Are you tired of your stock Triumph Bonneville exhaust sound, or maybe you have the same frustration with the Triumph Thruxton exhaust? In any case, does it sound like a sewing machine? Want to give your bike some character in the sound department?
Then it’s time you think about upgrading the exhaust on your Triumph Bonneville or Triumph Thruxton. The easy part is making the decision to upgrade the exhaust. The difficult part is determining which exhaust system to upgrade to.
There are a number of different options to choose from when it comes to Triumph after market exhaust systems. Some people are looking for pure loudness. Others are simply looking for something that reminds them of the classic Bonneville or Thruxton sound without offending their neighbors.
The struggle for many is what exhaust system do I choose? Many of the questions I’ve seen are related to which exhaust system is louder than this exhaust.
I put together this little infographic to give you a comparison on various Triumph Bonneville exhaust sounds for the different after market systems. I gathered this data from a number of various sources, as I’m currently in the process of upgrading the exhaust on my Triumph Thruxton.
Note: Just replaced the stock pipes on my Thruxton with the Dominator Touring exhaust if you’d like to take a look.
Triumph Bonneville Exhaust Sound Infographic
This infographic was created based upon hours of research on the various exhaust options available for the Triumph Bonneville and Thruxton. I by no means claim to have heard each of these exhaust systems (at least first hand). Keep in mind, sound is very subjective, and what’s loud to one person can be quite tame to someone else.
The cost is based upon MSRP from various after market vendors. You can find these Triumph Bonneville exhaust systems quite a bit cheaper from other sources. Do your homework before buying.
Sound scale is based upon 1 – 10 (1 – quiet / 10 – loud).
If you disagree on any of the Triumph Bonneville exhaust options I have in the above graphic, by all means let me know. I’d like to make this as accurate as possible.
I love the sound of my D&D exhaust. Only thing is the exhaust bottoms out easily. I looked at the Bubs exhaust but they don’t work for Fuel Injected bikes.
Great review! Thanks!! 2014 stock pipes on Thruxton are supposed to be better and produce very similar sound as TORs. Do you agree? What about Australian Staintune for Thruxton ? Not sure whether those are easily available in UK or Europe
Regards,
Phil
Thanks Phil. I’ve heard the stock pipes on the newer Thruxton’s are better, but I’ve also heard they’re not that much better. I haven’t heard them myself, only based upon what I’ve read. Don’t know much about the Staintune but I don’t see why they couldn’t be shipped to the UK.
Just had the full Triumph Twin Power package installed on my 2014 Thruxton 900 with TOR free flow pipes. Love it! I can confirm all the praise you’ll find in the Customer reviews section on the TTP website. The bike is just going much smoother and feels more powerful and liberated. Vibrations, especially in the foot pegs at higher revs, are gone. Sound of the TOR’s is just what I was looking for and reminds me a lot of the sound produced by my 1970 Bonneville T120.
I have a 2014 t100 black with the “revised” exhaust. it sounds similar to the TOR pipes, but just a little quieter. you can see a comparison video i made here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=70FKH_XcUyE
i will shortly be changing to dominators or similar ceramic coated reverse cones, because it want the pipes to be all black, and i want it to be louder still.
Thanks for the information and link Jon.
Great info, Jon. I have now put 2100 kms on my Sept 2014 Thruxton (in Brooklands green) and I must say the bike is terrific. Amazing how much better and more pleasant the ride is compared to the break-in days. Also, the sound of the stock 2014 exhaust has become deeper and more rumbling than before, in particular when the engine is hot, so I am hesitating to change to TORs or Staintunes. I am sure SS will be louder (it comes at a hefty price) but no longer sure that TORs will make that much difference with the stock pipes although I have read a comment somewhere that the TORs also need 2000 miles break-in to come to their best of sound.
The only real disappointment for me is the stock seat; a real disgrace for a brand with a reputation as solid as Triumph. In fact, it is soo bad that after some 500km I could no longer stand it and spent another 200€ for the Triumph gel seat which btw looks exactly the same as the stock seat. I was getting very concerned after another 500km on the new gel seat because I did not feel much of a difference. Now that I have a solid 2000km on the bike (of which 1500 on the gel seat) I must say the seat is satisfactory but I am still not thrilled about it. For sure, Triumph should just offer the gel seat as its stock seat and get rid of the foam seat all together. In the meantime I have sent the spare stock seat to Baldwin motorbike saddles in the US ( http://www.motorbikesaddles.com ) and they are turning it into a custom made saddle for me. I will keep you guys posted on how that worked out.
Regards,
Phil
How about Arrow 2:1… Is it louder or quieter than 2:2 system?
Hi Joshua – not really sure about that. Maybe someone else can respond and let us know their thoughts.
Its a very nice article and we will definitely highlight the link for the website if Triumph riders India. Thank you so much for creating the article.
http://www.triumphindia.org
oh my god, thank you sooooo much ! many, many people are searching the internet for the info you have compiled. the sound of the stock Bonneville pipes suck ! your charts are an immense help ! thank you again ! rick j in ohio
p.s. I like the TORS or the Dominator touring —not too loud !
That’s awesome Rick, glad you found this helpful. I just bought the Dom Touring, and will be getting up a review as soon as I get them installed. Can’t wait.
yes — post that info when you can !
Already did RJ, see my latest post.
Great review Craig!! I am planning to buy a EMGO pipe for my thruxton, the stock pipe sucks. I found the EMGO a bit cheap, does anybody have any bad experience with it?
I agree with your comment on the stock pipes. I just put the Dominator Touring pipes on my bike this weekend. Wow! Unbelievable difference!
I would still love to hear the pipes in a controlled environment… I bought a used bonny with what are supposed to be NH togas but I find them the loudest pipes I’ve ever heard…. so disappointed . the NH’s that I hear on Youtube etc. sound great! nothing like the pipes on my bike… I have to switch them out but I don’t want stock pipes either.. and I don’t want to buy new NH’s if they are the same as what I already have.
any one know if there is a cheap copy cat version of the NH’s that may be what is on my bike?
The video’s didn’t seem to help me either. It’s just too hard to get a decent perspective on them. The only way I know is going to a dealer and seeing if they have a bike with the pipes you are interested in hearing. You never know, maybe you’ll run into a customer while you’re there who happens to have the pipes you want to hear.
have staintunes on my 2001 bonneville; recently had harley rider follow me for some time; we pulled up at the lights and his words ‘that bike sounds fantastic’..his sounded like I was being followed by a huge thunderstorm.
Do you have any idea where on the decibel range the Carpy’s Monarch or Shorty Monarch would fall compared to the other exhausts?
Hey Steve – sorry I do not. I’m not familiar with the Monarch pipes at all. Have you checked in at the RAT forum on these? I’m sure someone out there has used or at least heard these that could give you some feedback.
hi all
sorry to get in here so late, but does anyone know where dunstalls fit within this study?
I was wondering the same thing. I just pt some on my 2007 T100 and they sound good but they are pretty freakin’ loud!
I’d love to see how the Gasser exhaust fits into your charts. Here’s video, and you’ll see other links to Gasser videos. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ngNgPvWm1oI
Thanks for the information Bo. I have not heard of these, but if you have any feedback on the sound, let me know and I can update things.
I just ordered these for my bonnieville. When I spoke with the sales rep she said the stock pipes rate at 95db and the gasser customs pipes are 115 db.
Great and helpful review! Anybody knows in the sound check graphic where would be the zard cross exhaust? Thanks for the responses!
2015 Bonneville Newchurch – any updates as to whether or not these specs apply to newer models? Conversion, fit, installation, etc? I see alot of 2013 and prior referenced online, but nothing for the 2015-2016 era. Need to upgrade my sewing machine noise production immediately.
I have a new Bonneville t100 with those awful stock mufflers. I want it to sound throaty like my old triumph thunderbird back in the late 50’s did. It’s a 2015 efi 865 cc engine so what kind of mufflers do I need to get that will do the job and not be excessively loud . Just mellow and throaty
Check out the Dominator’s Lonnie, specifically the Touring model! I did a review on my site:
http://www.craigerson.com/dominator-touring-exhaust-triumph-thruxton/
You forgot the Dunstall offering! They are the best I have found for my T100. I would give them a 4/10 on the sound check scale, but are cheaper than most of the others on the list, and made in Blighty!
https://www.britishbikebits.com/aftermarket-silencers-for-new-bonneville-uk-made
They would be my first choice every time!
Thanks for the information Steve. I’ll have to update the graphic when I have a chance to add the Dunstall’s to the list.
I’m thinking about getting an exhaust from gasser customs for my 2017 Bonneville t120. It sounds great frI’m videos but can’t tel how loud it is!