Helmet noise

[Cormanus]

I started at the beginning of this thread and read everything with interest. Yes, I have experienced annoying wind noise ( without ear plugs ) with every modern helmet I have owned. Yes, I do wear ear plugs. Currently I use silicone solid plugs, issued when I worked in a factory years ago. They do give the closed off head feeling, but I can still hear situational awareness sounds around me, granted at much lower volume. I have tried the disposable squash and insert foam plugs, but just dont like them. I have a set of Earpeace plugs arriving today, that I hope will solve both the closed off head feeling and wind noise issues.

From here on are just my speculations about wind noise. It may be more an issue of failing memory ( LOL ), than failing hearing, but I just dont remember wind noise (or engine noise) being a factor back in the day. This made me wonder if, in the quest for better head protection, modern helmets had actually increased wind noise as an unintended by-product.

My first helmet was a plain white Bell 3/4 in 1967, my second, a green metal-flake Buco 3/4 in 1969. I still have the Buco, pictured below. Helmets back then fit much closer to the head, and remind me of the helmets modern down hill ski racers wear today. The Styrofoam shell lining was much thinner, as was the minimal cloth and open cell foam soft lining. There was also no helmet venting. Full face really did not gain popularity and/or availability until the mid 70s if I remember correctly (remember the failing memory part ), and of course modulars much much later.

By comparison, modern helmet outer shells are much bigger, Styrofoam shell liners thicker, and there are thicker soft lining materials. All this would seem to increase the space between the head and the outer shell, consequently creating a larger entrance for wind to enter, than older less protective helmets. The same gap principle could be demonstrated by the wind noise difference between a full face or modular helmet worn with, and without a chin curtain.

I am also reminded of something I learned as an audiophile years ago. Cloth and open cell foam rubber do have some sound muffling properties, but do retain a significant amount of acoustic transparency. Think cloth or open cell foam grills on stereo speakers. Would it be feasible to use closed cell foam for helmet soft linings, and if so, would it make a significant difference in noise reduction to the interior of the helmet?

I have included pictures for physical size comparison between my old 1969 Buco, and a modern Shoei RJ-Platinum-R, but I only wear modular now. I dont know if my speculations have any accuracy or not, but thought it might be interesting to consider. If the lining in my old Buco had not deteriorated so much with time, I would ride test it ( and my memory ) against the RJ-Platinum-R. Even if there is any accuracy to my speculations, protection outweighs noise reduction as far as I am concerned.

Of course. Particularly when it’s easy to have both via ear plugs.

[younggun.45_imp]

These are probably the best plugs you can buy for the price. $13! I ride and shoot my 9mm with the caps open and can still hear everything. They cut the helmet noise enough to not notice it and are very comfotable. Half the time I dont even take them out if I'm running errands and stopping for for a short time. If your helmet noise is louder than mine you can close the caps. Foam tip and full block options without the passive caps are also available.

https://www.surefire.com/ep4-sonic-defenders-plus.html

[LongRanger_imp]

Experimenting with different helmets and windscreens is one thing, but I've found that different jackets can make a noticeable difference in wind noise too.

[emptysea]

LR...I was just going to make a post about that very thing. On my last long ride, I found that how I had my jacket zipped and which vents I had opened made huge differences in the wind noise in my helmet and in some cases caused some helmet lift. It was a very windy day that day which did not help the situation, but maybe it did help -- now I'm much more careful to have my jacket zipped to the top and snapped at the neck when I'm going to be on big roads for long stretches.

[Stichill_imp]

younggun.45...-24dB even with caps inserted is not a great SRR. I'd look for -29dB or higher to feel that my hearing was being protected.

[Cormanus]

I don't know how good the science behind this is, but it's of interest.

[rboe]

Learned two things last month. 1) I should taken my HJC to the rally instead of the cheaper Bell helmet; it's quieter. 2) While the Griso is not really a quiet bike, up to around 60mph (with my silicon ear plugs and the Windjammer (https://www.amazon.com/WINDJAMMER-REDUCE...met+skirt) things were pretty darn quiet.

Explains why I didn't wear ear plugs bag then - was not riding fast enough!

With speed comes a lot of turbulence, the source of 95% of the noise I hear. If I could seal up the area between the helmet and the collar - basically wear a space suit; a bunch of noise would go away.
Second source seems to be some turbulence on the side of the helmet and it varies depending up the direction of any wind. The HJC may have been better - even though I've had that problem with it too.

The Griso has a Givi 770 bikini fairing on it so air hitting the helmet is pretty clean, near as I can tell. The shock wave of air that spills off the fairing seems to hit me in the upper chest area.

[LongRanger_imp]

Vetter Windjammer fairing on a Griso... Hmm. Can you do that? I had to reread your post a few times before I understood what you were saying!

[rboe]

Yikes! I think that would break about three Federal laws!!

[Jeeves_imp]

younggun.45...-24dB even with caps inserted is not a great SRR. I'd look for -29dB or higher to feel that my hearing was being protected.

Agreed! At 32 dB NR, these are the strongest decibel reduction ones I've found, been using them for years...

Jeeves

https://smile.amazon.com/Ultimate-Softne...dpSrc=srch