Ark vs Perrin
 

Hello Everyone! So I've been debating on a new exhaust and have kinda narrowed it down to 2 exhaust brands from my research. Basically this is what I want in my exhaust

- Deep sounding exhaust, (no raspy sound)
- Can hear the sound/deep sound building up through the RPM's
- Very nice WOT sounds
- Little to no drone
- P.S. I daily my car also

I've looked into Perrin 2.5 catback exhaust resonated and at first was considering this exhaust but some people say it's not noticeable at all through the RPM's unless at WOT.

For Ark performance I've been debating on either the Grip or DTS. From what people says, the GRIP exhaust is quieter than the DTS with just the catback alone. Some people say that the DTS causes some sort of drone? Not sure about that since most people are saying there is little to no drone. Could any owners of the ark exhaust elaborate on the drone and sound. Also will adding the test pipe on either one of the exhaust cause any sort of drone? I'm mainly looking into just having the catback exhaust with no test pipe added but would love to hear feedback on it.

All feedback is welcome and feel free to post pictures and videos of your exhaust! Thanks again!

http://i1302.photobucket.com/albums/...ps02f2aa29.jpg

i got the Grip with the ARK test pipe, sounds really good, no drone, and its a nice aggressive tone when you are WOT.
im selling it soon as im going with the Tomei set up ;)

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fj46Pw_taao&feature=youtube_gdata_player"]FR-S ARK GRiP exhaust cruising - YouTube[/ame]

Ark grip
Ark test pipe
JDL over pipe
Airaid intake (will get rid of this at some point... Lol)

No drone at all. Overall very unique sound. Beautiful when WOT. But VERY loud cold start till it warms up (I measured close to 80dB about 10 feet away... Quiets to around 50 when warm) . After it warms up its not that loud at all. Car is my DD also


And personally from what I heard, the Perrin is a lot more quiet, but to me it sounds raspy/metallic/tin-like.

Also, I had just the cat back for about two months before adding the test pipe, and then added the over pipe a month after that.

The cat back alone sounds pretty nice, but Adding their test pipe, it sounds much more alive and "mean." IIRC, the DTS was only a dB or 2 louder than the grip. And the grip with the test pipe increased by 4 dB

And the grip looks so much better then the DTS

@hotpanda1 @Propaganda Thanks for your guy's feedback! Do your guy's exhaust tips stick out alot? I saw a DTS one in person and they were sticking out past the bumper. Also could you guys compare the sound to todays car? I read from someone that the ARK Grip sounds like a g35/37?

The tips (at least on mine) do stick out a bit farther than most exhausts I've seen, but its not reallllly far out. Mine stick out maybe a centimeter past the flat face of the bumper? Its grown on me since I first had the exhaust, though. As far as similar sounding to other cars? I'm not sure... Tone-wise, I can kind of see the 350/g35/37, but sound wise...its still not the v6. This is definitely one of the more unique sounding exhausts, but I think its more in a world of its own

I've had Perrin non res, then res, then ARk DTS and my favorite so far would be my DTS mated to perrin catted front pipe and over pipe.

no rasp at all, and the tone is considered "perfect" to many and not OMG I'M COMING DOWN THE STREET loud.

the perrin res was just too quiet and sounded very restricted. the non res rasped with my set up, but it did sound raw and sharp.. which was nice but it was too loud at times.

good luck with your decision

How was the DTS catback alone sound like? You think it's one of those exhaust where I won't grab too much attention from the cops or if I want it to be quiet type exhaust?

Interesting. Does the exhaust give it some sort of rumble or deep sound when driving normally?

I don't want to steer you away from your original three choices but you should seriously look into the M7 T-Titanium Cat back. Not to sound like I'm sponsored by them (I'm not) but the M7 fulfills and surpasses all of your requirements and most importantly, weighs way less than the Arks. I'm about to place my order for a M7 Cat Back, hopefully receive it, and install it by the end of January. Since you live in Hayward, I wouldn't mind driving up to show you how it sounds in person. I digress, back to your original three choices- I'd go with the GriP due to its aesthetic structure and it's option of being slightly quieter than the DT-S. I say so because it leaves room for increased sound for future exhaust modifications (front pipe, over pipe, headers), should I ever add it.

Yea I have actually looked into the M7 and really loved the sound but with no one having it around the area and the few videos online I couldn't justify spending so much money on the exhaust. Which vendor are you getting it from and when you do get it installed please let me know! I have a while to go before I make my final decision on my exhaust so whenever you can I would love to hear the exhaust!

I feel the same in regards to feeling that there aren't a lot of videos up online to justify your purchase on a $1k+ cat back, but it's just the matter of preference in all honesty. I really love the sound of the Tomei Expreme 60S Cat back- it makes the car sound like a freaking subbie- but I do plan on adding a full header back system down in the years. In regards to vendors, there are quite a few vendors but I'm personally going to Source Total Performance. Assuming that the deal doesn't break, I'll hopefully purchase the cat back within the coming week and have it bolted on by the end of January. Also, I'm the type of person that likes to do everything once and get it over with; I don't want to buy a cat back that sounds great but eventually intend on adding headers and making the car sound like a Harley.

I have the ARK GriP and I love it. I DD my car 80 miles a day and it has no drone and sounds wonderful at WOT. Like someone else stated it is quite loud at cold start, but it quiets down rather quickly. I currently have the stock front pipe (the ARK test pipe does not fit the AT car) and am currently happy with my exhaust setup.

At one of our local 86 meets we started up our cars for someone to hear, we had Perrin, Milltek, Isis, and Greddy along with the ARK and everyone was impressed with the ARK.