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Drawbacks to Getting Louder Pipes?

12K views 107 replies 41 participants last post by  Mark-B 
#1 ·
I plan on getting a set of "louder" pipes and I was wondering if any of you with them have experienced any negative social side effects. I've never had them in the past but I know they piss some people off. I know I can forget about making a cigarette run in the middle of the night if I have to.

Also, do you have any advice on pipes? I'm looking to settle on Rineharts so far.
 
#4 ·
I haven't been delegated to the back yet, but I do notice the guy behind me usually hangs back a ways. Cars often roll up the window when beside me at traffic lights.
 
#3 ·
I have straight pipes on mine and other than my brother complaining about it when I visit I don't have any issues. I do wear ear plugs for rides longer than 20 minutes. I did decide to try some baffles to make it a bit more comfortable for me which I will be installing today.

Sent from my Venue8 3840 using Tapatalk
 
#7 ·
Not sure about your area , but around here the cops get real worked up if pipes are too loud. Might want to check what bikers in the area have had to deal with.
 
#8 ·
No. No drawbacks. [emoji1303]


You are never too old to have a happy childhood....I'm still trying.
 
#9 ·
My 750ACE has Cobra LoBoys....... They're not "too" loud but instead add more of a deep rumble.

I used to have Cobra Drag pipes and could never get them to sound very good until I got a set of HP-Plus baffles in them. Before the HP's they were loud and harsh. The HP Baffles mellowed them out nicely.

One time I took the baffles out of the Drags and it was horrible. I have to admit, the sound was nice for about 10-seconds, then it became obnoxious.

I've never had a problem with the Cobra LoBoys in terms of being too loud, on the contrary I've gotten a lot of compliments on the sound and looks!

Phil
 
#10 · (Edited)
You mentioned Rineharts...so we're talking about pipes for your Indian? The only drawback is your ears. If they are too loud you will not enjoy long distance rides. Rineharts on Harleys sound good, but I never heard them on an Indian. Any way you can hear them for yourself at an Indian dealer? On a Harley they have a great low rumble at idle and not too crazy loud at speed. Good company, good pipes. For the Harley market they make mostly slip-ons. Is it the same for Indian? Have you looked into it?
 
#14 ·
Reinhart makes some slip-ons for the Indian bikes. I agree, Harry, I would *HIGHLY* suggest you find a bike with them equipped before you purchase them yourself. Our local Indian dealer had one a while back, and it sounded "ok" but the Indian Stage 2 setup was much, much, MUCH better for about the same moneys.
 
#12 ·
Truth. I can certainly make my pipes loud or quiet depending on my right hand and left foot. If I want to keep them quiet, I shift sooner and ease on the throttle. But where's the fun in that. [emoji12]


Sitting on my Shadow making vroom vroom noises.
 
#15 ·
Loud pipes are annoying. Have no idea why anyone would want to but I tend to avoid them. I was contacted by a member here that wanted to do some local rides. Unfortunately he had a VT750 with straight shot pipes and to me that is the worst sounding engine I have ever heard. Went with him once and hated it. The next time I mentioned I would prefer to lead but was pretty embarrassed at stop lights etc so have not gone since. When I hear loud pipes I think newbie/wannabe.

G.

PS I did have megaphones on a 69 Triumph Daytona because the bike had been in an accident and the stock exhaust was really expensive. and yes I was a newbie/wannabe at the time (and poor)
 
#16 ·
i'm for loud pipes cuz i truly believe loud pipe saves lives.
However, i think it should be done conservatively.
I live in a extremely quiet neighborhood where even my stock exhaust echoes around the houses.
But if it means that other drivers can hear you coming for safety reasons, I'm all for it.

Like GDB said, don't be a newbie.

I'm still searching for a set of aftermarket pipes for my '13 Phantom... if anyone's looking to get rid of theirs... :)
 
#18 ·
I had Cobra pipes on my 07 Shadow spirit that I was going to swap with WutUGot for his stock ones, but I sold the bike before we could make the swap. I rode Gold Wings for about 30 years so anything above a hum was to loud for me. I'm looking at a 01 Shadow ACE now and it has stock pipes.
 
#22 ·
I'm with gdb on this.

I love nice sounding pipes but they don't have to be loud. I've ridden between too many Harley's, it seems Harley riders have to reeve their engines all the time to keep their bikes running and it must be that Harley's run better if the baffles are removed from them.
 
#23 ·
I'm with gdb on this.



I love nice sounding pipes but they don't have to be loud. I've ridden between too many Harley's, it seems Harley riders have to reeve their engines all the time to keep their bikes running and it must be that Harley's run better if the baffles are removed from them.


A stock Harley sounds almost as quiet as a stock Honda. They don't remove baffles, they change the pipes.

The rev'ing thing, I still don't understand, but it isn't just a Harley thing...I see owners of metric bikes doing it just as much.


You are never too old to have a happy childhood....I'm still trying.
 
#24 ·
The worst is you will spend $$$$ and not like them. install costs, etc. One thing that I found annoying loud from a 1/2 mi. away, fishtails w/o baffles. They friggin' hurt your ears. I personally ride it a whole season before making a decision on replacement as I think the stock setup looks great kinda a Road Burner look. Loud pipes don't save live's, you do. ;)
 
#25 ·
One social consideration...if you live in a neighborhood with an HOA, read the HOA carefully to make sure there is nothing in there about loud vehicles. HOA Nazis will make your life hell.

Personally, I'm in the "I like quiet" camp.
 
#27 ·
One social consideration...if you live in a neighborhood with an HOA, read the HOA carefully to make sure there is nothing in there about loud vehicles. HOA Nazis will make your life hell..
Speaking of the type.. Caught this the other day.. Never seen anything quite like it.



..Personally, I'm in the "I like quiet" camp.
Me too.
 
#31 ·
I don't mind some rumble, but I consider loud pipes a fashion statement.

The upside: You like the sound
(I don't buy into the "loud pipes save lives" either.)
The downside: Everything else:
Annoying the muggles in general.
Waking up and pissing off everyone at the campground (early riser, here)
Nearby riders backing away like you forgot to use your deodorant.

I grew up in a house that was at the bottom of a hill. There were time's when I was nearly knocked out of bed when some man-child with open pipes would blat by, gunning the throttle to goose his way up the hill during the wee hours. :evil: That sort of influenced my opinion.

Of course, this is only one man's opinion and I understand that everyone else may be wrong. :grin2:
 
#32 ·
I will say this about loud pipes.. Just for example. I was caging my way around a roundbout, no bikes anywhere to be seen. Then I heard the most Godawful racket, so I'm making my way around this roundabout looking for the bike it came from.. I didn't see it. I did not see one bike.. Anywhere.. I heard one though! Sounded like it was right next to my window. And then it was gone.

Loud pipes had me looking all over the place for a bike I never saw, at the type of intersection which generally requires a certain amount of consideration.

Causing distraction in those around you, is not necessarily a good thing.

I don't care if a person likes loud pipes or not, that's either your thing or not. But I wouldn't count on loud pipes always working in your favor in the way of safety.
 
#33 ·
I have blipped the throttle on cars coming over on me (they didn't look) and had them swerve back into their lane and then start looking for me.

I guess that was just a circumstance that I have replicated many times, right?

No loud pipes, no blip would help, equal me possibly getting run over.

But keep believing loud pipes don't matter or save lives. Wear your Power Ranger suit and keep thinking it will save you on your quiet bike.


You are never too old to have a happy childhood....I'm still trying.
 
#35 ·
Not discounting anybody's experience, just don't discount mine to add veracity to your own theories, is all I ask.

There's a reason why sounding your horn unnecessarily is illegal. You get tickets for that. Because it causes undue distraction in the motorists around you.

You bash the Viz in one breath, yet imbue loud pipes with some magical quality when it comes to helping to keep you safe.

Said it before, every little-bit helps.. But, aside from just being just loud, causing distraction, in those around you, also poses risks. The SIAM, we both agree, works very well. Because it's very distracting.. But it's not for all occasions.

Blipping your throttle or "gunning it" unnecessarily.. It's the same as sounding your horn. It's the same as using a SIAM.. But generally, causing loud noise - unnecessarily - is not keeping you safe. It's riding down the road with your horn on.
 
#39 ·
I have a set of V&H long shots on my 07 spirit c2. They are not made for my bike they actually came off of a 03 spirit but I made them work. They are not too loud unless you bare down on the throttle to pass someone, then your scaring any animal within 2 square miles. I do see people rolling up their windows at red lights or in passing but I would much rather them be pissed and Hear me than not hear or see me and run me off the road. Good luck and God Bless.
 

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#41 ·
did you drill out the baffles on your Phantom? I recommend it, it improved the sound nicely, not much louder, but got rid of that bit of moped sound from the stockers.[/QUOTE]

Drilling out the baffles would be my last option. In case for whatever reason i need to put the bike back to stock, I'd like to have that option. another option is to get an extra set of stocks and drill it out. I'd prefer to have a set of aftermarkets... just sayin...

I think it all depends on where you ride and road conditions.
here in cali, cagers suck... i commute through traffic and splitting lanes definitely helps with louder pipes.
I've had too many close calls with dumb**s drivers trying to get ahead by crossing double yellows into carpool.

again... my personal belief is to be respectful of your surroundings. the pipes are for people to recognize that a motorcyclist is around you. Don't be a douche bag just to be loud...

ride safe all!
 
#42 ·
Personally, I'm not looking for loud - more like a full well rounded sound that does away with the slight stock "moped" sound, as another member called it.

I never understood the constant reeving thing myself. (But I did enjoy the joke here about it keeping a Harley running.) To me it would seem hard to do while knowing everyone just things you're an @ss. One would have to be under the false belief that they are appearing "cool" while reeving in order to actually execute it. I guess some of us just know better.

As far as the pipes saving lives? To me it's about awareness - when people hear a motorcycle (which they probably know it is) they most likely become aware, at least subconsciously I would think. I think in general "loud pipes saves lives" is just one of those sayings that seeks to use a seemingly legitimate reason to justify something that one knows is undesired or unreasonable in reality. Loud(er) pipes create awareness that could save a life as do high visibility clothes and gear. I believe this in a factual way, not as a result of my opinion or personal experience.
 
#49 ·
I like my stock meepmeep horn. Its so loud it hurts my ears so I assume its adjusted to its loudest setting beside theres hardly room on a Valk to add a bigger horn w/o looking any chitty'er than the stocker. I prefer to use my power and brakes and my skill to stay alive/upright. Worked so far for 48 yrs.
 
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