The frothy pee is very, very pronounced and looks like a bubblebath when the condition is at it's worst. The bubbles don't melt away immediately like with normal pee, and it leaves a visible residue sometime later if you don't flush. At it's worst, I could see that the pee was cloudy and it certainly contained something abnormal.
The condition has abated a great deal with me, so I am not getting the same pronouced bubbling I used to get. However when the condition was bad, it wouldn't matter if I hit the bowl, or the water... the pee in the bowl would still be frothy and bubbly.