I always try to shoot with ear protection, and I definitely notice that the rifles with brakes on them seem louder. I've never shot the same rifle back to back with/without the brake on. I recently put together a 350 legend AR, and the barrel came with a brake on it. Seems excessive to me, and I'm pretty sure I'm going to remove it and install a thread protector. The area where I use that rifle is somewhat close to other houses and I'd prefer to have it as quiet as possible.
