Another Muffler Swap

[gdawg55]

Well, I thought I'd share thoughts on another muffler swap in case anyone is interested. I may have a muffler problem....LOL. I'm on my 6th muffler since owning my truck (April 2018). Not sure why I keep changing except I keep looking for a certain sound and each time I put a muffler on, it's not quite what I'm looking for...either too loud, not loud enough, too much drone, not the right tone, etc.

I just installed a Flowmaster 50HD a week ago.....perfect. I did not get the direct fit model since I've already had different size mufflers welded in and the direct fit would no longer be direct fit since my piping has been altered and I don't have clamps. I had initially stayed away from Flowmaster since everyone says they don't flow well, but every time I heard a sound clip of the 50HD, I really liked it. Most reviews were positive as well. So, I took the chance and installed one. Initial drive back to work was very positive. It sounds really good, and the cabin noise is minimal. It's a little more aggressive sounding and less smooth/mellow....just the sound I had in my head. Never thought it was the Flowmaster sound I was after, but I guess it was.

Well, after a week of driving around, I decided to swap out my Moe's 5" tips and go back to my stock tips as I was getting a bit of a hollow gurgle sound with the larger tips. POW....instant improvement in the sound. The sound tightened up with the stock tips (no more hollow gurgle) and the small amount of interior drone I had is now gone. I had no idea going back to the smaller tips would make so much difference. I don't recall that much difference going the from the stock tips to the Moe's except for getting a deeper tone and slightly more volume, but it was with a different muffler.

Anyway, I'm very impressed so far with the Flowmaster 50HD. Overall loudness is just right for me and interior sound is quiet. The exterior tone is just what I was looking for. My throttle response seems a bit better and low end torque seems to be slightly better as well. No real measurements, just what it feels like compared to what it was with other mufflers. Hopefully this will be my last muffler....at least until it rusts out. I'm in GA so hopefully it will last a while.

 

[Buddy]

So since you've tried a few mufflers, to help future buyers out, why don't you give a quick review of each muffler. Like sound, drone, int/ext sound, pros/cons, whatever. Just to give a rundown and maybe someone will see the sound in their head in your opinion of each and it might help guide them to said muffler.

 

[gdawg55]

Buddy...LOL I had all that in my first post, but it was crazy long so I deleted it. I'll try to give a brief run down of what I've had prior to the Flowmaster 50HD and what I thought of each.

Magnaflow 14":
Good exterior sound, but a bit too smooth/mellow for me. Also interior drone was very noticeable around 1600-1800 rpm and drove me nuts. I had originally wanted an 18", but the muffler shop ordered the wrong one so I decided to try it any way. If the cabin drone had not been so bad I may have kept it.

Borla Pro XS:
My favorite straight thru muffler and was installed free of charge due to the above ordering mistake. Exterior sound is nice and deep, though still a bit too smooth/mellow for me. Interior drone was non-existent. It was very quiet in the cab, though louder than stock, and became really noticeable when hammering it. I only changed this one out because I thought I wanted something louder. The overall exterior loudness seemed very similar to the 14" Magnaflow to me. Great muffler and a solid choice for someone wanting a quiet cabin and a nice deep rumble on the outside that won't **** off the neighbors.

Spintech 9000XL:
Got this one because I wanted some more noise....and noise was what I got. This is the first chambered-like muffler I installed and is a very high quality muffler. The exterior sound was different than the MF and Borla....a little more choppy, aggressive (less smooth/mellow), but the interior drone was deafening between 1600-1800 rpm. It quieted down below and above that range, but unfortunately I am in the rpm band a lot during my commute. This muffler came off after 2 weeks and was the one that changed my mind on wanting a really loud muffler. Cold starts in the morning were very loud. Looking back I would have been better off trying their 3000XL muffler.

Black Widow Venom 250:
Had high hopes for this one after reading reviews and listening to youtube vids. Exterior tone was kind of between the Magnaflow and Spintech....more aggressive than MF and a little louder, but less aggressive than the Spintech. Interior sound was quieter than the Spintech.....reminded me of the 14" Magnaflow with the same level of cabin drone. It was also a little louder outside the truck than I wanted.

Solo Performance Mach 44 (muffler only):
This is the quietest muffler I installed. Nice quality muffler with a nice deep exterior sound...though on the smooth/mellow quiet side. Exterior sound is one notch louder than stock. Interior sound is nice and quiet with no drone at any rpm. Very satisfied with this muffler until about 2000 miles. The tone changed a little after break-in and when I would go through the gears in a spirited manor, I got this weird sound during shifts. Can't really explain it, if just didn't sound right to me. Otherwise I think this is a great option for those looking for something a little louder than stock and not wanting any drone.

Currrent Muffler: Flowmaster 50HD:
See above firsts post for comments. So far really like the tone of this muffler....deep, medium loud on the outside, and relatively quiet on the inside. Not as smooth/mellow sounding as the straight thru mufflers with a bit more volume at idle and a more aggressive sound.

From the list of mufflers I've had/have, I like the Flowmaster 50HD best, followed by the Borla Pro XS as a close second.

If I had to rank them quietest to loudest (external noise) it would be: Mach 44, Borla Pro XS, Flowmaster 50HD, 14" MF (though I would say not much louder than the 50HD), Venom 250, and Spintech 9000XL.

If I had to rank them quietest to loudest (internal noise) it would be: Mach 44 (no drone), Borla Pro XS (no drone), Flowmaster 50HD (no drone with 4" tips, slight drone with 5" tips) tie between 14" MF and Venom 250 (drone), and Spintech 9000 XL (lots of drone).

Hope this helps.

 

[stateofdade]

If only you had tried a carven. I'm looking to put a comp on my truck next month and love reading comparisons. Thanks for the great overviews.

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[gdawg55]

If only you had tried a carven. I'm looking to put a comp on my truck next month and love reading comparisons. Thanks for the great overviews.

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I came close to trying a Carven but kept reading reviews that they were too loud and it scared me off . They do sound good in the video clips.

 

[LoneStarSilver]

My Carven Progressive has been great so far. No complaints from the neighbors on those 5:00am cold starts. All kinds of compliments from other drivers, with other brands of mufflers. I love the “Roar” when I get into it. I’ve owned a lot of different mufflers on multiple vehicles over the last 4 decades and I think this Carven is my favorite.

 

[Buddy]

I have a catback Magnaflow, I really like it. 5" tips, nice deep burble. A friend went with a muffler replacement kit, Pypes. Everytime I hear it I'm impressed with the sound of his. No real drone and a nice sound that suits the truck. If you ever get bored with your Flowmaster - as history dictates, you may... lol - give the Pypes a look next.
Btw, very nice job on the muffler comparison post, hopefully when guys are searching threads on mufflers when they are shopping they come across this thread.

 

[averageguy]

I have the flowmaster American Thunder cat back system and Moes 5'' tips. Its perfect for me.

 

[gdawg55]

I have a catback Magnaflow, I really like it. 5" tips, nice deep burble. A friend went with a muffler replacement kit, Pypes. Everytime I hear it I'm impressed with the sound of his. No real drone and a nice sound that suits the truck. If you ever get bored with your Flowmaster - as history dictates, you may... lol - give the Pypes a look next.
Btw, very nice job on the muffler comparison post, hopefully when guys are searching threads on mufflers when they are shopping they come across this thread.

I've read good things about the Pypes muffler. I looked into it, but thought since it is a 14" muffler that it might have the same issues as the other 14" mufflers I tried. I hope I don't tire of the 50HD any time soon...got to quit spending money on mufflers...

 

[William Hastings]

Gdawg your muffler posts helped me out big time. You did all the experimenting and posted info so i and others didnt have to waste a bunch of $$. Thank you, i really appreciate. I did love the Carven progressive around town and punching it, was great on short trips. Couldnt not deal with it on the highway at all, sure the neighbors hated me at 420am leaving for work. I got the borla pro xs because of your info and the post on how to make it a clamp on style. Its why i love this forum. I hope your happy with the flowmaster, question, is the flowmaster 304 ss or 409? Curious how itll hold up

 

[Puba08]

Love my Flowmaster Outlaw. Seems like it quieter now than I’m used to it. My friends always had them on their mustangs and loved them. No issues from the neighbors when I start it up at 2am. Being you said you removed the 5” tips, you said it sounds quieter without? I’m completing getting them after I finish my ipad install. I’m hoping the 5” change the tone beside looking badass.


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[gdawg55]

Gdawg your muffler posts helped me out big time. You did all the experimenting and posted info so i and others didnt have to waste a bunch of $$. Thank you, i really appreciate. I did love the Carven progressive around town and punching it, was great on short trips. Couldnt not deal with it on the highway at all, sure the neighbors hated me at 420am leaving for work. I got the borla pro xs because of your info and the post on how to make it a clamp on style. Its why i love this forum. I hope your happy with the flowmaster, question, is the flowmaster 304 ss or 409? Curious how itll hold up

Glad I could help you out William. How are you liking the Pro XS? In all honesty if I hadn't had a Borla on my previous truck (Tundra) for the past 6 years I would have put the one I took off my Ram back on.....I think I just wanted something different. Loving my 50HD. It's actually aluminized steel instead of stainless. The stainless version is only offered in the American Thunder direct fit model and I only wanted the muffler. Not sure if it's 304 or 409. I live in GA so hopefully it will last a few years.

 

[gdawg55]

Love my Flowmaster Outlaw. Seems like it quieter now than I’m used to it. My friends always had them on their mustangs and loved them. No issues from the neighbors when I start it up at 2am. Being you said you removed the 5” tips, you said it sounds quieter without? I’m completing getting them after I finish my ipad install. I’m hoping the 5” change the tone beside looking badass.


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Yes I took my 5" tips off and put the OEM tips back on. It changed the exterior tone a little bit but really toned down the interior sound level....it's much quieter in the cab now. The 5" tips had more of a hollow gurgle sound and a little deeper while the stock tips sound more tight/less gurgly. Interior sound with the 5" tips was louder and I had a slight drone. No more drone with stock tips.

If you put on 5" tips you will notice a little deeper tone and a bit more sound.

 

[Puba08]

Ok seems like I’m going with the 5” then! Ty for the info!!!


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[William Hastings]

Glad I could help you out William. How are you liking the Pro XS? In all honesty if I hadn't had a Borla on my previous truck (Tundra) for the past 6 years I would have put the one I took off my Ram back on.....I think I just wanted something different. Loving my 50HD. It's actually aluminized steel instead of stainless. The stainless version is only offered in the American Thunder direct fit model and I only wanted the muffler. Not sure if it's 304 or 409. I live in GA so hopefully it will last a few years.

Lovin the Borla so far, good volume for me. Hopefully the 409ss extension pipe i used lasts, down the road i may need to find a 304 pipe. Didnt you guys just get some ****** weather down in GA?

 

[gdawg55]

Lovin the Borla so far, good volume for me. Hopefully the 409ss extension pipe i used lasts, down the road i may need to find a 304 pipe. Didnt you guys just get some ****** weather down in GA?

North side of Atlanta got a little bit of the bad stuff a few weeks ago, but I'm on the south side of town and all we got was rain. As a matter of fact it seems like it hasn't stopped raining here since about Nov. May need to start thinking of trading in my truck for a boat.

Glad you're liking the Borla. The 409ss should last you a while.

 

[stateofdade]

Lovin the Borla so far, good volume for me. Hopefully the 409ss extension pipe i used lasts, down the road i may need to find a 304 pipe. Didnt you guys just get some ****** weather down in GA?

We're still drowning in GA.

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[William Hastings]

Same here in eastern PA. Getting the rain and these ****** mixes. Hard to keep the salt and brine off the truck

 

[Big Blue Hemi]

Sounds like the Borla for me. Nice thread.

 

[never-enough]

I also did the Borla xs, after a lot of reading up here.
It’s exactly what I was hoping it would be.
Not obnoxiously loud inside the truck, but I can tell it’s a Hemi.. the stock muffler was just too quiet.
Nice deep rumble, without being over the top aggressive.
My wife didn’t want me to make the truck as loud as my cars, but she loves the sound now that she’s heard it.

My brother has a 5.7 ram and installed the carven progressive, he loved it at first but ended up removing it as he decided it was a little too much after living with it for 6000miles.
I thought it had a good sound overall but was a little louder than I’d want on a daily driver.