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what is the helmet that provides the most road/wind noise resistance. (under say 450 dollars) looking to quite the ride a little bit.
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-tonmarchelli
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Ear plugs - 27dB cut for $6, reusable/washable earplugs. See http://www.katriders.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=5211
Helmets vary in loudness in large part based on the shape of the head -- what works well for one rider may not be nearly as quite for another rider simply because of the fit. The top of the heap right now is the Schuberth and BMW helmets (BMW gets theirs from Schuberth), but they are painfully expensive. They are also the lightest helmet on the market...
I think HJC's are usually loud. Nolans are far quieter, but still louder than I'd like at 100 mph. Somewhere on the web you can find a technical comparison of actual volume measurements...
Good Luck!
=-= The CyberPoet -
Riding w/ ear plugs is a must IMO... you never realize how much noise is in your helmet from wind sailing thru it till you wear them and notice the difference for yourself.
But yes, all lids are different, shapes and designs fit different peoples heads different, so all you can do it try them on. HJC and KBC are fairly universal in their styling, as is vega.. all of which are good lightweight helmets. A more aggressive and unique approach to style can be seen in the AGV, Shoei, Arai, and Scorpion. As well as many others.
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What about those "Quiet rider" things that Tricktape has on their site? Anybody tried one of those?
FrankenKat 1216
GS Fiter 816
GSXR750! (race)Comment
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I haven't tried that one, but I have tried something vaguely similar (a double insert -- one front, one rear). It helped, but once you get up to 80+ mph, the primary source of wind noise is air passing (tumbling) over the edges of the helmet -- the edges of the visor, the edges of the air intakes, edges of hinge mechanisms, etc. Since much of these noises get transmitted through the shell as vibration, the barrier at the neck won't dampen them much. Which basically leaves two choices: good ear plugs or a helmet with better aerodynamic quietening designed into it (like the Schuberth).Originally posted by DooD
Cheers
=-= The CyberPoetComment
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hhhmmm, interesting, Ive not used one before either... but using ear plugs seems to work great, give it a shot and let us know what you think. Comment
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Has anyone tried noise cancelling headphones? Do they just mask the noise, or do they really cancel it?Comment
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Actively noise canceling headphones work by setting up a perfectly out-of-phase sound-wave to the inbound sound from the outside world (takes a microphone input, uses it to synthesize the opposite wave, and adds it to whatever sound it is playing); this literally cancels a part of the inbound sound. I've used them in-flight (in small 2 to 4 seat aircraft) and the same basic technology has been built into cars I've driven, but I've never seen one that would be viable for a motorcycle helmet installation -- yet...Originally posted by Selby
I have seen noise canceling ear plugs (Sure makes the "hot" ones on the market -- at around $480 a pair), and I've seen reasonably priced headsets (Sony MDR-NC20, $72), as well as super-high-tech Bose Crewman & Triport tactical headsets, but nothing that would fit in a standard MC helmet as a permanent installation to the helmet itself... Maybe there's a solution in the military sector from pilot helmets that I'm unaware of?
As for motorcycle helmets, I suspect that there are a few issues that would interfere with the process (but which could be gotten around with the right engineering) -- such as keeping the distance from the speaker to the ear approximately constant (required to ensure the noise cancels effectively) even as the helmet buffets minorly in the wind, where to locate the power-source, and the fact that the noise itself is generated on the shell of the helmet & carried through it (which is normally the mounting surface for built-in speakers).
But, if you manage to find something that works, I'd definitely want to check it out!
Cheers
=-= The CyberPoetComment
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I searched around tonight and found that Chatterbox makes a "Dynamic Noise Reducing Headset" . They're cheap; wonder if they work?Comment
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I think that noise reducing feature is just for the outgoing micComment
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Nope, not well on full-face helmets, IMHO. I've got a couple pair of these noise-reduction FRSX2's here, never use them anymore because they don't work particularly well. They use the static-pressure mic trick as their form of "dynamic noise reduction".Originally posted by Selby
The static-pressure mic trick - the microphone is open on both sides instead of just facing the rider; the idea is that sounds which reach both sides of the microphone at the same time cancel each other out by not moving the microphone pick-up significantly. Inside a closed-helmet, the microphone gets mounted up against the chinbar, which effectively eliminates any benefit from this concept (makes sense though for riders with open-face helmets, where wind noise physically hits both sides of the microphone).
Cheers
=-= The CyberPoetComment
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Try a Scorpion helmet. It seems to be very reasonably priced and very well made. check it out!Comment
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thats funny that you mention that, i just bought a new scorpion lid today. it was a scorpion EVO 700 really nice helmet, great graphics and it is pretty quiet. im really happy with it.Originally posted by ronniebaby-tonmarchelli
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I am not sure if everyone else understood your question!Comment
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CP - You will accept 6 dollars Paypal and ship the plugs to my address? It sounds like an excellent deal.. I will make the purchase here by Friday.
-Are they comfortable? Sometimes my helmet pushes plugs/earphones into my ear a little bit.
-How do they compare to the cheap foam disposable ones that you can get at HomeDepot?
Go Vols! UT '05 GradComment
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