My stock exhaust is rusted through at the joint after the muffler. I'd like to upgrade to a 4" system. after reading a bunch of old threads, i'm afraid the mbrp and silverline might be a little too loud? I want a deeper, throatier sound thats a little louder than stock, but not so loud as to be annoying to neighbors. If I put in the mbrp system and don't like it, how hard would it be to swap out the mbrp muffler with a donaldson or similar quieter muffler. Is this the best plan or is there a cheaper/easier way to put in a new system and still have some flexibility?

 

go on U-tube and search cummins and 4" exhaust. you can hear how loud or if to your liking.

 

Yeah i've been doing that, and it helps, but sometimes its hard to tell just how loud it actually is on camera. I've been trying to think back to trucks i've heard in person too. Would the same exhaust sound similar on a 12v and a 3rd gen?

 

i dont think so, the common rail motor even 24 valve sound different. my truck has been refered to an old 4-wd tractor, you would prob. hate it. hell sometimes i do!!

 

The sound is too subjective to be able to make a decision based on the forums and people's descriptions of how they sound. Best case is find your local chapter and attend a get together or something and listen to other trucks. When you find the sound you like, ask them what type of system they have.

 

The donaldson or similar 4" in/4"out muffler should fit pretty easily on an MBRP system though right. Im guessing its just a matter of pulling the MBRP muffler and probably cutting the pipe that comes from the downpipe to the muffler a little shorter to fit the longer muffler, right? I can get the aluminized MBRP for $300, and if I don't like it I can add the donaldson for another $60, I don't think thats too bad.

 

That's exactly what I did. The swap was not bad. Just don't tighten the clamps real hard and pinch the pipe. The most complicated part of the swap was the hangers for the Donaldson. I got the mrbp system with clamp on hangers and was able to reuse them with a 40" Donaldson. All I had to do was flip the front hanger mount(on the truck) around.

The mbrp muffler was not bad in my opinion. It was however more than what I wanted to tow with.

 

Thanks kreynolds. One more question. Anyone running a diamond eye system or know anything about them? How do they compare to MBRP in quality? I imagine the sound is almost the same since they look to be the very similar?

 

Check out farmboysdiesel. They have pretty good prices on 4" systems with or without mufflers.

 

I found a 4" diamond eye system in aluminized for $280 and 409ss for $293, so thats the way i'm leaning right now. I knew a guy that used to have one on a 3rd gen and i liked that. I've heard bad things about 409ss (surface rust/pitting) but will it last longer than the aluminized overall?

 

re: 409ss, i've heard again and again that they don't last much longer than the aluminized...couldn't afford 309ss so for the money I went aluminized--
but watch out, some companies actually have a lesser quality of aluminized...I guess to get to the less than $300 price point, but you really don't want to buy those...just make sure...

i did put on an mbrp 4" with muffler but also put on a 30" resonator, right after the downpipe, before the muffler
I was looking for quiet without too much restriction...worked really well for me, very quiet in cab (except when the mighty cummins engine is revving up)
and I'm very happy with the sound from the tail pipe, my horses love it too
(well, better than it was--it will never be as quiet as the old gasser)

 

Check out Stans Headers (www.stansheaders.com). Their 4" system comes with a Donaldson muffler.

 

The FTE resonator was one of the best things ive done for my truck. It was harsh to ride in it for very long with the straight pipe. That has totally changed with the resonator.

Ive read that 409 isnt as strong as aluminized pipe. FWIW

 

i have the 4" diamond eye and i love it.. my brother has a 4" mbrp on his 24v and its way louder, so is my buddys 12v with a 4" banks.. my neighbor had a 4" mbrp on his dmax and the muffler rotted out, so i ordered him a muffler like mine and his truck is alot quieter especially inside.. i highly recomend the diamond eye, plus it has a stainless muffler..

 

I have mbrp 4" cool duals 409 ss. 309 have no warranty so I went with 409. I did not use there clamps and bought ss band clamps so I could take it apart to adjust the duals if needed. The exhaust is louder than stock but I don`t have a drone and don`t play around town so I don`t have any problems . Towing is not much different than not so i`am happy.