What engine configuration makes the most exciting noises?

I've heard terrible sounding inline 4s

I've heard terrible sounding V6s

I've heard terrible sounding V8s

I've heard terrible sounding V10s

I've heard terrible sounding rotarys

I haven't really come across a bad sounding inline 5 or inline 6

Every configuration sounds best above 8,000rpm.

There is no hard and fast rule.  But the engine configs I tend to gravitate towards, in approx order are:

1. High revving V6, yes, I love a stock VQ35, sorry!!!
2. Nasty turbo inline 5
3. V12
4. Traditional 'Murican V8's, heavily preferring Ford's over others in stock or close to stock config.

Can I say that I don't really care too much for flat plane crank V8's as they tend to sound like two sports bikes.  A real race flat plan V8 at revs glorious.  A Ferrari or other flat plane road car sounds a bit silly to me puttering around in a socially responsible fashion.  

In reply to Adrian_Thompson (Forum Supporter) :

The stock VQ sounds good to me as well. There are too many frittatas that pull the resonators (and likely the cats as well) and run tiny coffee can mufflers......that's why so many people think they sound like garbage. 

Adrian_Thompson (Forum Supporter) said:

Can I say that I don't really care too much for flat plane crank V8's as they tend to sound like two sports bikes.  A real race flat plan V8 at revs glorious.  A Ferrari or other flat plane road car sounds a bit silly to me puttering around in a socially responsible fashion.  

This brings up an interesting point.  Not all engines that sound good at full song sound good at idle and vice versa.  Personally,  I think a normally aspirated, push rod, V8 at idle is one of the best sounding configurations there is but there are many other configurations that make more exciting sounds at high revs.  The flat plan V8 among them.  As Adrian said the 458 isn't the greatest sounding car at idle but it's one of my favorites when it's singing down a straight, banging downshifts for a corner and then ripping through the gears at track out. I've driven some flat plane V8 dirt cars and they too made excellent noises when they were working hard.

Not all engines sound as good unmuffled as they do with a street set up on them either. I am a fan of the relatively long stroke BMW S54 engines (stock redline 7900, run up to 9000+ in race cars) but they sound better in many ways on a street cars than in race cars where they sound like a manic chainsaw.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oBTGqbEssns

I like the VQ with stock exhaust. Could be because I own one. I don't particularly hate them with aftermarket exhaust though they can be annoyingly loud. Better them than a straight piped Harley.

I do like me a rotary. At full song, not much sounds better. 

I'm still going to say V8 is the best of all. 

This one in particular.

APEowner said:

This brings up an interesting point.  Not all engines that sound good at full song sound good at idle and vice versa.  Personally,  I think a normally aspirated, push rod, V8 at idle is one of the best sounding configurations there is

Totally agree. My favorite firetruck I use to drive had a smog-era 2bbl 350 with ram's head manifolds, cherry bombs and fender dumps(old fire chief was a stock car racer). With that tame cam it idled at 500rpms hot. I swear you could almost count the exhaust pulses. It sounded uh-mazing at idle.

#whyIhaveabridgeport

Whatever BMW did to the s85

V-12 is generally the best, but any size or number of cylinders can sound good.

Another one that's very good is the old BRM 16 cylinder F1 cars from the 1950s: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fZMPDCNyQxE

I'm shocked at the number of people completely skipping over the true winner: the V10. E60 M5, Lexus LFA, Carrera GT, Huracan Super Trofeo, and the best sounding era of F1. Their scarcity adds to it. Side note: I prefer the Viper V10 when it's not two isolated side pipes.

Porsche flat 12 sounds pretty sweet, too:

Three rotors a-'brappin' for me.

The one that runs.

Exciting engine noise? I know when two US Fighter Jets fly over and land at the airport in the town I live. People get excited about them. Wanna go outside to try to see them fly over.

In reply to sergio :

Sorry, I may be a past rotary owner, but I freaking hate rotary race engines.  Pure sound driven pain machines.  That and the total berkeleying lie that a 12a or 13b are really 1.2L or 1.3L.  

Since we're on to hateful sounds, I'll go out and say the final iteration of 2.4L NA V8 F1 engines were horrible too.  Everyone, except myself and a few right thinking folk, bemoaned the introduction of the turbo hybrid era for engine sound.  I disagree.  One 2.4L V8 doing a parade lap or something is fine.  22 of those horrible things for 2 plus hours was just pain.  The older multi cyl F1 regs were OK, but the sound coming from those last 2.4L versions was just painful. 

Adrian_Thompson (Forum Supporter) said:

 That and the total berkeleying lie that a 12a or 13b are really 1.2L or 1.3L. 

Thank you. 3.6 and 3.9 liters respectively.

In reply to buzzboy :

Fundamentally they are a physically compact, heavy, inefficient dead end side project.

buzzboy said:

Adrian_Thompson (Forum Supporter) said:

 That and the total berkeleying lie that a 12a or 13b are really 1.2L or 1.3L. 

Thank you. 3.6 and 3.9 liters respectively.

2.3 and 2.6, for parity with 4 stroke piston engines.  That is the displacement per two revolutions.

What if all you hear is the turbo after about 3000 rpms?  Does that still count?

Appleseed said:

Every configuration sounds best above 8,000rpm.

I dunno. A stock SBC might make it to 8k, but it's only gonna make that noise once. 
 

I personally am a fan of Radial engines; particularly the Pratt & Whitney R-2800 Double Wasp found in F4U Corsairs.

18 cylinders, 13 1/2' propeller, and 2000 hp. They sound glorious at full throttle.

F4U Corsair

Gt350 voodoo full stop