pmurray

Maybe there is only one answer, listen to other Corvettes and hear what sound you like best.
I went with Corsa Pace car because I told a friend of mine to let it rip when he drove off and said oh ya, that's what I want. Nice idle sound, not too loud when on the hwy and roars when you step on it.

Vetteman Jack

I had the Route 66 exhaust on my '00 and yes, it was just a tad bit louder than stock. Looked great, but it had a terrible drone and popped when I let off the gas. Had to install an X-pipe to make it tolerable.

I have the Corsa Indy Pace Car exhaust on the car now and love it. Nice rumble at idle and when you hit the gas, it really does come alive. I think that exhaust is now called the Sport but it should sound the same. No drone, no popping, just a sweet exhaust sound.

ZachHasAVette

it was barely noticeable, you'd forget it was there if you weren't listening for it, turn up the radio just a tad and it was fine. mines an auto so if you've got a manual you might not even get any

Smokin Joe

Guys, the x pipe doesn't make the car louder. They even out the exhaust pulse between the two sides and decrease the popping on decceleration.

Corsa higher pitch. Borlas and GHLs are deeper. B&B not much different than stock...Ti's not much different than stock...maybe a little throatier.

Long tubes amplify all of them and actually increase power...should pry get a tune to maximize the set up though.

Ohyoufan

The Xtreme's sound great. A buddy of mine has them on his H/C/I Z06. My FRC is full bolt-on only with Corsa Pace Cars and I just recently bought a GoPro and made a little video
Skip to 35sec for the good stuff

Maxx_Z06

1 7/8 LG Super Pro's, Catless X-pipe, Slp Loudmouths. Yep, as loud as it can get.

TXGS507

LG Super Pro's 1 3/4... w Corsa Indy Pace Cars's (Tigershark)... Toque and some others say my car is loud!! Crazy Loud!! But to me, the sound is perfect.... Zero drone in the car ever.... Tame while cruising... sounds like an Indy race care when you get on it.... Like the others have said... Listen to some catbacks with someone local or youtube the different set ups.... toque and some others in my group run the GHL's and they sound VERY NICE and in your price range.

heavychevy357

Not to hijack the thread OP, but was wondering what you guys thought about GHL exhaust paired with American Racing longtubes & x pipe, with 23x/23x cam?

Sorry OP, just thought Id ask here vs opening another thread on it.

Tastee Twirl

RetiredSFC 97

Jack does have a nice sounding exhaust. If I was to spend that kind of money, that's what I would go with.

Personally I have the Quad Power Mid America exhaust. It resembles the old muscle car sound. Has a slight drone around 50 miles an hour, but not enough to be annoying. I also have the x pipe.

RetiredSFC 97

Lot of members here swear by them.

Toque

It is LOUD, but it may have something to do with you hitting the GO pedal every time we drive under a bridge....

It does sound GOOD though. Thats for sure !

Toque

B747VET

I spoke with folks at several knowledgeable Corvette shops and read every thread in the CF before asking the same questions the OP did here today. Folks then were nice enough to humor me and gave good feedback. Almost everyone said Corsa Indy Pace was what we were looking for.

Bottom line, if you want zero drone, and a good quality sound that isn't overbearing or intrusive at cruise, but has a nice idle sound and throaty quality sound at WOT, the answer is pretty much either Corsa Indy/Pace/Sport or Corsa Extreme.

Because we have a vert, I chose the Indy Pace so that at top down cruise we would be able to enjoy our stereo while still getting a great exhaust note. Also got the X Pipe to minimize the popping inherent in the LS1. For us it was the perfect choice. If we had a coupe I might have considered the Extreme.

The system seemed a little tame at first, but after about 3,000 miles the sound got a little deeper and a little louder and took on the qualities we were looking for.

But, we are all different. Good luck.

Thin Crust

I just installed PRT's on my 2003, and I'm quite happy. Press hard on the skinny pedal and they roar, but cabin drone at highway speed is negligible.

ZeroToSixty

I also had an actual budget when I upgraded my exhaust.......here are the results,.........adds a few HPs and sounds great cruising, no drone and excellent under full throttle.

I live in Northern Virginia where the inspections are brutal for both mechanical and emissions.

In order to comply with all laws, I had to be very careful with the components and configuration of my exhaust system.

I went with JBA LT Headers, with both cats kept in..........and a used X pipe and a Titanium Z06 system. Sounds great, passes inspection and adds a bit of horsepower. Plus at under a $ 1000 dollars, it is hard to beat. I paid 500 for the headers, 150 for the X pipe and 300 for the stock Titanium Z06 catback.

New JBA Long Tube Headers



Used Catted Mid pipe with X pipe



Used Z06 Axle back exhaust

TXGS507

guilty as charged Mark... lol....

got-20z

No problem... Glad you posted so we can see all of the opinions and discussion.



In regard to the feedback from everybody else. Thanks again...

I really like the sounds of the Corsa Sport and Extreme setups (they are both in the ballpark of what I'm looking for) but it's a bit out of my budget so if I end up deciding that has to be "the one" I will just wait until I can stretch the budget.

RDY 469

SLP Loudmouth sounds pretty good. It's not obnoxious with stock manifolds but once you add headers it definitely goes from good to amazing IMO. I couldn't be happier with the set up.

imgn tht

So why not start another one and get the same responses that confused you in the first place?

Sorry man, I've been there so I know how difficult it can be to bite the bullet on something like this. I too read all the posts and even posted some myself. It only led to more confusion. But at the end of the day you have only 2 options.

1. Find local owners and ask to hear them both outside and inside the car.
2. Read more into the descriptive words people use, and not the sound clips on Youtube or here. Why you ask? Because only you know what you WANT your car to sound like (exotic, deep rumble, etc...). And sound/video clips aren't high enough quality to know what it will sound like in real life. The biggest hurdle I had was finding clips that were cars similarly modded to mine...like you I was stock (well a Blackwing, but nothing else). All the clips I found sounded good, but they had headers/no cats/cams/etc...they better sound good with those mods. At some point you just gotta follow your gut.

For me personally, I settled on GHL bullets. Landed a VERY nice used set on here for $600 shipped. Deep tone at startup, slightly louder idle than stock...enough to know it isn't stock, good rumble when you get on it. It can get loud in the cabin, but it's supposed to. I may add some insulation to see if that helps conversations.

So there you have it...good luck!

Dave1998

Prt drone is quite bad on mine at 1500 - 1800 rpm. you cant stay there.