Feathers will make more sound during flight than vanes, but I shot feathers this year and not one of the deer I shot knew anything was up until the arrow hit home. A personal observation/recommendation: You can practice with feathers until they're beat up, chewed up, missing chunks and falling apart. In this condition, they'll whistle andwhiz their way to the target,but they're still fully functional and they'll still be the best at stabilizing and steering the arrow IMO.Still, for hunting, I always hunt with brand new feathers. They're just more quiet when they're new.