CBE w/no or least drone?

ImportConvert

Finally have a line on a car in the US soon, numbers are agreeable, etc.

What CBE should I put on it? How much whp will this give me?

I want a nice tone, and NO drone. I hate drone with a passion.

XwChriswX

Drone is subjective, some people say one exhaust gives it to you, another group will say another brand will give you drone.

Are you looking for just a CBE or a HFC/TP combo as well? I can tell you keeping the stock cats will remove any drone.

Fast Intentions gives you a multitude of options to look through:

Long Tube Headers
HFC's/(R)TP's
12" Resonators
18" Resonators
CF or SS Cans

All of which can be mixed and matched to produce exactly the performance/sound you want. With no drone.

Others to look into would be ARK, or HKS. Very similar designs to achieve the same purpose. ARK also has the ART Pipes which if you'd like a Test Pipe without rasp, they are a great option to get.

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Bonnie - Stage 2, Audio build coming this fall!
R.I.P. Abby 3/29/10 - 3/30/14

ImportConvert

I am leaving on the stock OEM cats, and just changing the cat-back, and putting in drop-in K&N filters.

What kind of whp am I looking at for that setup, and what about BERK? I like their sound, but wanted other advice before I threw their name in the mix.

XwChriswX

The stock cats will muffle out any real drone/rasp you might get. So it's basically whichever one you prefer. I honestly like the look of the Fast Intentions/ARK/HKS design over Berk/Stillen/Nismo. But that's personal preference. Power numbers have been proven that FI nets the highest gains. But 1/2 hp difference is up to you if it's worth it. No exhaust is going to be leaps and bounds better than others of similar design.

Have you been to any meets to hear different setups in person? Or watched any vids?

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Bonnie - Stage 2, Audio build coming this fall!
R.I.P. Abby 3/29/10 - 3/30/14

ImportConvert

I watched some vids, but get the impression that vids suck. Cameras enhance tiny noise and deaden loud noise, making all things sound nearly the same. No good. I liked the Berk, though, and like the stock appearance. Is Berk good? Will the Berk and K&N drop-in filters put me at 295-305whp on a dynojet?

XwChriswX

Yeah vids are horrible for exhausts, even high end ones. It's just not the same as in person, but you get an 'idea'. Berk isn't bad, and if it looks the way you want then that's important. Those two mods should get you there. You could also look into some Post MAF Tubes as well. They aren't very expensive and are a good pair with drop in filters. Those should get you to your 300whp mark.

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Bonnie - Stage 2, Audio build coming this fall!
R.I.P. Abby 3/29/10 - 3/30/14

ped

This is absolutely incorrect. I just got a FI catback with 18" resonator installed early this week and it drones like CRAZY between 2000-2900 RPM or so under load. Most prominent when you leave the car in auto (D) which seeks the tallest gear always, and then either climb a small incline or generally just speed up slightly (accelerator pedal down about 1/4 to 1/2) without pushing hard enough to force a downshift to a lower gear.

This problem is easily solved by using a Helmholtz resonator attached 90 degrees off of each pipe, but for whatever reason FI didn't take this issue seriously and as a result their exhausts have this problem. I am in fact going to take a loss by having to pay labor twice to have the FI exhaust removed and the original up back on, this drone is so annoying. Telling people they have no drone is causing people to waste money only to find out the truth.

axmea?

Are you going to be doing this every chance you get? Give it up already. Buyers remorse sucks but man..........

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Romulus1

If you believe there's drone and chris says there's not then i believe he was actually correct in saying drone is subjective. I certainly believe drone is a subjective topic and i wanted little to none in my exhaust. I had the FI CF exhaust with 12" resonators paired with motordyne art pipes and noticed VERY little drone and was extremely pleased with the exhaust entirely. That was my 4th exhaust set up on a VQ engine. Your tangent is noted by the entire community. Go fix your problem please instead of complaining in every thread on the forum.

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11 SR 370Z Sport 6MT - Sold
03 Escalade AWD - Sold
13 Silverado LTZ Z71 Crew Cab

chii370

I second rich on this one, I also have the ARK DTS w/o HFC and it is 100% flawless. makes arguably the best deep growl of any exhaust available, zero drone. you can hardly hear it if your cruising at 65 on zero incline unless you get on it a little. and it doesnt make that wheezing rasp noise when you let off the peddle. also it makes a nice gurgle/pop sounds on decel kinda like a Mercedes AMG. Makes it sound very aggressive and mean.

but, its a different animal under load. if you accelerate hard it goes from quiet....... to OMFG loud. echoing off buildings and nearby cars. its about 104 db roughly under load. and they claim 89 at 3k, which is probably about right.

chii370

And Romulus, honestly? Drone is a thing. Its not subjective. If you can hear the car go RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR with a constant tone while at cruising speed, and its a buzz/moan noise and not a nice growl like at idle.....thats drone. I would be pissed too if people who didnt know wtf it was, or just wanted to fanboy support a product they own, flaws and all....told me there was no drone and there was. Some of these exhausts are HEADACHE INDUCING. The ark dts is inaudible at speed unless you are giving it gas, in which case u can here a faint whir noise, then it screams like hell when u gas it. Drone is the constant annoying monotone sound of the exhaust resonating in the cabin, some people actually LIKE that sound as they think it sounds bad ***. And it DOES, but not when ur driving on the highway for 2-3 hours, it makes u wanna drive the car off a cliff. My 401 74 hornet does the same thing but thats just because its 500 hp NA and loud. I HATE driving it on the highway.

But to be fair, if you want to hear absolutely zero cabin noise at cruise....then dont go aftermarket. There isnt a single one that doesnt drone a LITTLE.

ImportConvert

Fast Intentions looks good and is "cheap".

How much difference is there in the 12" and 18" resonators, and which would I want with otherwise OEM exhaust? I am past my need to have the loudest car out there, I just want something that will give a little more feed-back off idle than the OEM.

Nick911sc

Just to throw this in there. I have a Berk CBE on my car and the fitment was superb and the quality was top notch. Not just myself but my mechanic was extremely impressed by the system and he works on cars worth more than houses in my area.

Red__Zed

FI has drone, Aam has drone. Most owners will confirm, I've heard both (and both versions of the AAM, and there is definitely notable drone.


Berk and invidia are both (essentially) drone free options. They sound the same because they are (basically) the same.

ImportConvert

Thanks for saving me some serious irritation. Which is better? Why? How long would it take to get one? Are they in stock type things?