OK, so i plan on doing a lot to my truck. i already bought new rims, bigger tire, a 3in body lift, and a throttle body space. have not put any of it on yet, some parts are still on order .

my next investment that i plan on getting is an exhaust system. my problem is i have no idea what to get. looking for something that will give it that nice low rumble, power gain, and is not to costly.(400ish)

any suggestions??

Unfortunately now-a-days you have a better chance being struck by lightning that finding something nice for cheap. I nice flowmaster dual set will set you back 500, but comes with everything for a complete installation, and you know you're getting a good product.

The flowmaster part number is 17470, or feel free to look for yourself (www.flowmastermufflers.com)

3 inch piping going into a magnaflow and 3" leaving. Here is a pic of mine. I got the tail pipes on a 60 degree angle

I have the flowmaster 50 series on mine and with muffler cost me about $370.

i have looked at flowmasters website before and they had nothing i was looking for. i know i want a dual rear exit, but i couldn't find anything for my engine size, cab and bed length. (If any of this really matters)
Engine= 305 5.0
Standard cab
Long bed

i have found a gibson catback dual rear that fits all the specs for about 480.
anyone have any reviews or personal experience with gibson?

Gibson does sound nice, i've heard them on the newer 5.3.. nice and mellow. Your best bet is to find a good deal on a muffler that you like, and have a known muffler shop custom bend your pipes.. This makes it nice cause they can use differ grade materials, and make it the way you want it. Not to mention that its signifigantly cheaper than buying an entire system from a company like gibson or flowmaster

ill have to look into that. i like the idea of it being cheaper. and will it still get the same performance of a full system?

I see no reason why it wouldn't. I gained a little throttle resonse after I installed mine. For our trucks, even if they "crush bend" the pipes, there isn't any signifigant curves to lose any major flow, therefore it doesn't take away any of the gained power from the new muffler.

mine wasnt the cheapest route but i like the sound. after my discount i got it for $700

I was debating on going duals or single, and I decided to keep it with a stock single exit, but I used all stock piping, and a 5"X8" case Magnaflow muffler, I really like the way it sounds, they have all kinds of dual in/dual out setups. Also as far as the tips, I found very nice weld on tips at summitracing.com, They have very nice 12" ones in about every size for about $25 which is much cheaper than a $75 magnaflow.
There's a link in my sig. if you want to take a listen.

Did you just cut out the existing oem muffler and replace with magnaflow? I would like to just replace the muffler not for sound but any gain in horsepower or performance. No sense in doing anything if there is no benefit.

Well I didn't feel I got much power according to the "seat of the pants dyno", but it sounds much better now. And that was my goal, I didn't care too much about performance gains, I wanted to be able to hear my 350 rumble

I have dual exhaust from the heads to tips with glass packs. I cut off the factory muffler (2 in, 1 out), put a glass pack on each pipe, and a down pipe off the glass pack. My exhaust dumps right infront of the rear axle. I don't notice a power or MPG difference, but I only ran 3 tanks on the truck before I did it. It DEFINATELY made my truck louder! And I personally love it. just an idea. (And the whole thing only cost me $50)