How quiet is the Whisper?

I'm in the USA and looking for the quietest springer I can find with decent performance
and the Whisper may be it.  But, the review seemed to suggest that the noise reduction
only affected super-sonic shots and I'm interested in its sub-sonic noise reduction performance.

The Gamo site says it gives "up to  52% noise reduction" but "up to" includes zero so that's no help.

So, is the Whisper any quieter with sub-sonic pellets?  

Would it be the quietest springer available with good performance (900+ fps) with average weight .177 pellets?

Is the Webley Xocet XS any quieter?

Thanks,
Bob

You would prolly like the webley better... Better gun overall than the gamo. Gamo's are nice after a trigger and a tune. But those english guns are nice out of the box.

Hi Bob,

Check out the guru reviews of the Whisper by Bob (Charlie) and Gene. There are like four of them in the "Airgun Review" forum: http://www.gatewaytoairguns.com/airguns/forums/forum-view.asp?fid=15

They both discuss the quietness of the Whisper.

[johncedarhill]

The twang is louder. I have one for about two weeks now.

[Gene_SC]

Bob, the Whisper's report is at best 52% less than it would be without the moderator. We found that the liter pellets PBA's would neutralize the effect of the moderator when shot. Like CDT wrote in his final review, that the noise level with pba's was about equal to a 22 short goin off.

All springer have springs... and when you compress that spring and shoot, you will get noise from spring, cylinder and depending on what model some other parts as well. You will never make a springer completely quiet. You can reduce the report noise but not the action noise.

You know that a Gamo Whisper is under $200.00 with a scope.. You cannot compare it with any highend European a air rifle just out of the box. But you can make many of the Gamo air rifles very quiet and smooth through a proper tune. I will quote CDT again.. "Gamo's are like Diamonds in the Rough"... That is very true. I own 13 of them and believe me they all are just as nice as any of my euro air rifles. But of course I have had all of them tuned or tuned myself. If you want a $600.00 air rifle that is quiet out of the box then there are some out there.. Dig deep my friend because they do not come as cheap as a Gamo.. hehe

Gene

[PeakChick]

Bob, Gene is definitely right about the value of the Gamo for the money. You generally have to spend a lot more money to get a better gun.

The Webley Exocet XS does look interesting, one again more dinero. My BSA Lightning XL is surprisingly quiet, a combination of the "Moderator" and a powerpalnt that is well designed, close tollerances, synth sring guides.

I nailed a grackle in the Spanish olive tree in my backyard this afternoon from 25yds, dropped it like a stone. The report of the Lightning is a quiet pop, like a BB gun. Once again, this is a $500.00 air rifle.

[shadow]

She's so pretty Peak, love the line's on her. Ed

[PeakChick]

She's my honey Ed! That grackle I nailed this afternoon, it was too easy, like shooting a ray gun. Leaning over the rail on my front porch, lousy hold, just put the cross hairs on it and "pop" it dropped like a rock, zero drama. Nailed it solid dead center just under the neck with a 8.4 gr Wolverine.

[shadow]

Nice shootin girl, get dem Grackles!. Ed

[PeakChick]

Grrrrr.......I am not fond of those stinky grackles!  :emoticon:

I don't doubt that the Gamos are good values.  I've never owned one but I read a lot of reviews
and I can see that Gamo has a big following.

Most of my experience has been with conventional firearms plus some airguns in my youth.  But,
I recently bought a Crosman Quest and i'm impressed with its performance -- and for only about
$100 too.  I put a GRT-III trigger on it and it's now a dandy little popper.  It's just too loud to
shoot in my back yard and I'd like to find a more tactful way of taking care of some local pests.

I like a good bargain but I'm also willing to spend more to get something better.  For example,
I've heard the R9 and some other pricier guns are pretty quiet too.

Actually that Lightening sounds pretty good to me but I don't see many USA dealers that
carry them.

I read a test report last week that included a great number of rifles.  Right at the top for quietness was the Beeman R7 in .177.  Not by a heck of a lot, only a few decibels but enough to make it the top performer.
I have one that I've tuned, but I removed the Maccari Tar that I had put on initially because it degraded the velocity a bit.   I shoot in my backyard and when my wife is watching the TV in the house, she's about 20 feet from my firing point with only one wall between, and she cannot hear the rifle fire...neither can my neighbors.
They aren't all that expensive, either.  Pomona sells 'em for $285 + $20 shipping.
I don't know what you require for velocity but Beeman marks the R7 at 700fps...they don't specify with which pellet.  Mine is shooting 645 with 7.7g Meister Match pellets and has a 3fps spread...the least of any air rifle I've ever had.
I've had 3 CFX's in .177 and tuned them.  Never could get one as quiet as I'd like, but then they each shot about 200fps faster than the little R7.

Bob

I was considering the R7 too.  I think I probably saw the same info you did (with a chart, etc.)
I'm still researching it but the R7 is definititely a possible choice.
Thanks for your input.

BD