you are going to get many different responses, mostly because exhaust systems are so dependent on personal taste, usually based on what someone hears in person. there are two main ingredients to exhaust taste, that is Tone and Sound Level.
Tone:
H Pipes give more low end grunt and a nice muscle-car rumble, and a nice roar under acceleration. they also account for the standard "Mustang Drone" you either love or hate.
X Pipes usually have more top-end gains, and give an exotic almost raspy sound under acceleration.
Sound Level:
straight mid-pipes (un-catted) usually are WAY louder than their catted counterparts. Most who do not like this idea of being overly loud resort to using a high-flow catalytic setup (like a Bassani Catted midpipe) where it retains the legality of the pipe (well, at least you wont get fined for running cat-less), and it keeps the sound levels down, while retaining the tone of whatever midpipe you run (X or H). High Flow catalytics still give a slight power increase over the stock catalytics, catalytics will still be a hindrance to exhaust flow however retaining much needed backpressure that gives you that linear torque feeling. however no cats will allow more exhaust flow and less backpressure, which helps top end power immensly. If you like using your RPM band daily, torque is likely not an issue, whereas staying around 2-2,500rpm daily having that throttle response may be more to your liking.
the selection of the Catback also plays a pivotal role in the overall tone. Chambered mufflers (IE Flowmasters) also tend to give a more rumbly muscle like tone. Straight through or Turbo design mufflers (IE Magnapacks) sound more aggressive.
i think for your goals, you will be mostly satisfied with a Catted H-pipe and a chambered catback.
Tone:
H Pipes give more low end grunt and a nice muscle-car rumble, and a nice roar under acceleration. they also account for the standard "Mustang Drone" you either love or hate.
X Pipes usually have more top-end gains, and give an exotic almost raspy sound under acceleration.
Sound Level:
straight mid-pipes (un-catted) usually are WAY louder than their catted counterparts. Most who do not like this idea of being overly loud resort to using a high-flow catalytic setup (like a Bassani Catted midpipe) where it retains the legality of the pipe (well, at least you wont get fined for running cat-less), and it keeps the sound levels down, while retaining the tone of whatever midpipe you run (X or H). High Flow catalytics still give a slight power increase over the stock catalytics, catalytics will still be a hindrance to exhaust flow however retaining much needed backpressure that gives you that linear torque feeling. however no cats will allow more exhaust flow and less backpressure, which helps top end power immensly. If you like using your RPM band daily, torque is likely not an issue, whereas staying around 2-2,500rpm daily having that throttle response may be more to your liking.
the selection of the Catback also plays a pivotal role in the overall tone. Chambered mufflers (IE Flowmasters) also tend to give a more rumbly muscle like tone. Straight through or Turbo design mufflers (IE Magnapacks) sound more aggressive.
i think for your goals, you will be mostly satisfied with a Catted H-pipe and a chambered catback.
