the evilness of earplugs

[avriette]

I was horrified to learn that a certain Ninja owner wore ear plugs when riding. Then, one day, I heard that monster pipe rev up to 8k. Even with the stock exhaust, my own bike is pretty loud, but I find that the wind noise is most distracting/tiring when I'm riding. If I'm out for a few hours (or even an hour, really), I am now wearing plugs. Not serious plugs, like shooting plugs, but plugs nonetheless.

And now the iPod pocket in my jacket and backpack tempt me. Please, somebody tell me it's evil. I know I've got $10 worth of concentration, and the iPod costs money, but it would also be nice to have some Marley (or some Ice Cube) as I drive out to the Big Blue Building of Death in Chantilly.

thoughts?

[complacent]

I don't. EvAr. Ride with music.

The risks of distraction on a sport bike are far too great IMHO.

Start to catch that adrenaline rush from your favorite Clutch or Minor Threat song? SPLAT. "Where'd that gravel come from? Why is that stupid minivan coming across my lane?!?"

It is also illegal in VA (and most other states) to have both earphones in-ear while riding. You're allowed one. Stereo music through one headphone =

In addition, at freeway speeds, you can't hear clearly with conventional earplugs or buds. You need custom fitted in-ear pieces that fit deep into your ear canal.

I'll keep my concentration and focus over music any day. And I can't live without music.

Just my .02USD. IMHO it would be a shi**y reason to make your friends pallbearers.

[avriette]

I'll keep my concentration and focus over music any day. And I can't live without music.

Thank you for reinforcing the original, correct, impulse. Distraction, bad. And yeah, can't live without music, either.

Just my .02USD. IMHO it would be a shi**y reason to make your friends pallbearers.

Jesus man when you put it that way, I'm not sure i even have twelve friends. 'sides, I wouldn't want to do that to the few that I have.

Consider me one of the unsquids.

(thanks again; i'm off to the neutrino radius observatory)

[zaxrex]

but plugs

[Libra Monkee]

I tried riding with music once. Granted it was like Smooth R&B or Jazz. Nothing to adrenaline inducing. I've gotten into enough trouble while driving with that. That's why the Mortal Kombat soundtrack doesn't get played in the car anymore. But I digress... While it was cool to hear something besides the engine and the sound of wind whipping passed the helmet I could see how it'd be distracting.

I sometimes wear plugs but not often. Primarily because all I've been able to find are disposables. You wear them to or three times and they go flat. That's cool and all but I'd rather have a decent set of reusables that I could clean regularly and keep with the bike. Ones that I wouldn't have to roll first would be nice too.

[zaxrex]

I don't know if they would work or not, but I have a Sony Walkman noise canceling unit that have the mics in the back of the ear buds. They actually process the stereo input and generate noise damping/cutting signals from the player itself. None of that in-line headset wire mishmash.

The thing is, the gel buds do an awesome job at cutting sound themselves but the cool thing is that they also do the active damping even when the player isn't playing music. If I were to ride a bike, I would not load any music onto it and use them as active noise cancelers, without the temptation to push PLAY. Lastly, they don't hurt my ears after eight hour naps on the planes.

Just a thought to keep you guys alive.

[avriette]

but plugs

your mom.

[avriette]

I sometimes wear plugs but not often. Primarily because all I've been able to find are disposables. You wear them to or three times and they go flat. That's cool and all but I'd rather have a decent set of reusables that I could clean regularly and keep with the bike. Ones that I wouldn't have to roll first would be nice too.

I buy remington and leightning plugs from cheaperthandirt for $2-$3 per box of sixteen or thirty-two. They're roll-n-inserts, but if you think they're nasty, throw em out. Alternatively, go to headphone.com, and buy attenuators. Figure out what you want to attenuate (frequency wise), and buy the appropriate attenuators. This is a solved problem, you just haven't looked hard enough.

I keep a light foam pair and a hard foam pair in a small box in my jacket. The light foam is good enough for warm days, but on cold days they're pretty tough. The hard foam ones I can roll nicely and stuff into them canals (they're about an inch long) and they work better on warm days. But the attenuation on the larger, hard foam pair is -33 or so, and the light foam is -28. It's a huge difference.

My helmet, I found today, makes a lot less wind noise when I put my chin "down" (towards my fuel tank) and I look forward through the "top" of my visor than if I attempt to put my chin on the tank and look forward through the "front" of the visor (and it hurts my neck a lot less). Nobody teaches you how to "tuck" in the MSF courses, and of course I'm a lot taller than Rossifumi, so I don't fit into the normal "tuck" anyways. So, maybe a lot of my wind noise is due to my improperly putting my head under my double-bubble and my head sticking out above it. And, this all changes if I go Arai/Shoei (I need a much longer – front to back – helmet for the tuck).

[avriette]

If I were to ride a bike, I would not load any music onto it and use them as active noise cancelers, without the temptation to push PLAY. Lastly, they don't hurt my ears after eight hour naps on the planes.

Last time I did eight hours on a plane it was ATL to OGG (or, rather, back). 8mg of clonazepam and 120mg of morphine (po, not im/iv) and I awoke refreshed in CONUS as if I'd never even gotten into that cursed aluminum tube. Same with IAD to ITO (for some nice bedtime reading, Zak, check out the approach guide to ITO). Doctors frown on this, but then they can write their own Rx if they so choose.

Just a thought to keep you guys alive.

Educate the goddamn cagers.

Jesus I'm getting fucking militant.

[complacent]

Educate the goddamn cagers.

Jesus I'm getting fucking militant.

It happens to all of us.

[AJ711]

I'm an earplug guy, and converted a coworker who used his i-pod. He found that the earplugs (again, cheap things) provided better noise cancellation and reduction than listening to music. I've found I tend to be more focused riding with earplugs as I'm less distracted/annoyed with the wind noise.

[avriette]

does anyone not own an sv besides me?!!

[complacent]

AJ! What's how ya been?

:waves:

[avriette]

Chuckles, this month's RiDE magazine has a whole article on earplugs. They sourced them from

http://www.lucydellearplugs.co.uk/
http://www.allearplugs.com/

and they were evaluated by UK ambulance paramedics (!). They didn't list a "winner," and said it's a per-rider thing, but from their comments it looks like:

Howard Leight Max
EAR Earsoft FX
Mack's Pillow Soft (but they get dirty easily, so not good for lots of in-and-out – shaddap zak)
Howard Leight Laser Lite (same as above re: dirty)

I like Leight's plugs for shooting, but for the road it's a different story. I actually use Remington plugs on the bike, but I'm fresh out and will probably restock this weekend.