Low noise helmet?

mobile_rab-01

I’m about to retire my ageing Giro Ionos which has served me very well but have always found it quite noisy. Are there any of the current crop of helmets that anybody would recommend to avoid this? Also, something that’s not too “mushroomy” in a large size... I quite like the look of the Kask Protone and Met Trenta 3k so far?

pblakeney

I can't really comment on the Trenta but the reason for me looking at this thread is because my old MET Thesis is very noisy. Anything above 18mph and I think there is a car behind me.

Charlie_Croker

mobile_rab-01 said:

Low noise helmet?

A very good question. I'm not aware of any standard testing, British/European standards (BS EN 1078) in this regard. As a recent purchaser of a cycle helmet I am now only too aware of the noise levels - I'd have never guessed they were so bad

How many car drivers are aware when approaching a cyclist (wearing a helmet) from the rear, that the cyclist cannot hear the car coming? This is at least my experience

Here are a few aftermarket products:
https://smf.org/certlist/std_B-90A_B-95A_B-90C_B-95C.php
https://wind-blox.com/
http://www.slipstreamz.com/
https://bikeradar.com/news/cat-ears-wind-noise-reduction-first-look/
https://bikeradar.com/news/these-clam-like-cups-claim-to-make-you-safer-on-the-road/

rwoofer

For some reason I find my aero helmet (MET Manta, so not very aero) is much quieter than my Giro allround helmet.

DeVlaeminck

Think you can get things that attach to the straps that deflect the air or something which makes helmets quieter. For those doing a lot of miles at decent speed high frequency hearing loss and tinnitus might be a concern - it's very much a thing in motorcycling now yet 30-35 years ago I can't remember anyone mentioning it.

fenix

Cat ears they were called.

mrb123

My Protone is definitely quieter than the Giro it replaced.

whyamihere

Aero helmets should be quieter, as they should disturb the air less as it passes over them. Anecdotally, my Specialized Evade aero helmet seems quieter than my Specialized Echelon non-aero helmet.

grahamcp

I am really sensitive to wind noise (tends to make my tinnitus worse afterwards) as well as reducing what I can hear. I'm still looking for a solution that I'm happy with.

I have a pair of those Helmet Angels mentioned in one of the links above. I had high hopes from the look of them and they do make a small difference but I still get a fair bit of noise even with them on.

For now I have started using some noise reducing ear-plugs, which again aren't ideal as they do reduce what I can hear overall a little, but they do help in other ways.

I feel like it must be possible for a product to eliminate more wind noise - if I cup my hand over my ear it makes a massive difference. I guess there just isn't the market for it.

I also bought a Garmin Varia recently. I really like this - alerts on my head unit when a car is approaching from behind and works really well. It gives the odd false positive but hasn't missed any vehicles at all.

joe2019

Moved from Giro to Kask Protone. I will never go back - yes I think it is probably quieter, but far more importantly, it is far more comfortable on my head.

pblakeney

FYI - Kask are advertising the Utopia with a feature that it doesn’t use for the Protone, quietness.
“ Quiet riding experience thanks to the reduced windrush close to riders’ ears.”
Unfortunately I don’t like the style or colour choices. Can’t have everything...

molteni_man

This is a really interesting thread. My wife was complaining of wind noise in her ears when I rode with her on Sunday.
It’s a really interesting one as like many many motorbikers I wore ear plugs on my motorbikes when I used to own them. It was really strange to wear them to begin with and completely counter intuitive as we rely on our sense of hearing so much. However, they made a vast difference to the noise and of course the damage to hearing that could be done on rides. In the end I never rode without them and got completely used to having this sense when riding.
Not advocating this when cycling, but cyclists do get a fair buffeting from the wind when riding at times!
Does anyone have a ‘ half way house’ where some wind noise is eradicated, but you still retain some sense of road traffic coming up behind you?
Similarly, has anyone read any research into this as an issue for cyclists?
BW

DeVlaeminck

Some links on this BikeRadar article to a number of solutions - it's a couple of years old so don't know if they are still on the market or not. https://www.bikeradar.com/news/these-clam-like-cups-claim-to-make-you-safer-on-the-road/

Charlie_Croker

DeVlaeminck said:

Some links on this BikeRadar article to a number of solutions - it's a couple of years old so don't know if they are still on the market or not. https://www.bikeradar.com/news/these-clam-like-cups-claim-to-make-you-safer-on-the-road/

Already alluded to in post No.3 above

molteni_man

DeVlaeminck said:

Some links on this BikeRadar article to a number of solutions - it's a couple of years old so don't know if they are still on the market or not. https://www.bikeradar.com/news/these-clam-like-cups-claim-to-make-you-safer-on-the-road/

Thanks for sharing and taking the trouble to find the link too - much appreciated
Molteni

molteni_man

Charlie_Croker said:

mobile_rab-01 said:

Low noise helmet?

A very good question. I'm not aware of any standard testing, British/European standards (BS EN 1078) in this regard. As a recent purchaser of a cycle helmet I am now only too aware of the noise levels - I'd have never guessed they were so bad

How many car drivers are aware when approaching a cyclist (wearing a helmet) from the rear, that the cyclist cannot hear the car coming? This is at least my experience

Here are a few aftermarket products:
https://smf.org/certlist/std_B-90A_B-95A_B-90C_B-95C.php
https://wind-blox.com/
http://www.slipstreamz.com/
https://bikeradar.com/news/cat-ears-wind-noise-reduction-first-look/
https://bikeradar.com/news/these-clam-like-cups-claim-to-make-you-safer-on-the-road/

Charlie_Croker said:

mobile_rab-01 said:

Low noise helmet?

A very good question. I'm not aware of any standard testing, British/European standards (BS EN 1078) in this regard. As a recent purchaser of a cycle helmet I am now only too aware of the noise levels - I'd have never guessed they were so bad

How many car drivers are aware when approaching a cyclist (wearing a helmet) from the rear, that the cyclist cannot hear the car coming? This is at least my experience

Here are a few aftermarket products:
https://smf.org/certlist/std_B-90A_B-95A_B-90C_B-95C.php
https://wind-blox.com/
http://www.slipstreamz.com/
https://bikeradar.com/news/cat-ears-wind-noise-reduction-first-look/
https://bikeradar.com/news/these-clam-like-cups-claim-to-make-you-safer-on-the-road/

Thanks for these links too CC - again appreciated
Molteni

step83

In terms of quiet lids, my Met Trenta 3K is about as quiet as my Lazer Z1 with the aero cover, the Z1 is louder without.