T1-R 70R-EM Dual Sparrow or HKS Dual Hi-Power?
 

Hello everyone long time lurker and first time poster here. I've had my '06 for a couple of months now and I'm looking to buy an exhaust within the next couple of weeks. I'm torn between the T1R 70R-EM and the HKS Dual Hi-Power. I want an exhaust that purrs at idle and can turn heads when I want it to. I also daily drive my car so I need something livable, I can deal with a little drone as the S is obviously not a quiet car even stock, but I just don't want to give myself a headache or piss off all my passengers every time I drive.

T1R:
I love this exhausts sound and the gains are great. It is pricey but I'm not going to be doing a crazy amount of mods to this car as I love it out of the factory, so I want quality. The only flaw to me is the terrible looking exhaust tips. They claim no drone on evasive but after lots of searching on here it seems like 1/3 of people say it does drone a lot which is what has held me back from pulling the trigger on this exhaust.

HKS:
Price is obviously much better on this exhaust. Love the sound but I have worries that it is too quiet, I'm 18 so I want something that grabs peoples attention when I want it to as the s2000 is worth showing off. My other worry is that it will rust over time and overall the appearance will deteriorate and lack longevity.

I'm also in SoCal so I will not be buying a test pipe, maybe a HFC in the future but that wouldn't be for awhile.

Thanks for your help everyone!!

Well...the T1R only drones to people who have ears.

Great sounding exhaust, though. I love my single (used to have a dual). I've driven the car to/from California (I live in the Chicago burbs).

I DD'd for a few summers and had a 1hr commute at one point. As long as you plan to wear ear plugs...its totally fine.

Gotcha, so you're running a T1R single at the moment? I hear the dual drones less than the single is that true? I'm thinking of just pulling the trigger on the T1R Dual Sparrow because it looks perfect in every way but the tips to me. Had a friend with a RX-8 that droned A LOT and it didn't bother me much, I feel as if I can deal with some drone.

Yep, I currently have a single.

There really wasn't much difference in amount of drone comparing dual to single (IIRC).

It doesn't drone if you're steady cruising on a FLAT road at like 3.5K RPM.

The minute you need to tip in, it will become apparent that "low drone" is a fairy tale term, at best.

At some 6th gear cruise situations, I need to downshift so that the car can maintain speed with higher RPM/lower throttle just to make it STFU.

I still really like the exhaust...BUT my car is not a DD by any means.

I used to have a T1R EM single.
It's a HUGE difference with or without a cat, even with a HFC the drone was horrible, with test pipe close to zero.

To my ears, it drones less at specific RPM without a cat.

But...as soon as you tip in, the drone is way worse without a cat.

The sound is way more worthwhile when you run a TP. As soon as you nail the throttle, the noise picks up instantaneously. Its louder at WOT and sounds way better and makes more of an announcement.

So would you recommend I go with the HKS rather than the T1R? I already have a K&N FIPK on the way and I wonder if the combo of an HKS + FIPK will satisfy my wants for the sound the car makes

No, I'm totally into the way that the T1R sounds. But I'm just impressing upon you that "drone free" or "low drone" or "reasonably quiet" should all be used carefully.

Its fukken loud. But it sounds nice.

Just telling the truth.

I really like the way the T1R turndown tips look. I am of the opinion that the single looks/sounds better than the dual. I think the T1R looks refined and more "exotic" and interesting.

I don't like the way the HKS looks - I think dual fart cannons look hideous...especially with that sideways resonator that the HKS has (opinion). And any exhaust that's quiet isn't going to grab attention like you want.

As a matter of fact, a catted T1R isn't ALL that loud at WOT. It kinda fades as you rev it...but still sounds nice. It just drones and booms inside the car at cruising and normal driving RPM.

I went with a TP to wake the exhaust up a bit. But I completely respect the choice to run a cat for many reasons.

Out of your choices, I would pick the T1R. But being realistic...almost any non-factory S2000 exhaust is not a brilliant choice for a DD. There's no "Jekyll and Hyde" exhausts out there that I can think of. If its even remotely loud at WOT, its going to be loud all the GD time.

One of the best exhaust sounds for the Honda S2000 known to man comes courtesy of the legends at J's Racing in Japan. Whilst I don't recommend my very own titanium FX70RS single exit to you (because it would be overkill for your needs), I do recommend the SUS304 (due to cost saving unless you can afford the Ti version) dual 60RS. J's exhausts feature their original "down tip" (unless someone here knows better and corrects me...) aka dolphin tip so you'll get the look you want. This system would be considerably better than the HKS one you're considering especially if that system is made out of 409 grade steel. The tone from the J's dual 60RS will be expressive and inspiring especially when you go WOT into VTEC to the redline while still being "fairly" quiet at cruise speeds. A TP is a must (like an Invidia 60mm) to eliminate excessive drone.

There's a great deal of subjectivity involved in exhaust sounds/volume/how much it drones and looks in our community or any car community in fact. Lots to choose from and honestly you'll have to experience the above for yourself before you're convinced you made the right choice or indeed...the wrong one.

Best of luck!

I had ordered a T1R Sparrow back in January.... after 4 months and still not available, went ahead and grabbed something else. If you don’t mind waiting (if getting new) T1R is a great choice.