[nckissfan]

[QUOTE=smashedheadcat]I don't think there's a catback out there paired up with the stock h-pipe that sounds as good as the borla stingers. Also, I don't think you could beat the growl of borla stingers paired up with a catless prochamber either.QUOTE]

I wish Borla would make a catback setup for the 97 Cobras, cause that is the sound I like. Mean!

[spitfire]

Bassani X with Borla cat back, Great combo!!!!!!!!!! :thumbsup:

[trent03dsgcobra]

I like my MAC x-pipe, free flow converters and MAC mufflers

[bluebyu]

FLOWMASTERS RUUUUUUUUUULE!;)
Tell me what you guys think of the sound.
Click here to watch cobra-vid-1-Clip-1 (http://media.putfile.com/cobra-vid-1-Clip-1)

BTW I know I bogged it in 2nd..har har har har......



j/k,,,,Im thinking of switching cat backs here soon. I currently have the bbk long tubes, bbk o/r h-pipe with 2 chamber flowmasters. Im thinkin maybe the Magnaflow Magnapacks.hmmm,, not for sure yet. The flowmasters give that great lope sound at idle and sound good when you WOT on them but Im kinda getting tired of them. Wanting to experiment.:bounce:

[CYA Z06]

I am on my third 4.6 4V, and my third type of exhaust system. I will have to say that all are a little different. I have had multiple people (and my feelings as well) that the setup that I have now, (BBK X-Pipe, and Borla Stingers), are the best sounding. I have had multiple people ask me if I had a 5.0 Liter in my car. Said it was the best sounding exhaust on a mustang they ever heard. My 2 cents!

:burnout:

[nckissfan]

Borla Stingers do sound badass

[VenomSVT]

I like my MAC x-pipe, free flow converters and MAC mufflers+1....but I have an h-pipe.:thumbsup:

[04Beasst]

I would definitely agree that the Borla Stinger gives the best sounds...opinion only obviously! I just sold my 04 Cobra with Bassani X-pipe, W/Cats and Borla Stinger...the sound (Exhaust (http://videos.streetfire.net/video/c7fe4b6f-5d64-478e-b944-0d87823bf370.htm)) and look from the rear with the rolled tips is second to none. I just bought Bassani headers, Bassani X-pipe W/O Cats and Bassani Catback for other 04 Cobra...I'll post my thoughts on that setup once I pick the car up. More than likely, I'll switch the catback to Borla.

[hi ofcr cobra]

Bassani has my vote, I have had 2 stangs with the Bassani X-pipe and Cat-back and I have heard numerous times "that is the best sounding mustang I've ever heard".

I have their new system on my 03 Cobra and which comes with removable cats and removable baffles in the tips. The x-pipe comes with 2 sections of strait pipe and 2 sections with cats...you decide which you want to install, And swapping between them is only a 30 min job. The tips (which are polished well back under the car...1 1/2 feet or so) come with removable baffles so you can smooth the rumble out with the baffles in, or give it a little rasp with the baffles out.

Extra options, excellent sound, perfect bolt-in fit..... Bassani :thumbsup:

only downside = price :(

[03bloodredsnake]

okay heres the rundown on best exhausts imo1.slp,this exhaust is just straight up evil sounding and not for the people that dont like it loud, quality is oustanding craftsmanship, along with theeee best tips in the market hands down:thumbsup: 2.magnaflow,great exhaust very similar to the sound of slp, but definatly not as loud, quality is just as good but tips are horrible with a hole in them:thumbsup: 3.borla,probably best quality on the market tips are nice but 2 big for my taste they look like fart mufflers and the price for one of these is just out the door insane not worth the money but if you got it then spend it overall good system.:thumbsup: 4.bassani very good quality system ,horrible tips like the magnaflow, price is to much but if you want something that sounds loud but not to loud this is the way to go.:thumbsup:
5.mac,garbage system cheaply made, just plain crap imo,does sound half decent though that i guess is a plus:(
6.flowmaster,.............ah are you driving a 5.0 or an older mustang...nooo !then forget about this system for a cobra:(
7.pypes performance mufflers,.....................................no coment:(

[gtdrivr]

I looked for something unique. There is nothing wrong with Bassani or Flowmaster, but I wanted something different. I went with the 3" JBA (with factory cats). I love the sound. I get many compliments on the sound. It's all a matter of personal taste. There are sound clips on JBAs web site.

[jeffS.]

I know cat backs are the afordable and easier thing to do but I beleive there is more power and sound in the headers and mid pipes. right now I'm running BBK full length headers and catted x pipe and magnaflow catback on my 04 cobra. and it sounds great with a nice bump in power. I also had the exact same setup with the exception of the stock cat back system on a 97 GT with nitrous and I beleive that was the best sounding car I've ever heard. the thing rumbled nicely with the stock mufflers. I also want to mention that on my cobra, I starte the exhaust revamp with the magnaflow cat back and it did sound a little louder but you could still tell there was no other mods in front of the mufflers. The 4 cats and cast iron manifolds are the prime suspect of minimal flow and choked up sound that these cars are plagued with from the factory. I wish I would have kept my stock cat back system to try with the headers and midpipe and I probably would have enough money to buy a 2 or 4 pound lower pulley that would have more bang for the buck efect than the ever so common cat-back exhaust. Just a little opinion and food for thought for you, good luck. Also, if you do go with headers, and they come with the paper-foil gaskets, save yourself the headace and reuse the stock manifold steel gaskets if they come off unharmed. Learn from others mistakes before you make your own.:D Chevy's For Lunch!:thumbsup:

[CJchronic]

IMO, If you want that low muscle car rumble, the pro-chamber with magnaflow combination is it. It's quiet at idle, but WOT lets everyone know your coming. Also it's reasonably priced, and I think the pro-chamber gets a little more HP than other mid-pipes. The Bassani and Borla are nice, but too loud, and pricey.

[RR03Cobra]

I have had Flowmasters with and offroad, Flows with a stock H-pipe, Magnaflow with and without cats, Borla with and without cats and SLP with a stock h-pipe.
My favorite sound with a stock H-Pipe is definitely the SLP cat back! it is very deep and toned. Not too loud or raspy!

[Big Will]

Borla stingers hands down! :thumbsup:

[ausie]

I have heard many exhausts and like most of them except for the stock set up. The only time I like my SLP is when I am on the highway and there is a concrete side wall close the the road and when I open up the throttle it is music to my ears. Other than that I do not hear it all that much. Another thing I have noticed when a stock exhaust is on the 04 (either it be the 04 original or the 01 factory catback I still have) is that there is no whine to be heard from the supercharger. More than likely related to the increase in back pressure created by the restictive factory exhaust. I am sure I would be happy with Borla or Bassani too.

[jimbo68gt]

Bassani. I put their X-pipe on(more hp than H-pipe), and then cat backs. Great sound, and I mean great, lots of complitments too. I have a conv. and its not too loud where I can't hear myself think.

[03cobraboy]

Bassani X with a cat back here and it sounds pretty MEAN!!:cool:

[venomnous99]

Well, I am biased, I agree with most all of you. And definitely agree on the personnel taste. I have OR x pipe and both sets of SLP Loudmouth I and II. For me personally, I would take the SLP I. Many compliments, including three different individuals, at different times telling me that it was the meanest stang they had ever heard. But, it was loud, REAL LOUD!! I am also married, and her being the CEO and CFO, she won out. So now I have the SLP Loudmouth II on. AT WOT it still has a very mean sound, and is loud enough to hear it from four to five cars away on the highway, according to reports from others, but not nearly as loud as before, especially at lower rpm's. Now, I will have it boosted, with an H-Pipe (since it is the only way the kit fits) and I will let all know how that sounds. But honestly, I have heard most of these systems, on many different year Cobra's, and as the wife would say, "Now that thing sounds HEALTHY!!!!!":bounce: