[Vasuki]

A motorcycle rider can easily relate to the below issue.

I have been using >800cc bikes since March 2016. The noise during high speeds from wind/tires essentially termed as road noise is highly tiring when you go for a long spin. It was present in the whole range of my helmets albeit at different levels, but still very much irritatable. I have used the following helmets MT Blade, Shoei RF1200, HJC ST, Axor GP550s.

I used NoNoise earplugs, bought from Bikenbiker for Rs.1800\-.

Was not really satisfied with this product, as it could not provide the comfort which I hoped it would. Then I misplaced it and thought of buying 3M earplugs which cost pretty less and are generally use-and-throw variants.

Then after some consultation with my partner in crime, Lovelin, found this particular brand. He ordered it for me from abroad. It costed some ~Rs.2000\-

During the recent ride to Madurai and back, I tried it out. After seeing the packing/box was a little apprehensive about the product. But all my doubts were laid to rest, the effect is just surreal. Even at speeds unmentionable here, the road/wind noise is a bare minimum. The tiredness due to excess noise is not at all there. What I'm saying is that we can cruise at these high speeds for a long time without any fatigue.

As we say never judge the book by its cover, this product too is pretty good. I would any day recommend this product to all my friends out here.

Now about the brand, it is called Pinlock earplugs. The box comes with three components.

1 pair of medium earplugs.
1 pair of large earplugs.
1 pair of filters.

The filters need to be inserted into the earplugs.

Link to the product : Pinlock Earplugs

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

I have found my peace with the 3M earplugs which costs Rs 10/piece.

Somehow just can't ride without it - Versys redirects all the air to the top of my helmet and the helmet in turn is inherently noisy. Forget highway cruising, even good city roads feel like a torture when not wearing the plugs!

[aargee]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

peace with the 3M earplugs which costs Rs 10/piece

+1 & strongly agree with this; many of my friends in motorcylcing circle recommend this economic alternative to overcome the wind noise & are completely satisfied as well.

However for me, I love the wind noise & especially started loving the sweet sound of 270 degree chords of melodious rumbling from my Interceptor. Occasionally having the ears unplugged has served as third eye watching out on threats on road as well

[headers]

Originally Posted by Vasuki

A motorcycle rider can easily relate to the below issue.

It IS DANGEROUS for the rider if he cannot relate to outside noise, especially in these kinda bikes - So kindly reconsider - The rider ought to be aware of his sorroundings that get surreal and reduced range/degree of vision as the speed increases. The fatigue could be due to improper riding gear!

Originally Posted by aargee

However for me, I love the wind noise &

Occasionally having the ears unplugged has served as third eye watching out on threats on road as well

I believe this is crucial to become a good and safe rider. Going fast is easy, especially with the modern machinery available but being in control and learning to acknowledge other road users threats and failures are very important.

Safe riding guys

[iamgyan]

Usage of earplugs or Bluetooth intercoms while riding being a constant topic of debate, without justifying or dissing either let me just add what I have settled down for.

1. I've been using Sena intercom since 4 years now and can't go back to riding without one, even when riding alone.

2. My current Caberg helmet is crazy noisy at anything above 60kmph to the extent that it actually feels like it can do long term hearing damage. Infact the noise is so high that is probably anyway not hear surrounding traffic. I tried 3M and then Honeywell branded foam ones but they also cut out the intercom audio apart from wind noise a lot. Finally had a lightbulb moment and now I use a pair of sennheiser CX180 earphones plugged into the 3.5mm jack of my sena 10s. The earphones keep noise out yet pipe the intercom audio in. Best part - The battery lasts longer and bass is lower!
You can still hear the honking just in case.

If you don't want to listen to music or any audio also, the sennheisers are way cheaper than NoNoise or similar earplugs, very tiny so they sit inside the ear and not easy to lose.

[aargee]

Originally Posted by headers

I believe this is crucial to become a good and safe rider. Going fast is easy, especially with the modern machinery available but being in control and learning to acknowledge other road users threats and failures are very important

Boss, I'm not passing any judgement here; I wish sometimes to ride with some progressive music & the very thought of it feels nervous. So I came up with a reasoning that, if I can drive a car with music turned ON & the cabin being silent as well, then why I cannot do the same with motorcycle?

The rational analogy seems right (even as I type this), but, I hardly get to hear the music in car!! Yes, sometimes, I can't even hear what people in my car speak, but those are at times.

I don't know why, I cannot seem to enjoy music & ride unlike music & driving. Nothing, calms me, pleases me on road, satisfies me, LIKE A GOOD LONG RIDE!!

[Vasuki]

Originally Posted by headers

It IS DANGEROUS for the rider if he cannot relate to outside noise, especially in these kinda bikes - So kindly reconsider - The rider ought to be aware of his sorroundings that get surreal and reduced range/degree of vision as the speed increases. The fatigue could be due to improper riding gear!



I believe this is crucial to become a good and safe rider. Going fast is easy, especially with the modern machinery available but being in control and learning to acknowledge other road users threats and failures are very important.

Safe riding guys

It doesn't isolate you from the surroundings. It just attenuates the wind & other noise by 25db, which is good enough. You can clearly hear the horn. See the graph below.





Also, I'm sure the fatigue is not definitely due to improper riding gears. If you take 700Kms + rides in a day, you can very much relate to the noise fatigue.

For short city rides you can do away with the earplugs, but long highway rides it will definitely be my companion.

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

I have found my peace with the 3M earplugs which costs Rs 10/piece.

Somehow just can't ride without it - Versys redirects all the air to the top of my helmet and the helmet in turn is inherently noisy. Forget highway cruising, even good city roads feel like a torture when not wearing the plugs!

Spot on. Can definitely relate to your issue. Good earplugs are needed. As they say there is no "Silent" helmet.

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by Vasuki

You can clearly hear the horn.

No one uses the horn on the highway.

Originally Posted by headers

It IS DANGEROUS for the rider if he cannot relate to outside noise, especially in these kinda bikes

On any kind of bike. Especially the slower ones. On the highway speed is your friend. And your ears one of your most critical defence mechanisms.

[Vasuki]

Originally Posted by ebonho

No one uses the horn on the highway.

I don't know, have traveled the whole of India barring 4 states in the North East( Manipur, Nagaland, Tripura & Mizoram). Have seen prevalent use/misuse of horns on the highway and of course blatant use in cities.

You must be really lucky to not have encountered that.

Originally Posted by ebonho

On any kind of bike. Especially the slower ones. On the highway speed is your friend. And your ears one of your most critical defence mechanisms.

As Obelix would say Zigackly...

Means, Exactly, You've hit the nail on the head.

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by Vasuki

I don't know, have traveled the whole of India barring 4 states in the North East( Manipur, Nagaland, Tripura & Mizoram).

So have I. And including the NE too.

In my experience the use of a horn on the open highway is only when things get really tight and someone invariably acts the retard.

Not as a matter of routine when approaching and passing someone.

Which is where a biker is at greatest risk and needs all his rearward senses intact and unimpeded (by barriers such as earphones).

More often than not, on close calls, it's a combination of the biker as well as the 4(+) wheeler. Anyways the latter often pass too close. On top of that a bike is highly mobile. Even a slight drift for whatever reason brings it instantly into the path of the vehicle approaching at speed.

By the time he panic/warning honks it's already too late.

[krishnakumar]

Originally Posted by headers

It IS DANGEROUS for the rider if he cannot relate to outside noise, especially in these kinda bikes - So kindly reconsider - The rider ought to be aware of his sorroundings that get surreal and reduced range/degree of vision as the speed increases. The fatigue could be due to improper riding gear!

I'm not passing any judgement here, but as someone who rides a lot, wind noise is probably even more dangerous and blocks outside noise just as well.

When I'm riding all I can hear is the windnoise and an earplug that selectively dampens wind noise frequencies is something I have also been looking out for, ever since FortNine released a video on this a couple of years ago. Pinlock, unfortunately, isn't available in India.

All I'm saying is, the idea that earplugs are dangerous is not very "sound" because the wind noise itself is dangerous. You anyway can't hear a thing. This has nothing to do with speed as well; the noise is loud enough to block outside traffic sounds even at speeds of 60-70kmph on highways. This gets even worse when there are crosswinds. The same reason why I haven't yet tried 3M earplugs because it cancels out noise across the frequency band.

For someone who really wants to enhance their hearing while riding, something like pinlock is better than not wearing one at all.

[maheshm619]

Originally Posted by Vasuki

Then I misplaced it and thought of buying 3M earplugs which cost pretty less and are generally use-and-throw variants.

3M has couple of earplug designs rated for various decibel levels. We use these around industrial machinery and are quite good.

The sponge/foam like one is use and throw type and the other design (made of silicone rubber / PVC) looks similar to the version you have purchased. This one costs around 30-40 rs. , and is washable/reusable.

But, these shuts out all of the noise and if one needs to hear a little bit,adjusting the fit is the only option.

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by krishnakumar

I'm not passing any judgement here, but as someone who rides a lot, wind noise is probably even more dangerous and blocks outside noise just as well.

When I'm riding all I can hear is the windnoise and an earplug that selectively dampens wind noise frequencies is something I have also been looking out for, ever since FortNine released a video on this a couple of years ago. Pinlock, unfortunately, isn't available in India.

All I'm saying is, the idea that earplugs are dangerous is not very "sound" because the wind noise itself is dangerous. You anyway can't hear a thing. This has nothing to do with speed as well; the noise is loud enough to block outside traffic sounds even at speeds of 60-70kmph on highways. This gets even worse when there are crosswinds. The same reason why I haven't yet tried 3M earplugs because it cancels out noise across the frequency band.

For someone who really wants to enhance their hearing while riding, something like pinlock is better than not wearing one at all.

If the wind noise is so bad then maybe you need a better helmet honestly. Or a better fitting one. Or both.

I've never had wind noise so bad that I cannot hear vehicles (the silent Volvos with rear engines are a different breed).

And a major part of my riding was on thoroughbred Bullet 500s at full highway chat. And later on KTMs. Both nakeds. With zero wind deflection.

[siddhant]

The 3M ear plugs are way too quiet. I used them for 2500 kms and I could barely hear anything. Also, I felt suffocated, especially while riding through traffic and used to have this crazy urge to open up my helmet and just hear the outside world.

NoNoise are much better in that aspect and do not give the blocked-ear feeling. With NoNoise, the problem is inserting them properly in a consistent manner over long rides. I feel once you take out the ear plugs and try to re-insert them, they don't always go in as well as the first time you inserted them while starting the ride. Recently, on a 500+ km ride, I stopped at least 7-8 times just to adjust my ear plugs. For long rides, it helps to carry a tissue paper to wipe off the ear plugs before re-inserting them.

Also, as there is no safety cord, I am very careful while inserting them. I already did that mistake once on the road where I accidentally pushed it too far inside my ear canal and wasn't able to pull it out with my fingers. Scary stuff! Fortunately, there was a town just 1 km ahead and I took the help of a stationery shopkeeper who pulled it out using a tweezer.

Originally Posted by Vasuki

During the recent ride to Madurai and back, I tried it out. After seeing the packing/box was a little apprehensive about the product. But all my doubts were laid to rest, the effect is just surreal. Even at speeds unmentionable here, the road/wind noise is a bare minimum. The tiredness due to excess noise is not at all there. What I'm saying is that we can cruise at these high speeds for a long time without any fatigue.

Compared to NoNoise, how would you rate the Pinlock ear plugs with respect to comfort and hearing protection?

[Prashant1286]

Originally Posted by Vasuki

A motorcycle rider can easily relate to the below issue.
Even at speeds unmentionable here, the road/wind noise is a bare minimum. The tiredness due to excess noise is not at all there. What I'm saying is that we can cruise at these high speeds for a long time without any fatigue.

Link to the product : Pinlock Earplugs

Thanks for the info. I have used pinlock inserts on my visor but I did not know that they make earplugs as well.

However, I am not sure of the utility of earplugs on while riding a motorcycle. To me, the idea of a ride is to be one with the surroundings and a little bit of stimulus to my ear is a welcome thought. Also, it aids my awareness, makes my reactions sharper and I can hear the sweet revving sound of the engine.

Originally Posted by ebonho

If the wind noise is so bad then maybe you need a better helmet honestly. Or a better fitting one. Or both.

This is one part that i would vehemently support. A good fitting helmet is not only a life saver but it also ensures less fatigue on a long ride.

What works for me is that I buy helmets which appear marginally tight fitting when new. Over a few rides, the padding adapts to my head. However, putting them on/ off for a few days is a chore.

I am using a MT Blade currently and don't feel excessive wind noise. Yes, there is some noise when running at highway speeds, but not excess.