APR open intake vs AWE closed - how loud is the open

[ThoseRings]

I have searched here, on youtube, ETC...looking for first hand experience
(Yes, I realize this will be subjective, like which exhaust is the best)

I am looking at 2 option, mostly based on looks/being CF.


Option 1 - All in with the APR open set up and APR rear CF tube.


Option 2 - AWE full S-Flo with the CF lid/scoop,/filter but use the APR CF tube.


I like the AWE for the clean/stockish look however my gut tells me it won't be that loud, I can always drill out the air box if needed I guess (really don't want to though).


I really like the APR and the heat shield looks to cover/block heat from the engine bay well, and it will work with the tube I already have (IE, 034, etc have their own tubes).


Here is my issue, will the open intake be too loud during normal driving/road trips?

I don't mind loud while driving the car aggressively, i don't want loud while driving normally. I would like to assume the intake will be fairly quiet unless I am building boost, a little whine is OK while driving, banshee howl loud is not.


Additional info, the car only has 30,xxx miles on it and its not my daily. It's my nice weather nights/weekend toy or if I am traveling to visit friends/family.

Nothing I own is stock, everything has been modified with either exhaust or intake, etc...

[doooooooook]

It will only get real loud under WOT. Putting around town you will barely notice it.

[MerakiAutoworks]

AWE closed is not that loud, only when you really get on it like mentioned above. I had the AWE open and closed versions (RS3) and open was night and day difference. I went with closed for the performance/heat soak/ and looks.

-Josh

[SwankPeRFection]

You wanna suck in hot air and make louder noise or not and make some? That’s the real question. As intake temp sensitive as these cars are, I’d think more people would want to limit needless intake temp increases as much as possible.

[ThoseRings]

It will only get real loud under WOT. Putting around town you will barely notice it.

Thanks, that's kinda what I remember from my GTP way back in the day when I had an open intake.
I had read on here some people complaining on how loud intakes can be under normal driving. - https://www.audizine.com/forum/showt...ntake-too-loud

You wanna suck in hot air and make louder noise or not and make some? That’s the real question. As intake temp sensitive as these cars are, I’d think more people would want to limit needless intake temp increases as much as possible.

I have spent hours reading up on open/closed/modified stock in regards to IAT's. Yes, when stuck in traffic/not moving there is a greater chance of heat soak / high IAT's with open intake. When moving there is not.

Everything I have read says it's all about how loud the whine is, not so much power.
Big power/fast cars on here run either modified stock box or an open intake depending on how loud they want the SC to be.
They seem to run on par with each other regardless of open vs. closed intake (yes other variables come into play, but the intake is not the killer).

From what I gather APR's open intake is one of the better units as far as heat shielding and sealed from the engine bay heat. Hell I bet the CF tube I have on now heat soaks a bit vs the stock one when not moving.
(who the hell goes WOT sitting in traffic or trying to race in traffic, think about that for bit in reagards to Open vs Closed/IAT's)

Case in point - https://www.audizine.com/forum/showt...pected-results

To clarify further

I am not chasing records, I don't give a shit if my car runs xx.xx in the 1/4.
The car will never see anything past an APR stage 1 with a Merc or JHM heat exchanger (if I even decide to tune it) .

I did not buy this car to to build for HP gains/ 1/4 mile times.
I bought it to drive while keeping it as close to stock reliability as possible AND make small tweaks so it is more me/enjoyable when I drive it.

[SwankPeRFection]

An additional point you might be overlooking is the whine you’re in such demand for is actually produced by the supercharged air flowing around the screws in the charger itself. It’s a harmonic. Unless you’ve got a Stage 1 tune, you won’t be keeping the bypass valve closed to create this sound up top above 5k RPM, so keep that in mind. This sound is only produced when the supercharger screws are actually pushing the compressed air around, not just because they’re turning at high RPMs. If you lose that compression ratio due to bypass opening, you’ve defeating the purpose.

[ThoseRings]

An additional point you might be overlooking is the whine you’re in such demand for is actually produced by the supercharged air flowing around the screws in the charger itself. It’s a harmonic. Unless you’ve got a Stage 1 tune, you won’t be keeping the bypass valve closed to create this sound up top above 5k RPM, so keep that in mind. This sound is only produced when the supercharger screws are actually pushing the compressed air around, not just because they’re turning at high RPMs. If you lose that compression ratio due to bypass opening, you’ve defeating the purpose.

Well aware, hence the APR Stage 1 tune thought.

But, again, in all honesty how often are you driving your car north of 5K regularly?

The mid-range on these cars is absurd, that's where I usually keep the RPM's when I drive my car, not a lot of red line shifting here.

[carguy19]

You wanna suck in hot air and make louder noise or not and make some? That’s the real question. As intake temp sensitive as these cars are, I’d think more people would want to limit needless intake temp increases as much as possible.

I feel like my car makes better power with the open APR intake VS the closed one.

It's definitely WAY LOUDER.

The closed APR intake was almost zero blower whine, but the open one feels more powerful and like the car has better throttle response.

[carguy19]

Well aware, hence the APR Stage 1 tune thought.

But, again, in all honesty how often are you driving your car north of 5K regularly?

The mid-range on these cars is absurd, that's where I usually keep the RPM's when I drive my car, not a lot of red line shifting here.

I agree with this also.

Like I said, I've had both, and although an open intake is way louder, the sounds are intoxicating.

If you drive normally, they are almost equal in sound, its when you are 70% throttle and up that you really hear the blower whine a lot. Plus mine is a bit louder because I have the dual pulley setup, so the blower is definitely turning faster then a stage 1 or stock ECU.

My vote after having both is for the open one, 100% no contest.

[SwankPeRFection]

Well aware, hence the APR Stage 1 tune thought.

But, again, in all honesty how often are you driving your car north of 5K regularly?

The mid-range on these cars is absurd, that's where I usually keep the RPM's when I drive my car, not a lot of red line shifting here.

Almost daily hit of redline, but we’re all different. I can’t speak for the APR intake. I run an AWE hose to the stock slightly modded airbox and an AFE dry filter. Run what you’d like, I was just sharing some info in case you or someone else weren’t yet aware of. 👍

[EvolutionArmory]

Thanks, that's kinda what I remember from my GTP way back in the day when I had an open intake.
I had read on here some people complaining on how loud intakes can be under normal driving. - https://www.audizine.com/forum/showt...ntake-too-loud




I have spent hours reading up on open/closed/modified stock in regards to IAT's. Yes, when stuck in traffic/not moving there is a greater chance of heat soak / high IAT's with open intake. When moving there is not.

Everything I have read says it's all about how loud the whine is, not so much power.
Big power/fast cars on here run either modified stock box or an open intake depending on how loud they want the SC to be.
They seem to run on par with each other regardless of open vs. closed intake (yes other variables come into play, but the intake is not the killer).

From what I gather APR's open intake is one of the better units as far as heat shielding and sealed from the engine bay heat. Hell I bet the CF tube I have on now heat soaks a bit vs the stock one when not moving.
(who the hell goes WOT sitting in traffic or trying to race in traffic, think about that for bit in reagards to Open vs Closed/IAT's)

Case in point - https://www.audizine.com/forum/showt...pected-results

To clarify further

I am not chasing records, I don't give a shit if my car runs xx.xx in the 1/4.
The car will never see anything past an APR stage 1 with a Merc or JHM heat exchanger (if I even decide to tune it) .

I did not buy this car to to build for HP gains/ 1/4 mile times.
I bought it to drive while keeping it as close to stock reliability as possible AND make small tweaks so it is more me/enjoyable when I drive it.

The APR intake has a very well fitting heat shield. There is hardly any air gap except for a tiny bit towards the back of the heat shield. Maybe 90% of it is gap free. Maybe more.

What’s nice about the APR intake is if you choose to go Ultracharger down the road it will fit perfectly.

As far as gains go, I’ve had the CTS intake and the APR intake and when I switched to APR’s intake, I did not see any gains in ET or trap speed at all. So as poorly as CTS’s heat shield is fitted, it didn’t seem to make any difference.

I think the people who make a stink over open box and closed box intakes don’t realize that the blower can spit out 300 degree air depending on its efficiency and boost generated. Your blower doesn’t care if the air going in is 2 degrees colder. It’s still going to boil it either way and like you said, when you’re moving you’re getting colder fresh air anyway.

People don’t realize that your engine bay doesn’t trap in heat like an oven. If there wasn’t an amazing amount of airflow under there while moving, the heat from your cats and manifolds would literally melt things.

Pick the one you like the best or fits your budget.


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[doooooooook]

The CTS heat shield really bugged me. It wasn't very sturdy and the rubber gasket that ran long the hood deteriorated over time and didn't seal properly. Sounded awesome and was cheap though.

[carguy19]

The CTS heat shield really bugged me. It wasn't very sturdy and the rubber gasket that ran long the hood deteriorated over time and didn't seal properly. Sounded awesome and was cheap though.

The APR stuff is always well made and is aesthetically pleasing. You get what you pay for.


I have always been a fan of APR, so I am very partial to them, and they have never ever led me wrong. I only had an issue with one part on one car out of the over 200 parts I've bought from APR for more then 15-17 cars I bought their power kits for that I've owned. (the one issue I had was very minor- the carbon intake from apr for my Golf R at the time was delaminating/coming apart, which was causing the union between the intake and the throttle body to not have a good fit/good seal, on top of looking kinda crappy and causing air to leak under boost. Without even asking for photos, or making any other suggestion or asking any more questions, they said, "Let me send you a new intake kit for your car, send us the old one back and we'll see what the issue was with it". That's how you're supposed to treat customers. On top of replacing the whole intake kit, they sent me some APR swag, a t shirt, some stickers, an APR mug, and a gift certificate for $25 for a future purchase.

APR has always been my go to for any cars that I've owned that were compatible with what they do. I've grown to trust their software and parts over the past 24 years I've done business with them. There hasn't been a peep from any of their tunes. No motors hurt, no damage, not even a check engine light, not even one time in all the time I've dealt with them. They sometimes can be pricier then other sources, but when you look at things side by side, their stuff is usually noticeably better for what you're paying extra for.

[doooooooook]

I wish I had good luck with APR. Two cars, two tunes. One blown HPFP (trial tune on a MKV GTI with less than 1000 miles) and one battle with a CEL that lasted several months until a revision came out (MKVI GTI). I did have issues with my Carbonio intake as well (similar delaminating issue that you had).

[ThoseRings]

Was holding out to see if there was going to be any Labor Deals going on but it does not look like it.

Ordered the APR open, will update once it comes in and I get it installed.

[ThoseRings]

New intake installed, my take so far, only have a few miles on it.

Whine level, damn near perfect to me.

Yes, if you lug the car in "D" you hear the whine in the car, windows up. I can totally understand how to some it would be "too loud" for DD duty.

Less whine in "S", with the RPMs staying higher you build less boost driving around normally.

I can modulate how much whine I want to hear depending on my right foot, exactly what I was looking for.


Stock programing and boost dump.

As everyone says, the boost bleeds off and he fake motor sounds take over up top in the RPMS.
I was not expecting the whine to basically disappear as drastically as it does though.
I will wait it out for the APR flash at home option and go from there.

Overall:
From the sound I got, the intake it is very over priced.
It fits pretty well, little tight to the shock tower so I added some felt so the paint does not rub.
I really like the way it looks in the engine bay, I feel it looks cleaner.

Would I recommend the intake.
If you have the funds for it and don't expect crazy gains, YES.
If you are chasing HP and 1/4 times, NO. Save the $$ and go for the Tune.

[EvolutionArmory]

This is one of the best intakes on the market.

What do you mean if you’re chasing 1/4 mile numbers and HP, no? 🤣




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[bass_lover1]

I have no frame of reference, since I've only just bought a B8.5 S4 but it came with the APR intake and elbow. I don't find the supercharger whine overbearing at all or even too loud while cruising around. Again I have no idea what it sounds like stock, but I find it pleasant for everyday driving. It definitely screams at high rpms though and I love that.

I think as long as it doesn't add harmonics that reverberate through the cabin and into your ear drums like that way too loud stereo at 2AM, then it's easy to live with. The APR intake doesn't doesn't do that.

[EvolutionArmory]

Did you actually think an intake replaces the need for a tune and would give you noticeable gains on a stock car?


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[ThoseRings]

This is one of the best intakes on the market.

What do you mean if you’re chasing 1/4 mile numbers and HP, no? 🤣

Not this crap again...did you not read the whole thing as usual?
Let me help you there...

Would I recommend the intake.
If you have the funds for it and don't expect crazy gains, YES.
If you are chasing HP and 1/4 times, NO. Save the $$ and go for the Tune.

Did you actually think an intake replaces the need for a tune and would give you noticeable gains on a stock car?

You are either a bit slow or just like shit posting all over threads...

Go read post # 5...or any of the earlier post in this thread from me...




**To anyone in the future that this thread may help.

The APR intake is a nice piece that adds a perfect amount of whine for me (what I was looking for/stated this thread for).

If you are chasing HP or 1/4 mile times then save up for a stage 1 tune instead, you will get way more gains for the $$

[SwankPeRFection]

Stop it! Stop feeding the fire man.

[EvolutionArmory]

Stop it! Stop feeding the fire man.

It was a legitimate question


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[a1dan_87]

I went with a USP motorsports intake on my A6. It was insanely loud, much louder whine that I saw on a lot of S4s at local Audi meets. It ran nice and cold but heat soaked fast if you shut the car off

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[ThoseRings]

It was a legitimate question

Not if you actually read (and comprehended) the entire conversation...

I went with a USP motorsports intake on my A6. It was insanely loud, much louder whine that I saw on a lot of S4s at local Audi meets. It ran nice and cold but heat soaked fast if you shut the car off

Cool story bro!

WTF is with this place...

[FourRinger14]

Not if you actually read (and comprehended) the entire conversation...



Cool story bro!

WTF is with this place...

Aging platform, still lots of helpful folks but you have your trolls, an NPC or two that only comprehend a fraction of your input and have limited responses, etc. Still mostly helpful, just ignore the NPC/troll responses.
FWIW, I am no 3.0T expert and don’t claim to be and will post to try to understand issues better or on those limited occasions provide my own experience when it’s helpful. I joined this forum years ago among other make forums to lurk/research and decide on a car. I chose the B8.5 S4, never regretted it from day 1 and this site helped a lot in that decision making. Don’t let the negative or condescending responses deter you from finding or sharing info. You’ll get good info from helpful folks along with the normal forum bs (on most all forums that I’ve joined/viewed from my experience most enthusiast forums). Thanks as always to those that provide helpful and insightful responses/posts. As far as the other(s) if nothing else they provide a certain level of entertainment.

I’ve recently installed the open APR intake and really enjoy the level of whine, For years I would occasionally hear the SC whine if really focusing on it, now just need to turn the music down and it’s there and yes it’s fun!

[wrxkyle]

You wanna suck in hot air and make louder noise or not and make some? That’s the real question. As intake temp sensitive as these cars are, I’d think more people would want to limit needless intake temp increases as much as possible.

it's been shown over and over that the inlet temps and heatshields do basically nothing other than placebo effect and that the free-est flowing intake is best on this platform. people have logged with and without the shields and seen little to no different in inlet temps, and no difference in final iats after going through the intercoolers.

free flowing open intakes have made the most power and fastest times. in theory sure a "cold air" intake would be better but in practice it doesn't matter on this platform and the intake area gets plenty of fresh air regardless when moving.

[Fresh.S4]

it's been shown over and over that the inlet temps and heatshields do basically nothing other than placebo effect and that the free-est flowing intake is best on this platform. people have logged with and without the shields and seen little to no different in inlet temps, and no difference in final iats after going through the intercoolers.

free flowing open intakes have made the most power and fastest times. in theory sure a "cold air" intake would be better but in practice it doesn't matter on this platform and the intake area gets plenty of fresh air regardless when moving.

yup someone gets it. an intake for our engines, is essentially paying for how much "whine" you want to hear...but then you got cameron's 4" diy intake which provides some interesting data.

in the end, as soon as it hits the compressor its all getting heated like that that group from oceangate.