Magnaflow 19159 Cat-Back Exhaust System Installed on A7 - Drone?

[bthomas22]

I just had this exhaust system installed by my Audi tuner shop in Atlanta and i'm not necessarily happy with current results...

Lower RPM's produce a very low "bass" exhaust tone, however the higher RPM's sound no different than stock. My Roc Euro intake whine is actually louder under hard acceleration.

The low bass tone of the lower RPM's (in my opinion) has a "cheap" sound to it and is highly distracting and annoying in city driving environments. It almost has a muffled bass sound like a bass tube hitting a constant low in my trunk. I constantly see the term drone thrown around when referring to after market exhaust systems - is this what i'm experiencing? I have to crack my window to get the bass sound to reduce and make city driving comfortable.

I hope the exhaust note improves, because at this point i'm not happy with the outcome.

I have seen where some people have gone with an x pipe setup in collaboration with the cat back system...would this make the low end tone better and the higher end more aggressive?

Any advice here? Should i look into any adjustments at a muffler shop, etc..?

[tonymission]

Sorry I don't have any advice with what you have currently. Did you listen to any clips or hear any of these exhausts in person?
What Audi shop do you use here in town?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[bthomas22]

Hey Tony, I was just reading your thread on your RS7...sick car!

I use Autobahn Performance in Norcross. They did my APR stage 1 and installed my grill. They always do a great job for me and i've never had any issues with them. I listened to some clips online and they didn't seem much different than the AWE exhaust, but i'm definitely struggling with the low end and no high end tone.

[bthomas22]

Should I look into downpipes or an x pipe? I've also seen some say that the exhaust needs a break in period...anyone agree with that?

[RAF_S7]

There is definately a breakin period with a new exhaust. When l had the quad AWE fitted to my A7 it took about 2 months to settle in, afterwhich the sound experience was much improved.

However, l didnt suffer any drone related issues from day 1, which makes me think if you are this early on, then you may suffer going forward.

Was there a particular reason you went with this vendor over the more usual AWE/Miltek route?

[bthomas22]

Was there a particular reason you went with this vendor over the more usual AWE/Miltek route?[/QUOTE]

I read several positive reviews on the new Magnaflow and got it for about 1/2 the price of the AWE system...hoping there's a fix here! I'm going to reach out to Magnaflow directly to see what their input is.

[ntsantos]

I have the same exhaust but built mine custom using the same mufflers and resonator. I too had the same drone. I added the AWE resonated downpipes and it made it better, but it did not go away entirely. On short trips I actually like it, but long trips it gets annoying. I've been thinking about either adding side branch resonators or changing out the rear mufflers entirely.

Overall I really don't mind it, but the family does.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using Tapatalk

[DoughBoyFreshLV]

I just had this exhaust system installed by my Audi tuner shop in Atlanta and i'm not necessarily happy with current results...

Lower RPM's produce a very low "bass" exhaust tone, however the higher RPM's sound no different than stock. My Roc Euro intake whine is actually louder under hard acceleration.

The low bass tone of the lower RPM's (in my opinion) has a "cheap" sound to it and is highly distracting and annoying in city driving environments. It almost has a muffled bass sound like a bass tube hitting a constant low in my trunk. I constantly see the term drone thrown around when referring to after market exhaust systems - is this what i'm experiencing? I have to crack my window to get the bass sound to reduce and make city driving comfortable.

I hope the exhaust note improves, because at this point i'm not happy with the outcome.

I have seen where some people have gone with an x pipe setup in collaboration with the cat back system...would this make the low end tone better and the higher end more aggressive?

Any advice here? Should i look into any adjustments at a muffler shop, etc..?

That's very typical for magnaflow exhaust to have drone. I had a set on my s5 v8, the car sounded like a lambo but had terrible drone! It made me want to blow my brains out while driving through the city, I would have to yell to my passenger to talk over it lol! I eventually added awe downpipes to my exhaust, it made a slight improvement not much.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N910A using Tapatalk

[bonafyd]

Yup thats's magnaflow for you.. They drone crazy,awe has the "180 technology" which pretty much supposed to eliminate that..
I rode in my boys with awe and he has no drone at all it's a pretty nice system.

[bthomas22]

Had a local muffler shop replace my stock resonators with small turbo mufflers to reduce the drone today...helped slightly, but not good enough. Anyone want to buy a 2 day old Magnaflow cat back exhaust system :)

[tonymission]

Hey Tony, I was just reading your thread on your RS7...sick car!

I use Autobahn Performance in Norcross. They did my APR stage 1 and installed my grill. They always do a great job for me and i've never had any issues with them. I listened to some clips online and they didn't seem much different than the AWE exhaust, but i'm definitely struggling with the low end and no high end tone.

Thank you! That's where I take my cars too. JR and co. are a good group. They've always been fair.
Looks like you have some good replies above. I would have just said to cut your losses and go AWE so I'm glad you're exploring that route. Should still be able to get something decent for it. I've seen them sell in the classifieds.

[MagnaFlow]

I just had this exhaust system installed by my Audi tuner shop in Atlanta and i'm not necessarily happy with current results...

Lower RPM's produce a very low "bass" exhaust tone, however the higher RPM's sound no different than stock. My Roc Euro intake whine is actually louder under hard acceleration.

The low bass tone of the lower RPM's (in my opinion) has a "cheap" sound to it and is highly distracting and annoying in city driving environments. It almost has a muffled bass sound like a bass tube hitting a constant low in my trunk. I constantly see the term drone thrown around when referring to after market exhaust systems - is this what i'm experiencing? I have to crack my window to get the bass sound to reduce and make city driving comfortable.

I hope the exhaust note improves, because at this point i'm not happy with the outcome.

I have seen where some people have gone with an x pipe setup in collaboration with the cat back system...would this make the low end tone better and the higher end more aggressive?

Any advice here? Should i look into any adjustments at a muffler shop, etc..?

Thomas, the mufflers in your new exhaust system will typically take about 500-1000 miles for the packing material to become broken in. By this time you should hear the tone on the exhaust start to even out, and change slightly. That being said, our systems will give you a very deep tone, which some mislabel as drone. If you are looking for something more raspy and high pitched, aftermarket downpipes may be something to look into, as they have that effect on the overall sound.

The center resonator in your 19159 catback houses a perforated X pipe internally, so you get a deeper, refined sound with the normal performance benefits of an X. If you have any other questions, let us know! We're always happy to help out.

[all_kobiwon]

I just installed the same system on my A6. It was fine around town, though just drove the car from Denver to Aspen and the Drone was hideous. Wish I had put this money towards the AWE. I called Magnaflow yesterday to ask about a solution, basically told me, anything done to alter the system would void the warranty. They really don't seem to car at all, which I found to be surprising.

[bthomas22]

I'm pulling the Magnaflow system off this week and getting the stock system put back on...should've gone AWE.

Hey Magnaflow...are you willing to give me an RMA? Your product is definitely not as described and has horrible drone on long road trips. I would hope that you're willing to stand behind your products.

BTW I drove 1,000 miles this week and the drone is actually worse now.

[Djpeaksd]

Why not try adding X pipe in place of your resonator on your stock exhaust? That's my set up right now and I love it! I do have 4.0T and sport exhaust though so it will obviously sound different but could sound good

[MagnaFlow]

I'm pulling the Magnaflow system off this week and getting the stock system put back on...should've gone AWE.

Hey Magnaflow...are you willing to give me an RMA? Your product is definitely not as described and has horrible drone on long road trips. I would hope that you're willing to stand behind your products.

BTW I drove 1,000 miles this week and the drone is actually worse now.

Thomas, we're sorry to hear that you aren't satisfied with the new system. Are you running downpipes or any other modifications north of the catback? We only ask since there's quite a few people with this catback on daily driven A6/A7s and don't usually hear this sort of feedback.

If you would like more info on returns/exchanges, please PM us.

[all_kobiwon]

I'd be interested in a refund as well, though it certainly doesn't cover the cost of originally getting the exhaust installed, then taken off, then a new one installed.
Hard to imagine you guys at Magnaflow actually tested this exhaust on these cars. If you did, it's hard to believe you would think the droning is acceptable.

[ekpyr]

So... The C7s have active noise cancellation which is adapted to your stock exhaust. It re-adapts when you turn it on/off. I learned this when I first got my custom exhaust made--a three inch catback with Dynomax race bullet resonators. 3" piping run all the way through to stock mufflers. At first I had a bit of drone but nothing bothersome. I wanted more sound in the cabin with Windows closed so I found out how to switch off ANC via VCDS. After a while the loud cabin sounds got tiresome so I switched it back on. That's when I noticed the low level drone sounds that bothered me went away. My system is just the right amount of sound now. Search the forums for ANC or ANR. My notes are there for my RS7. Not sure if they're the same for other lines.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[lx4life]

I have the magnaflows on my A7 and it sounds great, I love the deep tone it has compared to other exhausts. Cause most aftermakret are going to be louder, if not then keep your stock exhaust. I love the magnaflows no complaints here.

[bthomas22]

lx4life, do you not have the drone on highway trips? Glad to hear a positive review from an A7 owner...did you get the full cat back system?

[bthomas22]

Will do ekpyr! Thank you for the advice

[Lee_IV]

Wow I am sure glad I read this post. I'm in the market for a new cat back system and MagnaFlow was one of the names mentioned. I then found out about about AWE and did my research. I am going with them. Sorry you had such a bad experience bthomas22 but thanks for the info.