2022 2500 gasser exhaust sound

Randal Scott · March 7, 2025

Ok,I have that AFE cat-back exhaust kit. I'm on my 3rd muffler. The original was to loud and cab drone. I added a resonator muffler, which is a 18 inch overall length glass pack style. It helped a little. Changed the original muffler to a Mbrp quiet model. It quiet it down. It started to get loud again. The muffler turned color, like it got hot. Took it off and the inside was melted. I had a muffler shop put a new muffler on. It's an AP brand chambered type. That quieted it right down to a nice sound. But I still have drone in the cab around 1800 rpm. This muffler was designed to be on by itself. Wondering if I take the resonator muffler glass pack out would the drone go away. Thinking it's a frequency thing. Any thoughts or subjection? If I was going to do it again, I would just change the muffler. Thinking Flowmaster 50 Big Block series.

OS RR · March 13, 2025

Flowmaster Outlaw 818112

Just a cold start, temp was in the 50s.

Easy kit to install, 3.5" into a flowmaster 10, 3" out. All mendrel bent 409 stainless (same as stock I believe). Drones a bit around the 1800-2000rpm mark, can feel it in the floor board too. Its actually not that bad, atleast to me.

Sounds great driving. Love it when you let off the throttle and it starts engine breaking. Swear it almost sounds like driving a manual sometimes other than the 10spd wanting to shift kinda quick not letting you get into the RPMs.

Edited March 13, 2025 by OS RR

Pryme · March 13, 2025

2 hours ago, OS RR said:

Flowmaster Outlaw 818112

Just a cold start, temp was in the 50s.

Easy kit to install, 3.5" into a flowmaster 10, 3" out. All mendrel bent 409 stainless (same as stock I believe). Drones a bit around the 1800-2000rpm mark, can feel it in the floor board too. Its actually not that bad, atleast to me.

Sounds great driving. Love it when you let off the throttle and it starts engine breaking. Swear it almost sounds like driving a manual sometimes other than the 10spd wanting to shift kinda quick not letting you get into the RPMs.

Sounds nice. I’ve thought about putting one on. With my six speed it might hold longer between shifts too I’d think. So it sounds drowny right near freeway speeds?

OS RR · March 13, 2025

2 hours ago, Pryme said:

Sounds nice. I’ve thought about putting one on. With my six speed it might hold longer between shifts too I’d think. So it sounds drowny right near freeway speeds?

Highway speeds ride around 1500rpm, no drone there at all.

Randal Scott · March 14, 2025

That's the loudest of the 3 kits that Flowmaster has for our trucks. The one that I have heard was to loud. I like the sound of what I have now. Just don't like the drone at the 1700 to 1900 rpm range. Which is highway cruising range. I haven't pulled camper with this muffler yet. The other mufflers were too loud. I looked at the Flowmaster kits. That was my next choice.

OS RR · March 14, 2025

40 minutes ago, Randal Scott said:

That's the loudest of the 3 kits that Flowmaster has for our trucks. The one that I have heard was to loud. I like the sound of what I have now. Just don't like the drone at the 1700 to 1900 rpm range. Which is highway cruising range. I haven't pulled camper with this muffler yet. The other mufflers were too loud. I looked at the Flowmaster kits. That was my next choice.

Its loud no doubt. I've had the thought of putting a resonator in front of the muffler, just to see what it does.

Edited March 14, 2025 by OS RR

Randal Scott · March 14, 2025

When I was looking at them, I was thinking of using the 50 big block series. It's the quietest of them. But still has good sound. I talked to someone who had the Thunder kit, which uses the 50 HD series. And he said it's to loud. He was going to go with the Big Block series. He pulls trailers. I haven't seen him in awhile and I don't know if did it or not.

64BAwagon · March 14, 2025

Something to consider when changing the exhaust. My 2024 has an MBRP system on it. During regular driving it sounds awesome, no drone, low rumble, just what I wanted. Several people have commented how good it sounds, EXCEPT when I am towing. My fifth wheel and all the stuff on the bed tips the scale at around 13k. I typically lock out 9 and 10th gear and run about 64-65 MPH turning 2050 RPM's. As with any gas truck the truck will downshift on grades or when driving into the wind. This is where the issue starts. In 8th gear the exhaust if fine with no drone and a tolerable level of sound. When it downshifts into 7 or 6 on a hill the RPM's end up at 2500 and 3000 and it becomes too loud and will drone.

If I keep this truck (looking at getting a diesel 2026 if the numbers work) I will put the stock exhaust back on before the next long trip. I just got back from the first trip of several thousand miles with this exhaust.

Edited March 14, 2025 by 64BAwagon

Randal Scott · March 14, 2025

I had a Mbrp quiet series muffler on before now and pulled 5th wheel. It was loud. It turned color on the outside. And when we took it off to change mufflers. It was melted inside. The baffles that stick out were deformed. My Silverado is a 2020 2500hd with the 6 speed transmission. Now my Brother-in-law has a 2021. Same motor and transmission. He has the same AFE kit, still the original kit parts. And his truck is not loud and the drone isn't as loud. He pulls a 33 ft travel trailer. These are the same truck, just a different years. I was wondering if I removed the glass pack resonator or replace it with a chambered one would get rid of the drone.

Epsilon Plus · March 15, 2025

I think ditching the resonator will make it worse.

I put the Vibrant Ultra Quiet on mine and it helped a lot. There's only a hint of drone at 1,600 now under light tip in or load but the below and above that tight range the resonator cancelled out the drone. It did not make the truck quieter as far as tone or volume. Resonators are there to try and grab certain frequencies. I don't think changing the mufflers really does much.

These trucks are just drone machines. My theory's why are the muffler is right at the cab/bed joint. The bed is a big open tub that helps contribute to that bassey drone. The long runs of 3.5" pipe can contribute too, which is another reason a resonator helps to break up that run before the muffler.

People on FB were swearing their aftermarket Borla didn't drone. However, if you look at the one GM sells through the accessory site it looks almost identical except it has, you guessed it, a resonator. Likely because GMs NVH requirements even for "sport" exhaust.

Exhaust sound tuning can be witch craft. Look at the lengths the Ford engineers went to with the latest V6 Raptor. Looks like a trumpet under there and it's probably a Helmholtz resonator to kill drone.

I had a 2006 GTO 6.0 with 1 3/4 headers, 2.5" true duals with an H pipe and Dynomax race bullet mufflers. Sounded amazing. I put that EXACT same exhaust set-up on a 1999 Camaro 5.7 and it sounded like raspy ass, Terrible, Hated it.

The way she goes, boys.

Randal Scott · March 15, 2025

My AFE exhaust pipes are 4 inch. I have heard it's a thing with 4 inch pipes. What makes me wonder is if the little baffles in the main muffler were melting, wondering if the ones in the resonator glass pack are. I'll have to check to see if the outside turned color like the muffler did.

OS RR · March 16, 2025

On 3/13/2025 at 8:19 PM, Randal Scott said:

That's the loudest of the 3 kits that Flowmaster has for our trucks. The one that I have heard was to loud. I like the sound of what I have now. Just don't like the drone at the 1700 to 1900 rpm range. Which is highway cruising range. I haven't pulled camper with this muffler yet. The other mufflers were too loud. I looked at the Flowmaster kits. That was my next choice.

Well, eating my own words. After a few days with this thing, with the windows up, its straight up annoying. Windows down its fine. I went ahead and ordered a few parts I needed to swap in (I kept my stock pipes) a 22" magnaflow knock off.

Unfortunate, because it sounds great. Its just that interior drone. I can't drive with the windows down all the time.

Randal Scott · March 16, 2025

Ok, you have the Outlaw kit. Try changing the muffler to the Flowmaster 50 Big Block series it would be a quieter muffler and should get rid of the drone. I'll see if I can find the part number.

Randal Scott · March 16, 2025

Sorry all I can find is the 50 HD muffler and the part number is 8535572-307. Which should better.

OS RR · March 16, 2025

7 hours ago, Randal Scott said:

Ok, you have the Outlaw kit. Try changing the muffler to the Flowmaster 50 Big Block series it would be a quieter muffler and should get rid of the drone. I'll see if I can find the part number.

More I think about it, wonder if I could get a larger resonator and place it before the muffler. Worth a shot I suppose.

I don't know. Cant make my mind up.

Edited March 16, 2025 by OS RR