KITT's turbine sound source

aussieknight · Post by **aussieknight** » Mon Jul 19, 2004 7:58 am

I think I've asked this before, but does anyone know what they used to make KITT's engine sound? This is a result of FuzzieDice's website links. :-)

Do Joe and Ritchie know? Is it in their book? Could one of you guys let us know you at least mention it in your book, or if you don't, please? Thanks in advance.

Sith · Post by **Sith** » Mon Jul 19, 2004 8:08 am

I don't know for a fact, but it certainly sounds like an airliner engine slightly sped up to me.

Same high pitched tone in my ears.

FuzzieDice · Post by **FuzzieDice** » Mon Jul 19, 2004 11:22 am

I know the link in my KR links was it?... was of a jet airplane. (Dang I have to organize those links better

Someone in another forum wanted to know where there was a turbine sound he could use for wiring it up in his replica so the engine would SOUND like KITT when he drove. I looked up in google for a little bit and that one turbine sound I found was as close as I could get. It was pretty close, too!

I'd be curious exactly what they used for KITT's engine sound as well.

R.J.1984 · Post by **R.J.1984** » Mon Jul 19, 2004 10:08 pm

When and if anybody finds out how to make there car sound like kitt when the engine is one please let me know so that I can do that to my car when I get it one the road.

aussieknight · Post by **aussieknight** » Tue Jul 20, 2004 5:38 am

Want a simple one? Get ahold of a sample of a turbine sound, (again, perhaps the one from FuzzieDice's website, KnightDreams. Reckon I sussed it out or what?!?) preferrably a wav file, consisting of startup & run at least. If there's no shutdown, you can reverse the startup. I have looped the run sound using Nero's wav editor so that it runs for an hour, or whatever a CD will hold. Curiously, good 'ol windows sound recorder reverses the wav easily, but Nero won't. Burn it using whatever program to make an audio CD. If you have a portable CD player you can set it to play track 1, the startup sound, play and repeat track 2, which would be the running turbine sound, but then have track 3 available with the shutdown sound. An amplified speaker will be required if you use a portable CD player, but with the speaker mounted under the bonnet (hood, whatever) you just press play upon starting your engine, and let it run. I have to choose repeat for track 2, the running sound with my CD player, but then I just whack the next track button upon pulling up. Record the CD with as little time between tracks as possible. I'd really love to build an electronic sound recorder to play the tracks, use the event triggered option and have it hooked up to the ignition switch feed for automatic operation. <sigh>, next project perhaps. :-)

The CD player option is cheaper!

FuzzieDice · Post by **FuzzieDice** » Tue Jul 20, 2004 9:13 am

Some folks were talking also about hooking it up to an engine part (forgot what) or doing an engine mod so that the sound would rise/fall when you accellerate/decellerate, which would be even more accurate. But I'll leave it up to the real mechanics to figure out.

It probably would involve having your car PC be able to detect the speed of the vehicle and adjust the pitch of the sound on the fly, and then have that ported into a speaker mounted under the hood and also in the cabin, with a "stealth" mode (ie. can turn it off in the cabin and/or under the hood) when you like.

Not my original idea, but I've read about ideas to do this. Just forgot where, exactly.

R.J.1984 · Post by **R.J.1984** » Tue Jul 20, 2004 10:15 pm

That is exactly what I am talking about. I want to have it so that when I rev the engine or go faster that the sound gets louder. But it would also have to do the same in reverse - meaning when I slow down or after I've reved the engine the sound would get softer. I know that with the C.D. player I would controll it but that is not what I want.
If anyone can figure it out again please let me know ohkay? Thanks.

KnightRider2000 · Post by **KnightRider2000** » Tue Jul 20, 2004 11:30 pm

Come on guys, is that the best you can do? This is an easy question for a real interested car guy (major grease monkey). You can get a turbine resonator(s) for your muffler(s) to do the trick. A small turbine in the exhaust system will spin causing a high pitch sound from the car. Note that this is a specialty item and it may have to be taken from a different car or ordered from an internet muffler site. If you have a turbo charger, or twin turbo charger, I wouldn’t recommend it, due to the serious backflow, and overheating due to a poor air intake system in the Trans Am (ground effects are never as good as an old fashioned grill). A supercharger would possibly enhance the sound and give your car a higher performance rate than stock. Hope this helps.

-KnightRider2000

aussieknight · Post by **aussieknight** » Wed Jul 21, 2004 4:37 am

Heh heh...kids. We are talking about a simple addition here, not a complicated modification like adding a turbocharger to the exhaust. Yes, turbos make a whining sound, but it's not what we're after. Let's not restrict our exhaust just to get a sound from it! Backflow and overheating caused by ground effects? What the...?

R.J.1984 · Post by **R.J.1984** » Wed Jul 21, 2004 10:30 am

KnightRider2000 wrote:Come on guys, is that the best you can do? This is an easy question for a real interested car guy (major grease monkey). You can get a turbine resonator(s) for your muffler(s) to do the trick. A small turbine in the exhaust system will spin causing a high pitch sound from the car. Note that this is a specialty item and it may have to be taken from a different car or ordered from an internet muffler site. If you have a turbo charger, or twin turbo charger, I wouldn’t recommend it, due to the serious backflow, and overheating due to a poor air intake system in the Trans Am (ground effects are never as good as an old fashioned grill). A supercharger would possibly enhance the sound and give your car a higher performance rate than stock. Hope this helps.

-KnightRider2000

I am just wondering how that would work with a 2.8 liter V6 when I want to have side pipes exhaust. I don't want the regular way because I want to have a unique firebird for the area that I live in. Again if any one can help please let me know.

FuzzieDice · Post by **FuzzieDice** » Wed Jul 21, 2004 10:42 am

I had heard that the sound attachment to the exhaust doesn't give very much of an "authentic" KITT sound anyway.

It's odd, I remember that my dad had a car that would whine a little bit (softly) in the cabin when he accelerated and decelerted, and kept a steady whine when running. I don't remember what car that was, as he's had so many cars, sometimes more than one at a time. I do think it was one of his sedans. Maybe the AMC Matador or Plymouth Volare (might have been the later). I don't think it was his Mercury Zephyr though. Of course being a kid I had no idea what would make that sound but I remember it because it sounded kinda eerie to me at the time.

So it's possible. But I'm not sure *how* it was done. He never modified his cars so it was something that was done from the factory to one of those cars. He did have CB radio in the Volare and the Zephyr so it might also have been engine noise beeding through the CB channel come to think of it...

R.J.1984 · Post by **R.J.1984** » Wed Jul 21, 2004 10:47 am

Funny thing - I at one time owned a 1979 Zypher - got it from my old man. It didn't make any wired noises but the old man did have one car that did. he said it had something to do with the heater or something. It was on the whole time the car ran. Still to this day don't know what it was.

KnightRider2000 · Post by **KnightRider2000** » Wed Jul 21, 2004 1:22 pm

aussieknight wrote:Heh heh...kids. We are talking about a simple addition here, not a complicated modification like adding a turbocharger to the exhaust. Yes, turbos make a whining sound, but it's not what we're after. Let's not restrict our exhaust just to get a sound from it! Backflow and overheating caused by ground effects? What the...?

Aussie, ground effects bring in a lot of dirt from the road, along with a trubo charger can cause backup and overheating (did some research on this and I talked to a friend who owned a 3rd generation Camero with similiar set up).

I said on KRO to get a TURBINE RESONATOR for your car, and scrap the turbo, cause it can make the backup worse.

About a year ago I went to Mark's Custom Kits and consulted him with this idea. He said a resonator would work fine, even though he doesn't sell it, and you'll have to go to a specialty company for it. I then even consulted a retired mechanical engineer, and he said a resonator should do the trick, you just have to take the time to search for it.

However if you want to stick to your speakers and CD player, be my guest, however me and some other gearheads might try something a little bit different... :wink:

-KnightRider2000

FuzzieDice · Post by **FuzzieDice** » Wed Jul 21, 2004 4:05 pm

R.J.1984 wrote:Funny thing - I at one time owned a 1979 Zypher

That's the year my dad's car was! A 1979 Mercury Zephyr. It was dark green with tan interior. Was our "family loaner" car so to speak - my dad would loan it out to family that would come up and visit from out of state. He also would loan it to me when my Chevy S-10 would break down yet again and I'd have to go off for parts (yet again

) I don't have the truck anymore. Got rid of it and got my current car. That Zephyr was a well-liked and very dependable car, too. His normal transportation was a '80s or I think early 90s Maroon Chevy S-10 (despite my trying to talk him out of getting one). He also had a 1927 Buick. Get this: his Buick's license plate was was EXACTLY the same as the Zephyr's except for one letter. The Zephyr had "MVA" for the first 3 letters, and the Buick "MVB". The other 3 numbers were exactly alike! He didn't get it that way on purpose either. Both times he went to register the cars, he took whatever they handed out to him.

That WAS odd. So we called the Zephyr "Motor Vehicle A" and the Buick "Motor Vehicle B" It was so odd how that turned out!

Since our state changed the license plates and my step brother's son wrecked the Zephyr after my dad passed on, the license plates are no longer in existance, unfortunately - not the original ones anyway.

R.J.1984 · Post by **R.J.1984** » Wed Jul 21, 2004 10:12 pm

My old mans that he gave to me was a fadded grey exterior with a fadded red interior. MAN do I ever mish that car. I still want to get a car like that a keep it on the road. might happen but might not. :roll:

FuzzieDice · Post by **FuzzieDice** » Wed Jul 21, 2004 11:13 pm

You can always check ebay.

That would be a classic, too, I believe.

R.J.1984 · Post by **R.J.1984** » Thu Jul 22, 2004 2:53 am

I think I will check ebay but I doubt that they will have one in good condition - but I will only check when I can afford another car. :wink:

knightjp · Post by **knightjp** » Tue Aug 17, 2010 5:45 pm

KnightRider2000 wrote:
aussieknight wrote:I said on KRO to get a TURBINE RESONATOR for your car, and scrap the turbo, cause it can make the backup worse.

About a year ago I went to Mark's Custom Kits and consulted him with this idea. He said a resonator would work fine, even though he doesn't sell it, and you'll have to go to a specialty company for it. I then even consulted a retired mechanical engineer, and he said a resonator should do the trick, you just have to take the time to search for it.

-KnightRider2000

I know this is an old thread, having joined this forum quite recently, I haven't actually been able to explore.
Anyways, watching the old 80's show as a kid, one of the most distinct things I remember about KITT was the exhaust note. While I agree that the sound may be something added post-production, I do feel that it is possible.

I am considering trying to get a turbine resonator for my exhaust, but does anyone here know where I can get one???
Searching online is only giving me specs for an Aero-turbine exhaust system.
Not sure if its the same thing KnightRider2000 was talking about.

K.A.R.R. (09) · Post by **K.A.R.R. (09)** » Wed Aug 18, 2010 12:46 am

why get a resonator when a real turbine engine exists?: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5IF0VbUb_Ug

knightjp · Post by **knightjp** » Wed Aug 18, 2010 9:29 am

K.A.R.R. (09) wrote:why get a resonator when a real turbine engine exists?: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5IF0VbUb_Ug

LOL... Yeah it ain't a new car and plus I don't think Chrysler will sell me a turbine engine...

Have a look at this if you like too.... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YHczfe_wVlc
You'll notice a jet whine along with that glorious V8 rumble...

knightjp · Post by **knightjp** » Fri Aug 20, 2010 3:33 pm

I was talking to a guy and he told me that a turbine resonator isn't enough to give it that sound. Mostly the resonator will just quieten the engine noise that is already there.
I wonder if I add a supercharger and then the turbine resonator, would that work???

Milo · Post by **Milo** » Thu Aug 26, 2010 11:21 pm

what about something like this
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4mXbbver7p0

Im sure some one could rig or change the sound to kitts sound

knightjp · Post by **knightjp** » Fri Aug 27, 2010 1:58 am

Milo wrote:what about something like this
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4mXbbver7p0

Im sure some one could rig or change the sound to kitts sound

Great idea, but not my thing. I was looking some real mods on my car.

knight rider online

KITT's turbine sound source

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