Music While Riding

[He Man]

helmet = fits perfectly = i cant wear earbuds + it wouldnt be like i can hear anhything anyway, exhaust too loud. Must wear ear plugs.

[woodyracing]

helmet = fits perfectly = i cant wear earbuds + it wouldnt be like i can hear anhything anyway, exhaust too loud. Must wear ear plugs.

if earplugs will fit in your ear, then there are earbuds that will fit.  Most helmets I've worn don't protrude into my ear canal, but thats just me...

[DucMouse the Mighty]

i listen to music all the time..

i have shure in the ear headphone, they r wonderful for the long rides cause it blockes out my engine/pipes noise really well...

but i have found it also helps me in the twisties, cause my mind wanders around so much the music helps calm a part of my mind while i can focus on riding  [moto] weird, but it works for me

[DCXCV]

I wear headphones more often than not - in the past I've also rigged my helmet with an extra set, essentially making them into speakers.  I don't blast it - can still hear road and engine noise just fine. 

I love the headphones being illegal while car ads constantly demonstrate how well their vehicle kills all exterior sounds.  You know, sounds like sirens and car horns?

[RBX QB]

I use the bluetooth on my music capable phone to run stereo music to my chatterbox.

only reason I bought the phone was so I wouldn't have to carry a phone AND an MP3 player.


Andy

Privateer... I've been looking at that setup, too.

A) What kind of helmet do you have?
B) How does that setup work in regards to wind/road noise with the music going?

[bishop]

The only music I need while riding is the sound of my wonderful Ducati engine.  And I just stay off of the boring roads as much as possible.  I guess that's easier in Northern California than in the more boring parts of the country. 

It's illegal here to use headphones to listen to music while riding or driving, by the way.

I think it depends on where you are. In Ontario, Canada you can have headphones on but only in one ear.
Personally if you have beautiful sounding engine then you don't need music. I do ride with ear plugs for the wind noise.

[He Man]

hmm do you guys know if there are earphones that block outside noise like ear plugs do? but still fit comfortably?

[OstOgBajer]

hmm do you guys know if there are earphones that block outside noise like ear plugs do? but still fit comfortably?

Tons. They're called in-ear headphones or canalphones. Check out Shure, Sennheiser, etc. My Shure headphones are the most comfortable one's I've used.

[derby]

hmm do you guys know if there are earphones that block outside noise like ear plugs do? but still fit comfortably?

ahem

shure e3 w/ the yellow foamy pads. they work just like "regular" foam ear plugs and you don't have to crank your music up to hear it over the engine/wind noise. i can actually hear my ipod at 30% volume on the freeway.

[swampduc]

Noise-killing headphones sound like a great idea. Anyone have any experience with the Etymotic er6? Just over 1/2 the price of the Shure ^^^^^^
Got a really good review in Motorcyclist (but then again, so does everything  )

[OstOgBajer]

Etymotics are good too, but I didn't like the sound quality as much... I mean, I think they have accurate sound reproduction, but I like that the Shures are a little "warmer" which is probably what you want unless you're a musical purist. I have a set of Shure canalphones that run about $400 (not sure what the model is because the ones I have are prototypes... I think they are SE420), and they sound great  Better than the Ety ER4s. I also didn't like how the Etys fit... Shure headphones come with these black foamy-rubbery plugs that work better than anything I've tried.

Just saw you were asking about the ER6, not the ER4. The ER6 won't sound as good obviously, but I'm sure they are decent. I don't think I've heard them. I'm probably the wrong person to ask lol... Shure has lower end headphones too, the SE110 SE210 and SE310. I didn't like the quality of the SE210s ($200), but from what I've read they are better than the ER6.

All the prices I'm stating here are msrp, so you can find better deals.

[Jarvicious]

helmet = fits perfectly = i cant wear earbuds + it wouldnt be like i can hear anhything anyway, exhaust too loud. Must wear ear plugs.

I'm the same way.  I've even found earplugs that won't stay in my ears once I try to put my helmet on, let alone something with a cord dangling out of it.  I use cheapo foam shooting plugs that work pretty well with little helmet interference. 

On the subject of earbuds, the Shures with the yellow plugs do work well.  There are better sounding buds out there, IMO, but they are worth the money.  Like Derby said, they're basically earplugs with headphones built in.  It's strange.  I listen to music from when I wake up right down to before bed, but I really prefer going without on the bike.  Once I started riding, that's one of the things I found I loved is being so close to everything and I love hearing/feeling/seeing all of it unencumbered. 

[jay.tampa]

I use earbuds to my cell phone which is a MP3 player and GPS ( 2 less things to carry).  Got pulled over once and the cop asked what the earbuds was for(FL illegal to have earbuds in both ears).  I said it was for the phone and GPS and he was like cool idea....

[lagerman72]

I wear mine pretty much everyday but I keep it low so I can still hear everything around me (as much as possible with Termi's and a helmet) and haven't had any problems yet.

[eichh]

I see these each year at the IMS show they seem like a great idea. I plan on getting a set come summer time.

http://www.bigearinc.com/Products/catalog.aspx