Resonators to quiet down Borla ATAK

jmustang · Aug 26, 2022

Love the sound of the ATAKs, but lately have been finding them a little too loud. They also drone pretty bad below 2k rpm. Exhaust is stock up to mufflers.

2 options I’m thinking of:

1) Install resonators, vibrant performance looks good. Not sure wether to go with ultra quiets or bottle style. Also not sure which length to order. I think a 6-9db reduction would be nice.

2)Replace mufflers and sell the ATAK. I like the Borla sound. Forums seem to say s-type is not really any quieter then the ATAK. Borla touring doesn’t sound that good to me online IMO, but never heard it in person.

What resonators have you installed? Can I get a decent reduction in sound with them? Thanks

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Pentalab · Aug 26, 2022

I have JBA LT's and mating JBA hi-flow cats on my 2010...and FRPP FRS-500 SS mufflers. It was WAY too loud, and drone right at 1900 rpm. Had a pair of pypes SS M80's installed. The resonators were welded into place, just before the rear axle. Problem solved. Any quality resonator should do the job.

pass1over · Aug 26, 2022

Those borla ATAKs look similar to the Roush cans. Little round mufflers?

I have MBRP long tubes, O/R x, no resonators and the roush mufflers. It was way too loud and raspy. Installed a flowmaster style dual in/out in front of roush mufflers and behind x pipe, quieted it down just enough and got rid of a lot of rasp.

Going to build/try out an H pipe to see if I can get rid of a little more.

jmustang · Aug 26, 2022

Here’s a picture of the ATAKs, they’re a straight through muffler. You can see daylight looking through them

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jmustang · Aug 26, 2022

Pentalab said:
I have JBA LT's and mating JBA hi-flow cats on my 2010...and FRPP FRS-500 SS mufflers. It was WAY too loud, and drone right at 1900 rpm. Had a pair of pypes SS M80's installed. The resonators were welded into place, just before the rear axle. Problem solved. Any quality resonator should do the job.

Did you stagger the resonators?

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Racer47 · Aug 26, 2022

I had the same issue with Mac mufflers. I went with the Vibrant 12" resonators with about a 6" stagger. Thats all the stagger that fits easily. It fixed the drone and quieted it down quiet a bit. If its way too loud. go with the 18" version.

https://www.summitracing.com/parts/vpe-1792
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/vpe-1793

Pentalab · Aug 27, 2022

jmustang said:
Did you stagger the resonators?

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No I didn't.....and should have. Watch out though, my M80's are 4" diam, and car is lowered 1.25" at the rear (and 1/2" at the front). Being 4" diam, the resonators are low to the grnd. To do any staggering, you want one of em (either side) to be as close as practical to the rear axle...and the 2nd resonator shifted forward a bit, like 1-2". Don't get carried away. If the 2nd resonator is shifted too far forward, it will also be closer to the ground. Longer resonator's will just compound the problem.

IF the resonator's are < 4" diam, then you have more wiggle room, but most I have seen are 4".
The Pypes stainless steel M80's, at the time, were cheap at AM ($44.00 each). M80's are not very long. Instead of using clamps, we cut the slotted flanges right off in the bandsaw, then welded em in, 360 degs, at both ends. They are still super shiny, considering they were welded in years ago, and have never been cleaned, or wiped clean when on a lift.

You don't require much stagger to do a 100% kill job on the drone. 1-3" is ample. With no staggering at all, my 1900 rpm drone is reduced aprx 85%. And the drone is narrow in rpm. Go just a bit higher / lower in rpm, and it's gone.

I went with the catted H, since folks with the X version reported they sound a bit raspy..and I hate rasp.

tabstang · Aug 29, 2022

I've been through many many brands and types of mufflers on my 4 s197s, including NA and supercharged V6 and V8 cars. Every aftermarket exhaust I tried (at least 8 different brands) suffered from drone. I finally fixed it by installing an "uneven split H" pipe between the exhaust tubes, just behind the cats. By that I mean a cross pipe open to the exhaust on either end but with a divider in it, splitting the distance 1/3 - 2/3. I used some spare stainless exhaust tubing I had, and paid a muffler shop to weld it up. The guy had never seen it done before, and was shocked and amazed how well it worked.

BTW I ended up using Ford OE GT mufflers on all my cars, IMO they sound just right. That's just what I like, no judgement on others, to each his own.

JPBJr1955 · Aug 29, 2022

Perhaps I am dense, but I am having trouble understanding the "uneven split H pipe" discussed by tabstang.

Would you be able to provide a quick, simple drawing showing what you are referring to?

THANKS!

tabstang · Aug 29, 2022

Looking at this I realize I mis- remembered, we put it just in from off the axle , the longer the better - so just behind no. 7 in this diagram.

tabstang · Aug 29, 2022

tabstang · Aug 29, 2022

In front of the Axle - stupid smart phone error

tabstang · Aug 29, 2022

This is just a neat and compact way of putting uneven length tubes on. It kills sonic resonance because of the unequal length.

Bob Cipriani · Aug 29, 2022

jmustang said:
Love the sound of the ATAKs, but lately have been finding them a little too loud. They also drone pretty bad below 2k rpm. Exhaust is stock up to mufflers.

2 options I’m thinking of:

1) Install resonators, vibrant performance looks good. Not sure wether to go with ultra quiets or bottle style. Also not sure which length to order. I think a 6-9db reduction would be nice.

2)Replace mufflers and sell the ATAK. I like the Borla sound. Forums seem to say s-type is not really any quieter then the ATAK. Borla touring doesn’t sound that good to me online IMO, but never heard it in person.

What resonators have you installed? Can I get a decent reduction in sound with them? Thanks

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Bob Cipriani · Aug 29, 2022

I installed the S-Type Borlas on my 2007 GT based on their "no drone" advertising. It turns out that Borla means "no drone if you have not modified your car with headers and cams" (like I did). Ended up welding in two Vibrant 18" bottle resonators, which pretty much eliminated the drone and did not affect the exhaust note much at all.

redfirepearlgt · Aug 30, 2022

I don't brand brag much but AWE is the end of discussion when it comes to "zero drone". Some competitors "claim" they do it.These guys have DONE IT!

AWE axle back touring FTW on stock setup with cats! Zero drone on a 10.5 psi Paxton setup. Loud when you lay into it. Quiet when cruising. My wife is the queen of drone drama. She has not complained once about drone since I finished this project...just grumbles about the ride now...can't win. But it doesn't matter if you are on a flat, or pulling a long grade at 1800-2200 RPM. There is no drone. The only setup I found almost as appealing at a lower cost was GT500 factory mufflers and O/R H-pipe setup. I've had MBRP, Roush, Solo, Magnaflow, and Flowmaster and they all drone. Even ran a Solo system on my 17 and while it came in close 3rd to AWE and GT500/OR H, it still had a slight drone at 75mph. This AWE system is great. Best money I spent on exhaust and the happiest. With regard to a no cat setup...couldn't tell ya about AWE. Stick with the GT500 stock exhaust option from Ford Racing running no cats if you want a sure tested thing. Or find someone who has run AWE without cats and read up.

WJBertrand · Aug 31, 2022

tabstang said:
View attachment 84044

I’m confused. I thought H pipes were communicating? I can see how the different volumes on each side would stop the resonating, but do you loose performance blocking the H pipe like that?

Oh and a note about my experience with Borla Touring axle backs; I do not get any drone from these at any RPM. The rest of my system is stock, so not sure their claim of “no drone” holds true if you’ve made other mods. I love the mellow sound they make. Just loud enough for me to enjoy, while not being annoying to the general public.

-Jeff

EBABlacknChrome · Sep 4, 2022

WJBertrand said:
I’m confused. I thought H pipes were communicating? I can see how the different volumes on each side would stop the resonating, but do you loose performance blocking the H pipe like that?

Oh and a note about my experience with Borla Touring axle backs; I do not get any drone from these at any RPM. The rest of my system is stock, so not sure their claim of “no drone” holds true if you’ve made other mods. I love the mellow sound they make. Just loud enough for me to enjoy, while not being annoying to the general public.

-Jeff

It appears this is added before the rear axle. Original h stays in place. I would guess that it's similar to hemholts theory. The unequal length seems to make sense. That's my take on it.

I have side pipes, everyone loves the way its sounds. At one time so did I, headers and a super charger, not so much. It's noisy AF, that's coming from a guy that loves fast and loud cars. It's a little less enjoyable while cruising at times. Everyone knows I am coming at CC. [emoji38]

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WJBertrand · Sep 4, 2022

Thanks, OK, so this is added as a second “H” after the communicating one, rather than replacing it. That makes sense then.

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MrBhp · Sep 4, 2022

I was sure with the offset in resonators that are part of the Roush straight system would help reduce done. Nope. At least it didn't cost anything. So I put in a rotating performance enhancing device to quiet it down. Helped a bit with drone, but not enough. The performance enhancement was substantial, however. I highly recommend it.

Resonators to quiet down Borla ATAK

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