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Can you run without exhaust silencers? Honda CX500, GL500, CX650, GL650

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A question that pops up from time to time is this: Can you simply leave off the mufflers and have the exhaust system end at the back of the H-box, or midpipes if you have the H-box removed?

The answer is that it is possible, but it's not going to result in a performance improvement - you should expect a loss of power, most noticeably in the midrange. Removing the mufflers alters the length of the exhaust system and has a generally negative impact on the previously-tuned exhaust scavenging effect.

It's also antisocially noisy. This may be a good or bad thing to you!

There's a number of very short muffler options for those who want a clean, minimalist exhaust style that allow for a reasonable amount of baffling and silencing, like these Emgo shorty mufflers (link).

Of course, you could get creative and try to add your own baffling in custom midpipes to get the effect of having an exhaust without having one to ruin the bike's lines... anything is possible, but simply removing them might give you a cleaner look at the cost of losing power and creating a great deal more noise.