exhaust drone question

[JSchutz]

I've got a drone (for lack of a better term) in the exhaust system at highway cruising speeds. Would changing out the stock muffler for a flow through design eliminate this? I'm looking for an inexpensive solution to the drone without a significant increase in overall noise. I am not looking for reduce EGT's or any other performance gain, only to get rid of the drone. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks, Jeff

 

[badams1]

Drone?

Man: believe me. That stock muffler is as drone free and quite as you can get from a 6 cyl Cummins engine period. I spent over a $1000. and made a low restriction 4" system that is acceptable but not as quite as the stock system that you have. It is the nature of the beast by design that at 2100 RPMs = 70 MPH that there is going to be a slight harmonic drone to these trucks. Stock is the best that you can get if you don't care about performance up grades that equate to more noise. You can drag a trailer full of straight through 4" mufflers behind the truck but you will still get the drone. DRIVE 75MPH or 65MPH but not 2100 RPMs. This thing ia a horn honking and 2100 RPM is the puckerpoint. Maybe you should have got a huh, or something other, because they don't drone. Best of decission making to you buddy. I love my droning Cummins and it is worth the drone because it is the best engine by far out there period.

 

[rbattelle]

It does improve a bit with mileage. Or maybe it's just damaged my ears enough that I don't hear it as well!

 

[Azhuskcarr]

Just had a 4" put on my truck about two weeks ago. It has a straight thru muff on it. I did have the dreaded drone at about 2100rpms. So thru the search on this site I went down to HomeDepot and bought two pieces of angle iron. It's 3/4 inch about 4 foot long. I had to hack about 6" off to get the fit I wanted. I put two chunks on (one on each side of the pipe) using some band clamps(used 5 of them). I will tell you after I installed it I took it out and right away noticed a difference. I still have a slight drone but not too noticable. I might try a few other things later, but for now I can live with it. Love the sound of the exhaust now!!!

 

[Car_nut57]

The exhaust drone seems to be a frequency thing and by making changes to the exhaust or tuning it if you will, you can change the frequency and move the problem. Several customers have told us that the new Banks Monster exhaust which has a muffler with an expansion area near the inlet does not drone. Others say the use of an Aeroturbine works well also, however I think the Aeroturbine may be too loud for your liking.

 

[bighammer]

I have sort of a howling noise. Is that what you're talking about?

 

[RDietze]

inexpensive - angle iron; but you will have to experiment and move the iron around until you get the desired effect (unless you hit the lottery)



expensive (but worth it IMO) - banks monster exhaust



do a search on drone and you will see what Azhuskcarr summarized in this thread

 

[CPritchett]

A muffler wrap heat shield around the muffler will help and also a downturn pipe at the tip changes the drone. I had a terrible drone with my 5" exhaust and I bought a dondlason 51" muffler and knocked out the baffle in the muffler that came with the system and it is about like a stock system now. No drone at all. I liked the sound before I put the donaldson muffler on but it was a little loud but the muffler wrap and downturn tip helped a lot.

 

[Prairie Dog]

Azhuskcarr, could you post a pic or give us a better idea ware you mounted your angle iron? Thanks!



Scotty

 

[RAMINSPEED]

I just installed a NEW banks 4 inch monster exhaust and it HOWLS like theres no tomorrow above 2000 RPM, especially under load. Be warned, the stock pipe is the best. Get bigger tires to lower your RPM's while heading down the highway.

 

[Azhuskcarr]

I mouted the 2 pieces of angle iron on each side of the pipe. It starts right after the downpipe and ends right before the muff. When they installed the muff they put it right about at stock location. The exhaust was custom made by a local place here in east Mesa. I'll try to take pics in the morning as I'm at work right now. Can someone tell me how to post the pics??? Steve

 

[Azhuskcarr]

Never mind about telling me how to post pics, I did a search and found out how to do it already, thanks!!!

 

[radar doctor]

Thanks for the info

Boy i never thought there would be anything wrong with the new Trucks. At least you guy's are helping us fix these things. Thanks.

 

[DPKetchum]

I did'nt ever find the drone to be a minor drone. IT wuld drive me out of the truck after a 100 mile drive. I like the sound of the Banks system just fine and a WHOLE lot better then that restricktive drone junk that was on it. I threw my old system in a dumpster.

 

[MLee]

drone

this friend of mine put the banks system on, and the drone is so-bad, it feels like your head is in a vice. i suggested to contact banks about it, but he has not done it yet. it is no louder than stock out side, at the tail pipe.

just my penny's worth.

Marv.

 

[DPKetchum]

I found mine mush easier to live with then the noise/drone it made.

 

[badams1]

Drone issue

The angle iron application probably is a good harmonic tuning tool but I would have it welded to the pipe after you find the optimum locations. As I said this thing is a horn honking at specific frequencies and tuning it makes sense. My gold plated system uses a custom drilled out 4" dynotec Vortec power cone at the down pipe then an Aeroturbine 12' down a 4" Borla bigest muffler then 6" down a 4" "biggest", Magna flow muffler then 6" down another drilled out Voetec power cone and a 12" SS resonator at the tip. It sounds like I have dual exhaust and is very unique. I mean really cool. It is just barely a little loader than stock but it was worth every penny. The infinity sound system, sounds fine at highway speeds and that is important to note. I ordered the stuff myself and had a mieniky muffler shop weld up the whole thing and hang it as a first class job $100. The "BIG" secret here is the Vortec power cones (JEGGS Racing catalogue) being drilled out (3/16 bit and 25 holes each well spaced) so that diesel soot can't plug up the holes and because of their surface area they do not cause any back pressure on the exhaust flow. THe parts are $1000. but the sound is worth $1000,000 kind of like a Porshe. I learned all of this from spending twice as much on my 2001 so this was not hit or miss thinking. But hey! everybody is different.