distinctive sound

flying belgian

Well-known Member
How come different engines sound different? It has to be more then just the muffler. I mean without seeing it I could always tell when the neighbor was going by with one of his M Farmalls. Another neighbor had
several Massey tractors with a 44 being about the same size 4 cylinder engine as the M but it sounded different. We had a 700 Case that sounded different then those and when Pa bought a new muffler for the Case one
time he bought a IH muffler because it was cheaper and it fit right on the Case but it sounded different then the M Farmall with same muffler.
 
The valve timing, valve location in the head Combustion chamber design, squish area, size and shape of the ports, the manifold volume and flow (nasty computational fluid dynamics going on), and the firing order are all involved. Some engines have 1342 order, but twinned exhaust ports and separated intake ports. Some have symetrical cylinders IE-IE-IE IE. some are EI-IE-EI-IE. all these things are variables in the distinct sound. Jim
 
Hi Flying Belgian

Some reasons engines sound different that come to mind are is the engine over or under square and the material the block is made of. We have two little yanmar one lugger diesels powering irrigators which are unbelievably noisy with aluminium blocks.

Matt from Oz
 
Bore, stroke and valve size would be my explanation.
Ever try to make a Dodge engine sound like a Chevy?

I have a 3 cylinder gas Ford 3000 tractor.
I'm used to the snort that the four cylinder Red Tigers make
when I put them under a load. This 3 cylinder actually has a
bit more horsepower but when I load it, it makes an odd sound.
Best I can describe it, like a sheep or deer blatting.
Sounds odd to me, but it works well.
 
I agree can timing can change the sound of an engine. When a neighbor bought a new 3020G I was surprised how different it sounded than dad's 3010G. Same fuel, similar manifolds and heads, slightly bigger displacement, the biggest difference was the 3010 was camed for 2200 RPM and the 3020 for 2500 RPM. On Chrysler 383 engines a Road Runner/Super Bee camshaft sure had a more loping idle sound than a regular 383.
 
When comparing engines of similar size and purpose, namely 4 cylinder gas tractor engines...

I would say the basic sounds are determined buy the shape of the exhaust ports and the exhaust manifold that are common to each engine family.

Then each basic design is influenced by the individual choice of the muffler, or lack of muffler, length and size of the exhaust pipe, and over or under exhaust system.

Also valve timing, valve lash, ignition timing, fuel mixture, and engine load have an effect.
 
I don't have the answer, but that's a great question - my brother bought one of the early Nissan pickups with a V-8, and although it didn't sound like an American V-8, it was still hard to get my brain around the sound of a V-8 coming out of a Nissan
Pete
 
I will say the Allis Chalmers "C" engine has a very distinct sound kinda a staccato note. Not sharp but close and a little bit of a wispy note to it.
 
With respect, Jim. I fully agree that "nasty fluid dynamics going on", however, inside the engine there are no computational processes. LOL
 
Same thing with airplanes in the old days. As a kid I knew I was hearing a B 36 (well Globemasters used the same engines) before I could see it. Also P 51's with Merlins were very distinct. Neighbor's Massey 44 had a "whine" to it while under load, not sure if it was from the transmission. Interesting question.
 
I kinda know why Detroit Diesels sound so unique. Two stroke so twice as many bangs, and they ran faster than normal diseles of their day.

What blows my mind thought is when the same engine sounds different. 12 valve Cummins in the pickup sounds like all those dodge pickups sound. But the the 12 valve in the F800 rumbles more like a big trucks. Must come down to a different muffler.
 
They didn't run faster, just sounded like they were twice as fast because there was twice as many bangs since they fired every stroke
 
Different cam profiles, different crank arrangements, these are probably the biggest distinct sound difference but little things like port size and manifold shape also affect it
 
There is an Amish sawmill about 6 miles from me as the crow flies.....He has since switched to a CAT, but when he had his big Detroit running, I could hear it at my house!
I remember when I was little - the neighbor about a half mile up the road had a "Johnny Popper". He would start that thing up, and I could hear it. I could feel the hair on the back of my neck crawl....I STILL can't stand the sound of a 2 cylinder JD......
 
To add to that, I know that all of us can tell exactly what make just started up based on how the starter sounded. At least on older things. What always amazed me is that when you bench test a starter it sounds just like an electric motor. Put it on an engine and it's different. The Dodges of the 80's were a good example. We had a neighbor with an early 80's "Prospector" dodge pickup. I could hear that starter a mile away. However, but some cheap rebuilt starter on your 72 Chevy pickup and it sounded completely different.

With some things it wasn't the engine itself but the accessories. I can tell a 10 year old Ford a mile away based on the whine of that power steering pump.
 
One thing that I noticed when I was working at the JD dealer, is that I could tell the difference between a combine engine and a tractor engine, even though they both had the same engines in them. I think that it has something to do with the muffler, or aftertreatment on that engine, how and where it was mounted.

Jared
 
Those Rolls Royce Merlins did have a sound of their own.

A buddy of mine used to say there is no prettier sound on earth than a 454 Chevy engine in a pickup with a nice pair of headers and glasspack mufflers, turning about 3,000 rpm and working just a little bit. Having had several of the same, I have to agree.
 
Dad bought a new Allis in 1960. put a new muffler on it about 1967. Sounded like a M farmall. We had the crew in filling silo about that time. More than 1 guy commented on it.
 
even the same size and brand of engine sounds different, from mounting, wear, and other factors(say any add ons mounted). Standing on yards, someone starts say the T6 we know...then start the W6, same engine sounds all together different. Same thing happens with the A,B, and C...all different sound.
 
My dad always told me the dog could pick out the individual vehicle coming down the street from all the other like it.
 
I already had my John Deere 4040 when I bought my Oliver 1850. The oldest boy was in high school when I got it. He came home from school the day I brought it home,climbed up on it and started it. He just sat there with a stupid grin on his face,shaking his head. He said "Why can't that John Deere sound like that?".
 
It comes down to resonance, that is why we all sound different when talking, other than accents.
 
My Cockshutt 40 and 50 have almost identical Buda six cylinder engines. Only difference is the 50 has a larger bore for more cubic inches. (273 vs. 230). I can definitely tell a difference between those two engines running. Even though the outward appearance, muffler etc. are the same.
 

B 36 had 6 pushers.C124 had 4 pullers.The B 36 would cruise at much higher altitude than the globe master.
 
I can still, after 45 years, pick out the distinct sound of a Huey or a Chinook or even a Cobra. I'll bet some other Viet vets know what I'm talking about. Sweet sounds indeed!
 
(quoted from post at 13:03:57 01/14/17) I can still, after 45 years, pick out the distinct sound of a Huey or a Chinook or even a Cobra. I'll bet some other Viet vets know what I'm talking about. Sweet sounds indeed!

That is for sure. I can still hear them before anyone around me does.
What amazes me is when in a crowd and you hear a chopper is where most people will look first to try and see it.
 
When I lived in Havre MT (1 mile from the location of Big Bud Tractors) my Australian Shepherd could be asleep on the living room floor and hear my 57 CJ3B from that mile distance. get up and ast to go out in time to greet me coming home. He was very specific about it and had no false alarms. Jim
 
After reading some of the posts below,I am reminded of when I first started working on trucks,back in the '70s.Aguy could be rev an engine in the shop,and I could tell what the oem of the truck and the engine.For example-we had Mack cab overs with Cummins engines,and IH cabovers with Cummins,and Freightliner coes with Cummins.Same engine-different sound.Fan shroud,intake and exhaust were the differences.Mark
 
I don't know for sure what the sounds (major racket!) comes from, it might be the basket of gears on front of engine or the dual in-pan balancers or all or none of the above, but it is louder than exhaust & much tougher on the ears when on my MF275. Been sounding like it was in destruct mode for 20 years! Nothing about pleasant memories here!
 
I don't know about the sound but we were working on this guys house when all of a sudden the dog runs to the road to chase a pickup. Normal right, well this pickup was white and was Intermountain Gas Company, later same thing happens and it was the local power company. The job took several days and there were numerous white pickups travel the road but the dog would only chase the utility company vehicles. I think he must have been able to read or something.

Steven
 

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