For context for people who have little experience with firearms, suppressors are a form of hearing protection or perhaps you can say sound mitigation. As you say they're nothing at all like their depictions in movies or games, that classic sound sample is a raygun noise chopped and compressed with NOTHING in common with the real sound profile.
Unfortunately much like "rag with chloroform" or "killer with a black glove" became stock images in movies, "Gun with a silencer means a PROFESSIONAL KILLER" is a pure invention.
Unfortunately much like "rag with chloroform" or "killer with a black glove" became stock images in movies, "Gun with a silencer means a PROFESSIONAL KILLER" is a pure invention.