This vibrant resonator made me HATE my stage 2 Audi S3!

I recently went stage 2 with my 2020 Audi s3 and had Integrated Engineering's downpipe paired with the stock exhaust and a resonator delete, I decided to have the res delete removed and a vibrant resonator installed in it's place - and i'm not happy with how it turned out.
#audis3 #audirs3 #audi #cars #boosted
Stage 2 vs stage 1 Audi s3 review: • The car is TOO fast! I... u
Stuff I’m using:
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KZbin channel stuff:
- TubeBuddy KZbin growth tool: bit.ly/sp-tubebuddy
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Current mods:
IE cold air intake
IE turbo inlet pipe
IE catted downpipe
IE stage 2 91 octane ecu tune
IE tcu tune
Vibrant resonator
Aodhan AH-X wheels, 18x8.5 +35
black emblems
badgeskins
0:00 - Intro
1:03 - Downpipe with resonator delete
1:50 - Downpipe with vibrant resonator
2:13 - night pull
2:58 - sound test with vibrant resonator
4:55 - final thoughts
6:46 - back to back comparison

[@JayChesterman]

Which one sounds better? Subscribe for more: bit.ly/spookys3-subscribe

[@muscleafter30]

Bro, your content is legit! Great info, beautiful car

[@JayChesterman]

thanks brother!

[@2strokeFORever]

I prefer a DP to a stock exhaust. I love the EA888 but its hard to make them sound good. I like a nice tone not just loud and noise

[@savagepandaprojects]

honestly that downpipe with stock CB and res delete sounds prettty good! I ran the same thing on my old A3 back in the day!

[@JayChesterman]

yeah definitely! it was just a bit too loud for my taste from outside of the car after driving with this current setup for a few weeks, it's actually grown on me a lot, i have some flyby clips in my latest video from outside of the car and it actually sounds pretty good

[@SorenMedia]

Nice video! I’m currently running the ie downpipe with ecs res delete on my 18 R and it had always sounded a bit thin / raspy to me. I just ordered the X force catback which is on sale at the moment. The s3 version is also on sale.

[@JayChesterman]

sick! Let me know how it turns out, I might start looking at catbacks in the spring/summer

[@justingallagher4864]

I think our cars don't sound great - I think of an S2000 or an original Integra R as perfect. All motor vs. turbo, it's harder to make turbo 4s sound good. Looking an update - did you install it? in your "exhaust formula," I'd think a vibrant res of some size/shape would be needed to get rid of unpleasant noises. I've got the same downpipe, am installing the resonator tomorrow on the OE catback, and then I think it will sound good with an aftermarket catback down the road. I love my car S3, and your car, but they don't sound great :\ I'm working on it, haha. I also wonder about single res into dual res, just pipes otherwise.

[@SleeperS3]

sounds good to me..... after coming from a rez delete coyote mustang with a borla axle back and 4k stall....i am loving the quiet of the bone stock S3 exhaust i did just pull the trigger on a stage 1 tune with the IE cold air, HG turbo inlet, HG turbo muffler delete, and Wagner intercooler and also a dogbone mount i hear they make a huge difference.

[@JayChesterman]

You’re going to love stage 1 for sure, it’s a night and day difference and it’s insane that just an ecu flash can wake up the car that much, the only thing I miss about my Camaro is that v8 sound though 😆

[@michaelcantinieri25]

toss up with the sound over fuel economy now with prices of gas so high

[@JayChesterman]

@@michaelcantinieri25 yeah I don’t miss the fuel economy of my Camaro hahha

[@devonforsure260]

I had this dilemma. I went with the MBRP exhaust. Budget friendly, sounds good, no rasp.

[@JayChesterman]

do you have a downpipe?

[@MatthewMonaco17]

S3 2015 stocke exhaust, CTS air intake and downpipe, res delete. Still sounds great.

[@72defender]

If you ever consider an exhaust, the AWE SwitchPath is a great option! I was at a meet this summer and a guy had it and it sounds really nice!

[@JayChesterman]

This is at the top of the list for exhaust for me, the only issue is the price tag haha

[@dontsugarcoat2729]

I run AWE switch path exhaust sound good.

[@bst857]

Lol its SUCH a rip off, you could get a custom made titanium exhaust for that (way better). Also, those electric valves on Audi exhausts (also used on Focus RS etc), are really easy to install and operate, all they take is +/- power, and then another earth - if the earth is connected, the valve opens, if not, its shut. Thats how basic it is, you don't need to spend $800 on their stupid piece of shit overpriced crap valve. Also, a good exhaust place will fit a muffler to the spec you want, and should have some in stock for you to listen to on your car. The whole aftermarket exhaust scene is one big piss take.

[@gazza8596]

Best set up for any modern 4 pot turbo car is decat 3inch exhaust short boy resonator to y pipe 2 2.75 inch single exits

[@scottjohnson4885]

I had a 16 stage 3 Golf R with IE catted and MRBP catback. Was rowdy. Look at awe, apr, and milltek. Don’t do a muffler delete on the S3/R, it won’t end well. Find an exhaust catback with its own res kit and smaller tuned suitcases that still work with oe valves.

[@JayChesterman]

thanks for the input man! i think that may be the long term goal, i might need to just live with the setup i've got now and maybe look to get a catback in the spring the awe switchpath looks great, they're just so damn expensive haha

[@scalip36]

Im curious to hear how it would sound with a vibrant 1792 high flow resonator and muffler delete. If you get your muffler removed, just ask the shop to put it in your trunk. That way you can have it welded back on if you need to.

[@jkettel]

I have that setup rn on my GLI. I’m putting my muffler back on 🤣. So much rasp and drone it’s horrible. Embarrassed driving it bro

[@crazygoat79]

Except young kids,Nobody wants drone unless it’s from a cam’d big block. But do what makes you happy. I have a 2018 stage 2 A4 with JHM high flow cat and downpipe, which gets rid of the heavy factory resonator. It’s raspy and hollow sounding, also don’t need or want my dsg farts. I’ve ordered a standard bottle resonator to go back where the factory one was and 2 ultra quiets in place of where the factory mufflers are. My friend has the same setup. Still makes good deep tone for a 4cyl and it smoothed out the exhaust note and got rid of all the drone. I’ll post before and after video of mine when it’s installed.

[@JayChesterman]

I hear you on the drone, even when I was young I didn’t want it haha I’ll definitely check out that setup when you post it, keep me updated!

[@Kujashin]

this was one of the main reasons i got rid of my golf r for an rs3. you dont need anything special for the rs3 to sound good. its all preference for tone and volume so it makes configuring the exhaust so much easier and the end result will always be better than the 4 cylinder

[@JayChesterman]

I’d love an RS3 but they’re way too expensive where I’m at, and the additional cost of maintenance on top maybe one day 😆

[@Kujashin]

@@JayChestermanyea, they are good bit more initially. Even with them dropping into the 40s on the north east coast it’s still quite a big purchase. For maintenance though, the only thing that’s really significantly more expensive are the brakes. With that being said, everything will be more expensive on the rs3, and if something does go wrong with the engine it will be a lot more to repair/replace

[@ralphsnightmare103]

I did just the downpipe and im pretty stoked with the sound

[@ralphsnightmare103]

mine doesnt have crackles tho like how yours in in this video. what did you end up doing?

[@JayChesterman]

@@ralphsnightmare103 i was running the IE crackle tune for those clips, i ended up turning it off but i've been considering flashing it back for a little fun 🤣 if you're running a downpipe with the stock resonator i think we probably aren't too far off in sound, i've actually grown to really enjoy the sound after the last 7 months of driving it haha

[@zukacs]

im driving stage 2 mk3 TTS with catless resless 3 inch aftermarket downpipe and im a bit tired of the huge drone on highway and on high throttle. also the coldstarts in neighborhood are bad too... is there anyway to put the stock resonator? or its low flow and smaller then 3 inch right? or it can be fabricated. also my friend is telling my get a used stock bmw resonator cuz they are 3 inch from factory... gonna try this route first cuz its dirt cheap

[@JayChesterman]

An exhaust shop should be able to fabricate it for you if you wanted the stock res back in, but i'd recommend going with a vibrant bottle after have driven with mine now for the last 6 months. It's a good middleground for aggression without having to deal with the drone, i've grown to enjoy the sound haha. Thanks for watching!

[@SynergyGuitars]

i had a stock cat and res with a muffler delete, was really nice deep tone and pretty loud but not so much the neighbours will hate u

[@JayChesterman]

i just met a viewer randomly a couple weeks ago with the same setup, sounds good!

[@Lilpro_]

so the vibrant res is like the stock resonator, right? i was running the res delete for a while and it was loud as i had to install the factory res because loud cars is illegal where im from. sadly, when installing the factory res i lost the burble popcorn in low rpms. is it the same with the vibrant?

[@JayChesterman]

yeah it lost a lot of the burble down low, it still has some subtle burble at low rpm in 1st and second but it’s not too noticeable

[@rafaelmuis563]

i have golf 7 cat. back delete sounds good. small amount dsg fart next year resonator delete with anti done demper only no drone in low RPM

[@HondaTrumpAi]

😂 Sounds like an exhaust leak buddy, the hissing sound. I always ditch the cats then run Vibrant bottle style resonators. Always gives the best results.

[@JayChesterman]

I have a high flow cat in the downpipe, it actually sounds better in person than in the video but it’s definitely not ideal 🤣

[@rubberskilla2991]

What exact model is this resonator? Mines IE DP to a Borla cat back and its loud AF. i really want to throw a resonator on the cat back to clean up the sound a touch but not to the point where i dont like it

[@JayChesterman]

I’m not sure unfortunately as I had a shop do it, I know it’s a bottle style vibrant resonator but not sure which specific one I have grown to enjoy the sound though, I’ve got some drive by clips from outside of the car in my most recent video you can check out to get a better idea of how it really sounds

[@itsjustaname777]

Unplug your exhaust valves and keep it how it is now. Ive had two cars same as yours and the oem drone gets annoying after a while. BCS also do a res delete with a J pipe which cancels out drone. But it's a 4cyl it's never going to sound great which is why I sold my last one, if I buy again will probably buy a 2019 one with the OPF filter that basically makes it silent, and enjoy that fantastic B&O. I really want an rs3 but I don't see justification in the noise being worth $25k more. Or sell the car and get a b9 s5 for the same price; turbo v6 noise.

[@kerwinvergara3335]

Hey man, weird question, is the phone holder you have magsafe ? or just regular magnet?

[@JayChesterman]

mag safe, it’s the mobile car mount by peak design they offer both a wireless charging version and non charging, mines the non charging since I don’t have wireless CarPlay amazing mount though, my phone has never fallen off even with spirited driving

[@imaudizz]

Check out the catback i got , xforce it's valved and cheaper then AWE honestly i believe it sounds better too Ive done everything as you are doing now and you cant ever get it sounding just right Valves closed no drone no worries Valves open is everything you want and more

[@JayChesterman]

thanks for the recommendation! ill check it out

[@imaudizz]

@SpookyS3 no problem!

[@cameronrogers4265]

So, even though I know we don’t have the same car yet i plan on getting an s3 very soon I have a 21Civic sport hatchback, but i’m careless with a ultra quiet resonator, and I also have the muffler delete one thing that I will tell you is that the resonator is going to get louder if you know what I mean because fiber that are inside of the resonator they’re gonna get weaken, and it’s gonna allow more sound to come through

[@JayChesterman]

you're going to love the s3 man haha, how much sound did the muffler delete add vs before you did it?

[@cameronrogers4265]

@@JayChesterman It added ALOT more sound to the point where my neighbors were complaining so I went with the ultra quiet resonator and it’s helped a lot with the sound but it is still loud but not too obnoxious except for cold starts those vibrate the house😂 and I can’t wait for the s3!!

[@JayChesterman]

@@cameronrogers4265 hahah thanks for the info man! I just posted up a short with some exterior sound clips of my current setup, it’s not as bad as I had originally thought!

[@itsjustaname777]

also if you put the car into individual mode, engine noise in dynamic and engine/gearbox into "auto" instead of dynamic it opens the wastegate at low rpm making the exhaust louder.

[@JayChesterman]

thanks for all the feedback! i swapped the engine/gearbox to auto in individual this morning for my drive to the gym and it sounded pretty good lower down

[@itsjustaname777]

@@JayChesterman yup, great for just cruising round town. Try unplugging your exhaust valves (turn car on, put everything into dynamic, gearbox into s, turn car off whilst gearbox is in s) and see how you like that. I just ran oem everything except sport cat, with exhaust valves unplugged, but it was a bit droney at times. If I bought another I'd get a custom j pipe (helmholtz resonator) welded in to get rid of the drone.

[@JayChesterman]

@@itsjustaname777 what are you driving now?

[@itsjustaname777]

@@JayChesterman just an old 2010 a3 2.0t, not sure what's next..rs3 maybe. I like to go from good cars to shit ones, to slow down the hedonist treadmill. Lots of stage 3 s3 owners jump to GTR's in the neverending pursuit of performance

[@JayChesterman]

@@itsjustaname777 haha yeah i feel that, i went from a modded toyota 86 to gen 6 SS 1LE Camaro and sold that for the S3 i'm really happy overall and am planning to keep the s3 for the foreseeable future i'd swap it for an RS3 in a heartbeat if money was no object, but they're way too expensive here in Canada now, and i also don't wanna deal with the extra cost of ownership over the longer term

[@Eli07K]

Meanwhile I have a full downpipe and awe switch path. And I'm about to do a resonator because being loud is not fun anymore. It's better to be quiet and fast....than let anyone know you are coming.

[@JayChesterman]

I’d be interested in hearing what that would sound like, I’m actually happy with the sound now after having it for a while but I think the switch path with down pipe and resonator might be the perfect balance

[@glubibobi]

Which vibrant res did you go with? I messed with a couple of different resonators when I didn’t my Mk6 GTI. The 1792 may be a good way to go since it pretty small and straight through so it mad cut some of the rasp without affecting the volume that much.

[@JayChesterman]

I’m not sure to be honest, I had it installed by a custom exhaust shop and they had the option between ultra quiet or just bottle style, and this was just the bottle style

[@glubibobi]

@@JayChesterman If it’s like the one in your thumbnail, they definitely make smaller ones that may give you what you want. Obviously, you do what you want but I feel like a muffler delete doesn’t sound very good on the gen3 ea888 cars. Most of the videos I’ve seen agree with what you said, with a downpipe the best sounding setup is stock catback with a res delete if you want a little more.

[@JayChesterman]

@@glubibobi yeah for sure! after doing filming some clips from my GoPro mounted outside of the car it’s not as horrible as I originally thought, I’ll probably keep this res in place until the spring at least and go from there, I think I want to do intercooler next and I also want to do front lip, diffuser and possibly a small trunk spoiler still

[@glubibobi]

@@JayChesterman For sure! They do get a bit louder once they break in too. I definitely noticed that when I had my Mk6.

[@MortalWombat22]

The throatiness did get eliminated a bit. Still sounds good tho

[@JayChesterman]

yeah it’s not as horrible as I’m making it out to be, but it’s just missing a little character, this may be the best point for staying in between too aggressive and too quiet though!

[@SonyFoLife]

Have you considered defeating the valves? That might do a lot to bring back that character you're missing, especially the farts. Plus, if you find you're not actually missing the valves then you know you could save money if you went for a non-valved exhaust in the future

[@JayChesterman]

this is a great idea, i'm thinking about picking up an ODB11 and if i do i'll definitely try that out and post the results. thanks for the suggestion!

[@SonyFoLife]

@@JayChesterman you can do it without changing any coding by setting it to dynamic in Park (you should be able to hear the valves open) then jumping under the car and unplugging them. Shouldn't give you any errors. Also, for what it's worth, vcds is a better value than obd11 in the long run, after 2 years of obd11 subscription you've paid the same amount as buying vcds and owning it forever

[@JayChesterman]

oh sick, thanks for that info man!

[@dontcareatall12345]

Bro I can send you a video of my car that’s has The same IE catted down pipe but with Borla Cat back exhaust and it sounds like a DEMON! I get compliments that it sounds better than some v8 believe it or not. Has a deep growl tone very little rasp. Loud when you want it to be quiet when u need it. ZERO drone at any speeds.

[@JayChesterman]

I’d love to hear it! You could upload it to your KZbin channel as an unlisted video and link it here

[@darrinscoilsclouds1498]

why dont you crawll underneath and un bot the mufflers see how it sounds if you like it go have it done right if not, bolt them back on🤷‍♂️

[@MikoMuru]

Get a v8 or audi ttrs with 5 cylinder. The issue is you went v6. Best sounding engines are 5, 8, and 10+.

[@JayChesterman]

@@MikoMuru rs3 is the dream

[@sofzez213]

With the rasonator do you still hear the burble

[@JayChesterman]

it still pops loud between shifts in dynamic mode and does burble a bit while just driving around at low rpm, overall after having it since this video I’m pretty happy with it haja

[@sorongooooooo]

nice video! do you have drone with res delete? i have the same DP and i want a little more sound!

[@JayChesterman]

it sounded great but there was some drone, it wasn’t unbearable but it was a bit annoying for me 😆

[@sorongooooooo]

@@JayChesterman Thanks for your answer Jay!!, is there a drone even with closed valves? did you try that way?

[@JayChesterman]

@@sorongooooooo yeah valves closed wasn’t bad at all, very little drone but where’s the fun in driving like that 🤣

[@sorongooooooo]

​@@JayChesterman haha of course, I was just asking because I don't want to break my head either XD

[@JayChesterman]

@@sorongooooooo i wouldn't say the drone was that bad honestly, just more than i wanted to deal with haha and it was when on throttle around 2000-3000 rpm if i remember correctly

[@a1xarify114]

can you post a video running throug the cost of the car in the stage its in plus how much u got it for

[@JayChesterman]

I’ll definitely get that video out in the next few weeks! I’m travelling for work over the next two weeks so I won’t be able to film

[@a1xarify114]

@@JayChesterman thanks so much for the fast response. I really like the quality of ur videos and how much time you invest

[@JayChesterman]

@@a1xarify114 no problem! It’s a work in progress and I’ll continue to try to bring better quality as I figure things out

[@michaelcantinieri25]

why didnt you just leave the stock exhaust on with the down pipe and try it ? the DP makes it louder..

[@JayChesterman]

I had the res delete for around 1.5 years before getting the downpipe

[@michaelcantinieri25]

I see....I have the IE stage 1 at the moment and going to do the stage 2 in the spring so holding off on the Resonator delete for now. I'm hoping it will get a bit more aggressive with the DP...thanks for the reply man

[@JayChesterman]

@@michaelcantinieri25 I went with IE as well, I have their intake, turbo inlet and also tuned by them get the downpipe first and if you want more do the res delete, if you’re ok with having a bit of an obnoxious setup you’ll probably love it! IE makes really high quality parts though so you can’t go wrong

[@michaelcantinieri25]

yeah I was just checking out more of your clips...probably just do the DP for now with the stage 2..nice car with the 2 tone interior...mine is a 2015 so all black...all good though !

[@JayChesterman]

@@michaelcantinieri25 thanks man! I actually wanted a black interior but the grey has grown on me, you’ll definitely love stage 2 though

[@jackd8071]

Hi im from Toronto, where did you get the rs3 grill and where did you have it installed?

[@JayChesterman]

iGroundAuto.ca, and I had it installed locally at a shop in Newmarket called Eco Wagens If you’re planning to buy one make if you have the ACC sensor make sure you get the one with the opening for it

[@jackd8071]

Did you have to paint the crash bar?

[@JayChesterman]

@@jackd8071 nope!

[@ralphsnightmare103]

@@JayChesterman I got one with ACC opening but it doesn’t quite fit. The ACC sits a bit lower than the cut out

[@JayChesterman]

@@ralphsnightmare103 That was the same as mine, you’ll need to relocate the sensor and there’s a chance you’ll need to get it recalibrated after

[@allennester6523]

It’s hard to tell from the video of course but the car sounds better to me now. Seems to be deeper sounding with the vibrate res which I like.

[@JayChesterman]

yeah it’s deeper for sure, just a bit too muffled for my liking haha I’ll probably stick with this setup until at least the spring so I’ll add some drive by clips in future videos so you can get a better idea

[@allennester6523]

@@JayChesterman thanks that will be great! I think after it’s broken in a little it might get louder again and be perfect 🤞🏻

[@mussa85]

You need a cat delete. That will give you a more throaty sound.

[@hamidnajafi7078]

What kinda intake do you have?

[@JayChesterman]

Integrated engineering intake, I also have their turbo inlet, I’m planning to get their intercooler eventually as well so I’ll have a full IE build

[@rafaelmuis563]

sound perfect dsg farts ar loud now .. cat back kiled the sound

[@carloscuevas6744]

Dont forget we need mufflers here in Ontario

[@JayChesterman]

yeah for sure, muffler delete is off the table after doing a little more research as well haha i think i'll stick with this setup for a while and maybe look into a resonated catback setup in the spring/summer.

[@carloscuevas6744]

@@JayChesterman MBRP Exhaust is that mid range you want. it has a custom resonator so no drone and the quad tip finish looks nice

[@Massinacc_]

It definitely sounded better before the new resonator. I love both but I think I prefer the first set up 🫶

[@JayChesterman]

I agree, the first setup was just overall to obnoxious for me on the outside (I’m getting old haha) but after driving the car for a few weeks with the resonator on it’s definitely grown on me! In the spring i think I’m going to look at getting a catback in my quest for the perfect sound though

[@Massinacc_]

@@JayChesterman hopefully you find the one that’s right for you bro, still love the car no matter what though 🤞

[@drewpreston9828]

Should’ve got a m3 instead man

[@JayChesterman]

love the m3 but it’s in a completely different category haha price and performance

[@MrZyLeXx]

thats like saying to a person buying a M3, he should've gotten a GT3 instead