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I know there’s been a lot of NPP sound complaints over the years and even from me. I’ve taken several friends on rides recently (top down) and EVERYONE complimented me on the sound, even a Mustang motorhead at work. Most say they can’t get over how good factory exhaust sounds. I think it sounds better than many of us give it credit for, especially in the right mode and on it like it’s made to be driven.
Two things: it definitely sounds better than people on the forums give it credit for and it definitely sounds better driving by than it does from inside the car. If you're feeling glum about your NPP sound, have someone drive your car past you at full throttle and 4500+rpm. You'll feel better.
I run mostly on Sport. I like how it is relatively quiet inside but lets people on the street know it’s a 500 HP mill without being obnoxious. Personally, I am obnoxious enough to arrive and leave car gatherings with the exhaust on track setting. Sounds great IMO…
And, I love the choice to quiet it down in Touring on long road trips…
Two things: it definitely sounds better than people on the forums give it credit for and it definitely sounds better driving by than it does from inside the car. If you're feeling glum about your NPP sound, have someone drive your car past you at full throttle and 4500+rpm. You'll feel better.
I agree on the sound of the NPP exhaust. A couple weeks ago at a car show, I did a remote start for someone when standing about 15 feet behind the car, and it sounded awesome. Locally, I drive almost all the time in My Mode, with the exhaust set as loud as it will allow, so even at idle, it has a nice burble. And, when I jump on it, the growl is attention getting for sure. I sometimes forget how good it sounds if I haven’t driven the car with the top off and windows down for awhile as the sound in the cabin is well muted. I have considered an aftermarket exhaust, but I also like the ability to tone it down in tour mode for road trips, so I haven’t taken that plunge.
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I think the stock NPP sounds very good - much better than any previous factory exhaust. And with the high cost for an aftermarket system, it sounds even better.
Two things: it definitely sounds better than people on the forums give it credit for and it definitely sounds better driving by than it does from inside the car. If you're feeling glum about your NPP sound, have someone drive your car past you at full throttle and 4500+rpm. You'll feel better.
I was one of those. The cabin is so insulated that it's hard to hear how well the car sounds outside. That being said, I still would like it a bit louder. ARH headers are probably in my future and just leaving it.
And it seems to get better with age. Mine now has 10,000 miles and gives a wonderful backfire on cold start. I did not do that new. Not sure if it is the exhaust or maybe the updates (it's a '22) but I like it.
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Originally Posted by combatninja
Two things: it definitely sounds better than people on the forums give it credit for and it definitely sounds better driving by than it does from inside the car...
This. It’s very muted inside the car, but sounds great outside. Getting the HTC helps some with this as you can lower the rear window even with the top up to hear it a little better. I wish someone would come up with an exhaust like the Z06 that reflects some of the sound back into the cabin. It’d be really interesting to see someone find a take-off exhaust from the Z06 and fit it to a Stingray/Eray to see what it did.
And it seems to get better with age. Mine now has 10,000 miles and gives a wonderful backfire on cold start. I did not do that new. Not sure if it is the exhaust or maybe the updates (it's a '22) but I like it.
Perhaps this is true. It has over 8k miles now and it dos seem a bit louder.
It’d be really interesting to see someone find a take-off exhaust from the Z06 and fit it to a Stingray/Eray to see what it did.
It's been done, there are a few videos of it out there. The problem with the factory Z06 rear section (and any aftermarket one meant for a Z06) is that it will not have AFM valves, so without a tune to disable AFM, you're going to get some funky resonances. That and the whole poser image of trying to look like a Z06.
Agree NPP sounds great. I have heard a few with some pretty bad sounding aftermarket exhaust on them. Just louder is not better. Many sound like my old GMC Yukon that had a magnaflow on it.
I finally test drove a C7 and it sounds phenomenal despite being a non-Z51. Sitting aft of the engine lets the sound waves accelerate into you instead of them starting behind you like in the C8 and escaping off into the distance. That's the audible Doppler effect of sound waves in physics. C7 sounds rougher and truck-like whereas C8 sounds more refined, pleasant, and sportier but quieter. A mix of pros and cons makes neither definitively better than the other and becomes a matter of preference. I won't deny the synthesized sounds in the C8 augment the engine note. And it's not creating new audible sounds additively but negating (notching out) unpleasant "agricultural" fuel injection or truck-like noises at higher frequencies (like noise canceling headphones but selectively at targeted frequencies). I appreciate the volume added by the C8's NPP. Not as rowdy as my Mustang's Borla ATAK exhaust but still a higher quality tone overall.
I think the stock NPP sounds very good - much better than any previous factory exhaust. And with the high cost for an aftermarket system, it sounds even better.
I can’t justify changing my NPP exhaust even though I’ve gone Corsa in two of my last three Corvettes.
I personally liked the NPP note a lot. I just wished it was louder. I would have been perfectly happy to keep the note right where it was. I got the Borla Atak and have gotten used to it. Now I can barely tell that a NPP exhaust is running.
I have a friend who just installed a Corsa Extreme cat back on his C6. The NPP on my C8 is much louder than his new system and has an excellent tone with an exotic note. Having the engine in the rear makes a huge difference. GM did a great job. Still going to upgrade soon.
I run mostly on Sport. I like how it is relatively quiet inside but lets people on the street know it’s a 500 HP mill without being obnoxious. Personally, I am obnoxious enough to arrive and leave car gatherings with the exhaust on track setting. Sounds great IMO…
And, I love the choice to quiet it down in Touring on long road trips…
Use MY Mode for customization and have exhaust set on Track Mode, use manual/paddles 90% of the time and sounds good to me especially when going thru the gears in the higher rpm's.
NPP note compliments
