The sound of Formula One F1
Andy Cowell, the leader of the Mercedes Formula One engine program, said that whereas the V-8 engines of the past were so loud that all that could be heard was "angry noise," today there is a music to the engine function.
"You just take your earplugs out," he said. "Instead of it being painful unless you had earplugs in, now you can almost enjoy the sound, the musicality of it."
"Every time, I hear the compressor spin up and spin down as the driver rolls out of the garage," Cowell added, "and he puts a little bit of throttle on, and you hear the compressor come up and there's a 'whoosh,' as the compressor comes up, and the lift-off into the corner, there is a higher pitch, a higher frequency musicality to it."