So I thought I had the GS sounds pinned to all being normal. After my last oil change and fixing a pin hole in my exhaust though I'm noticing a more metallic sound that I have never heard from a bike. It sounds like a ring - only in one cylinder - but compression is good, oil levels are correct, and the bike pulls harder after the oil change. Does the cam chain make excessive noise in these bikes or should I tear into it and possibly replace?  It's almost like the ring scraping lightly in one cylinder - It does have 35k miles on it. I only notice it burning a little oil when it's cold - but that goes away fast so I know it's normal. I'll try to record it, but it doesn't pick up well with the cameras I have - without the pronounced camshaft end "knock" it sounds pretty similar to this bike that was listed on youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U8cyDrHB9EM

I'm not worried until something breaks, I guess.

So  my real question is who can make the weather warm up and organize a ride? I figure that it's the only way to compare sounds of these bike...I've never heard another used one in person. Let me know if you figure out how to make it happen before spring...

Until that happens though does anyone have good recordings of engine noise? All I can find is clips of different exhausts....

Did you pay extra to get the 'quiet edition' gs ?

Maybe something on the exhaust is loose since you mentioned fixing a pin hole ?

Mine goes from sewing machine smooth to box-o-rocks-for-valves through the day, and back again. I've figured it's the cam endplay, valves, and whatever wrench I forgot to take out.

<shrug>

Ride it.

Where was the hole that you fixed? Hopefully it was not on the bottom front of the muffler. If so, that is a drain hole for condensation.

That youtube clip sounded terrible, I had a weird sound coming from my bike as well, it was a ring I finally figured it out as my tank was mounted all that well. I know it sounds like an all too simple answer but it is a good place to start, becareful about fixing holes in the exhaust, I have taken mine apart recently to repaint and found two drain holes, the combustion of the engine produces water and that water leaves your system at those drain holes. Good Luck