irideducs

I recently purchased a set of stock cores on eBay and sent them to Darin for his Stage 2 and Cermachrome magic. Received last Monday, installed Friday, and thoroughly tested over the weekend.

Like many on the list, I struggled with the Stage 2 vs. 3 decision. Before p-cars (and kids), I was deep into Ducatis -- all with thumping aftermarket pipes. Of course these bikes are great on the track and in the twisties, but I had just as much fun cruising along in the low gears and listening to the beautiful exhaust music. I love my C4S, but longed for more than my stock Motorsound exhaust could deliver without annoying my wife and kids who ride with me about 50% of the time. I settled for 2s.

This is a good kind of settling. Darin's craftsmanship is truly beautiful and I had a huge grin on my face after hearing them for the first time. At idle, they are not noticeably louder than the Motorsounds, but the note is lower and a little more mechanical. They are definitely meaner under throttle and I got looks (good and bad) when getting on it from a stop when pedestrians were around. My wife and kids were fine with the louder note and cruising along in low gear with the windows down is fun again.

The negative -- I am more frustrated than I was before. My kids won't let me keep the windows down for any length of time and the car is, for occupants, no louder than stock with the windows up. I also took a nice long drive at highway speeds with the windows down and the wind noise numbed my hearing to the point that I thought my Stage 2s were broken! What happend to that tasty growl?

Darin, I will pay anything for a Stage 2 / 3 with a switch that I could flip when I am hearing impaired or by myself and no one else is listening. In the meantime, I have loaded a Fister exhaust soundtrack on my iPod to play when I am in my glass prison.

The good news is that my huge grin returns each time I start the car -- windows down, of course.

I posted a "before and after" video on YouTube -- attached below. Search "Porsche Motorsound versus Fister Stage 2 Exhaust " if it doesn't work. Thanks again Darin.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D98XeQXan3Q

pcarhombre

Sorry if I'm thick, but I don't get it. Are you saying the new cans hurt your ears? I have 2s as well and have not noticed any negative effects, no droning etc. Maybe all those years of standing in front of amplifiers rendered me unaffected.

RDS928S

Nice sound. Like the polished muffler look too.
Now you need an x-pipe with cats to top it off.

You know i have a list of mods for you!

irideducs

I'm sorry for the misunderstanding. My hearing was numb from the wind noise, not the cans -- they are not loud at all on the highway. Love the Stage 2s, but would love them more if I could turn them up on special occasions .

FisterD

You actually can. The volume pedal is located under your right foot

Thanks for the nice writeup!

matt777

I believe that they do improve the sound in the cabin with the windows closed at WOT.

irideducs

I know you do Rich. Tips might be first as I scraped mine on your next door neighbor's driveway when turning around after Friday night's drive by. I picked the smoothest driveway I could find, but the pitch in the road got me.

As soon as Darin gets the wide body tips in stock.

Kein_Ersatz

Since getting the FD Turbo treatment, have enjoyed the new sound, grunt at low end, yet no drone when cruising.

Had the car out in a multi story parking garage the other day (first time since mod), rolled the windows down, zipped in 1st, OMG! I took mutiple laps looking for a parking spot, just so I could enjoy the sound track.

No tunnels to speak of here in fly-over-land. Didn't know what I was missing!

Heading to DE this weekend, can't wait for the fun and the sound at speed.

J.B.H.

Or you could just bump up to Stage III's and make every day Mardi Gras!!!

Stage III's coming next week...

simpsoap

+1
After a year of ownership, I still grin each time I start the car and get on it. STAGE III's FTW.....

Andy

martyp

Thanks for the write up - I too have been struggling with the II vs III decision. I've heard the IIs in person, but no IIIs so far. Good luck and I hope you find your nirvana

irideducs

Then you must be bummed about the pending UPS strike. I hear that packages might take up to two months to get from CA to NJ.

I'll remember to bring tools to the next gathering so I can swap them while you are in the bakery. Maybe I'll just swap one to make Fister 2.5s.

Safemoney

I have Fabspeed with stainless tips...does anyone have any video of the difference between those? I feel like the Fabspeed pipes make a great sound - but it's hard to compare. Any experience?

FisterD

Your black beauties are in transit. Scheduled for delivery on May 3rd.

irideducs

Question Darin. JBH has a widebody -- does this picture mean that you now have widebody tips, or are they just for show (or does the euro bumper make a difference)?