OK, I could have been clearer...sorry.
I suppose its like felt recoil, different people notice it differently. I have a couple of "braked" rifles, but nothing where the brake can be turned on and off, so I don't have a clear comparison, apples to apples.
The amount of powder gas isn't changed, all that changes is the position (direction, and percentage) of the muzzle blast relative to your ear.
Shooting the same round from a pistol and a rifle, (same amount of gas), the pistol is noticeably louder, mostly because the muzzle is a foot (+/-)
closer to your ear.
Brakes come in many designs, from the earliest Cutts Compensators to modern designs with lots of holes that "swirl" around the barrel, to combination flash suppressor/muzzle brake. The angle and amount of gas directed off the bore axis makes a difference in what each "earstander" hears, dependent on their location, relative to the muzzle.
Slots or ports angled to use muzzle blast to help keep the muzzle down are generally called compensators. Those made to angle the gas back (slightly), to reduce recoil, are muzzle brakes.
The classic Cutts Compensator on the 1920s Tommygun is the earliest common brake I know of. Intended to reduce muzzle climb. A sound idea, but it didn't really work enough to make a noticeable difference, because of the small amount of gas in the .45ACP round (compared to rifle rounds) and the heavy weight of the Tommygun, which already did a lot to damp recoil.
Muzzle brakes on tank cannons begin showing up around 1940ish with differing designs, and those with solid bottoms turned out to have another advantage, which was a reduction in the dust the muzzle blast stirred up,
of the muzzle, meaning the gunner was able to see the target a little sooner, or a little better, immediately after firing.
Shoot a braked, and non braked rifle prone, in sandy conditions, and you can see it for yourself. The amount varies, of course, but the effect is there.