Music whilst riding [Archive]

Dan505

14-03-12, 07:18 AM

14-03-12, 07:22 AM

Personally, I agree with you, but I'm sure half the site will be along shortly to tell you what to buy, how it alleviates boredom etc etc ;D ;D

BB

Jon_W

14-03-12, 07:32 AM

Agreed with the above.... I find the road enough to think about without music.

Snowy

14-03-12, 07:34 AM

I do :)

Turn it off at times when I really need to concentrate.

Kevinb

14-03-12, 08:37 AM

With a 1700 v-twin thumping under you who needs music.
Bose I prefer Akropovic :)

Nikki

14-03-12, 08:50 AM

I' ve seen few people pulling headphones out after removing their lid but isn't it safer on a bike not to listen to music?

personally i wouldn't because it would probably distract me, was just wondering on other peoples take on this?

Why have music when you can listen to your bike? :)

I use earplugs when riding to reduce the noise and wouldnt want music blasting in my ears too distracting for me. Strange as I very rarely drive the car without music.

Have been known to 'sing' when riding though :-[

Swanny

14-03-12, 09:57 AM

I can't imagine riding with headphones in.
I think I need all my senses just to stay upright :D

Mitch9128

14-03-12, 10:06 AM

I commute 80 miles one way, 60 of it M4 unless it's summer, i use music every time, i can hear other road noise, sirens etc when i come off the Mway, but hey like most things it's personal preference and not illegal or dangerous.

Nikki

14-03-12, 10:10 AM

How about one of these http://www.motorcycle-superstore.com/1/4/71/20872/ITEM/Sportech-Cranker-Tank-Bag.aspx

Snowy

14-03-12, 01:25 PM

Caz

14-03-12, 01:31 PM

I pay music sometimes depends on my mood and I dont think it affects my concentration :)

Squashed_Fly

14-03-12, 03:38 PM

I play music off my SatNav into a Scala G4 Intercom unit. It has built in sensitivity so adjusts volume according to ambient noise levels. No problem hearing the exhaust, other bikes, sirens etc etc. I don't bother with earplugs either as I have little windnoise to contend with. Horses for courses but maybe I'm rare in being a male who can multitask ;D

Interesting, I wiki'd multitasking out of interest to see if men really can do it.

Here's an excerpt from it:

Research on human multitasking

Since the 1990s, experimental psychologists have started experiments on the nature and limits of human multitasking. It has been shown multitasking is not as workable as concentrated times. In general, these studies have disclosed that people show severe interference when even very simple tasks are performed at the same time, if both tasks require selecting and producing action (e.g., (Gladstones, Regan & Lee 1989) (Pashler 1994)). Many researchers believe that action planning represents a "bottleneck", which the human brain can only perform one task at a time.[3] Psychiatrist Edward M. Hallowell[4] has gone so far as to describe multitasking as a “mythical activity in which people believe they can perform two or more tasks simultaneously as effectively as one.”

Others have researched multitasking in specific domains, such as learning. Mayer and Moreno [5] have studied the phenomenon of cognitive load in multimedia learning extensively and have concluded that it is difficult, and possibly impossible to learn new information while engaging in multitasking. Junco and Cotten examined how multitasking affects academic success and found that students who engaged in more multitasking reported more problems with their academic work.[6]

Personally, I have enough to contend with just engaging brain while opening mouth.... ;D :D ;)

goz1960

14-03-12, 05:16 PM

Do not listen to music as I would find it distracting but as said previously its personal choice.

Wes

14-03-12, 05:26 PM

personally, i wouldn't listen to music on the bike, its too distracting, i need all my concentration for the road.

wiltshire builders

14-03-12, 05:48 PM

I've got a portable DVD player mounted to the tank. Makes long trips fly by. I watched the police academy box set on the way down to Tuscany.

Swanny

14-03-12, 05:55 PM

I've been thinking of getting a Kimble. It would fit nicely in my map bag but I'm not sure how easy turning the pages would be at 120 mph :-/

Harry87

14-03-12, 08:55 PM

I play music off my SatNav into a Scala G4 Intercom unit.

Always wondered what you were using your G4 for, as don't know anyone else with one!

I used to listen to music on my 125, and didn't find it distracted me. My brain would automatically stop listening to the music if a crash was imminent/road required my attention, and then resume listening again when the road was clear.

Though never listened to music on my BIG BIKE, as I suppose the road can change very quickly at 60-70mph, (my 125 struggled to do 55) and I do feel it requires my full attention. I do find, however, that I often 'think things through', think about dinner, or how I'm going to spend my evening. So as well as giving me a physical freedom, riding also gives my mind great liberty. :D

Toph

14-03-12, 09:06 PM

I've never listened to music when riding.. I love the howl of the wind and my zorst!! 8-) :D :)

Geordie Stu

14-03-12, 09:10 PM

With a 1700 v-twin thumping under you who needs music.
Bose I prefer Akropovic :)

No music prefer the sound of my bike with a Mivv GP exhaust

Nelly

14-03-12, 09:14 PM

I love music but dont like listening to it on my bike either...

redken1

14-03-12, 09:35 PM

I’m deaf as a proverbial post. Ironically, the biggest contributing factor to my defective hearing was probably exposing my ears to loud after-market exhausts for long periods when I was younger. And wind noise.

I read an article which stated that the human ear should not be exposed for any length of time to a decibel level above that of the noise generated by the average hairdryer. A fairly accurate rule of thumb – do you need to raise your voice to be heard?

Sorry to put a “spanner in the works” but I wish I had protected my ears more when I was younger.

luke_chapman

14-03-12, 09:51 PM

i have no problem with people doing it, its there choice after all but personally i enjoy the thrill of the ride so much that i dont worry about music.

crewy

14-03-12, 10:53 PM

If you need music to help you enjoy your ride, then obviously your not having enough fun on your bike. A bit blunt, I know, but biking is all about you and your bike.

Snowy

14-03-12, 11:25 PM

If you need music to help you enjoy your ride, then obviously your not having enough fun on your bike. A bit blunt, I know, but biking is all about you and your bike.

So thats where I have been going wrong all these years...... ;D ;D ;D

Morticia

15-03-12, 11:21 AM

To be honest I don't listen to music, I play a game I like to call "Guess the song" cos I can't hear a thing over the engine noise ;D

I gotta add, it doesn't distract me, thoguh I'm sure my bobbing and shaking distracts other road users at traffic lights ;D

Morticia

15-03-12, 11:23 AM

Oh, and the bobbing and shaking is done cos the music's in my head, I don't even bother with headphones anymore...

garvey2003

15-03-12, 11:48 AM

I commute daily and about 60 mile round trip get a little boring so I tend to listen to music. Its on my iphone which I have a head stock case for satnav on and I can turn the music up or down or even off if I need too.

I find it funny people are so against it when people play music in his or her cars? Surely if you can control the volume etc then its not an issue.

My two pence worth :)

Scotty

15-03-12, 12:19 PM

I've tried listening to music and on "involving" roads I found it a bit of a distraction, but if I can't avoid having to ride more than a few miles of tedium on a motorway or cabbageway then it's great for relieving the boredom.
Motorways aside, on road or track I always use earplugs, have done for about 24 years now. I don't believe the "I want to hear what the bike's doing" bollocks for not using plugs, above 60 all you can hear is wind noise anyway, and long-term riding without some form of ear protection can lead to hearing damage as already testified to by Ken.

Snowy

15-03-12, 12:52 PM

above 60 all you can hear is wind noise anyway.

True for a lot of bikes, but not all i.e tourers and the like with big screens plus the helmet you have makes a huge difference as well to how much gets through to your ears. Helmets such as those from Schuberth are exceptionally quiet inside. It comes down to individual choice, but I don't wear plugs because on my bike and inside my helmet I don't need them ;)

Nikki

15-03-12, 12:53 PM

I find it funny people are so against it when people play music in his or her cars?

I quite agree it's really odd - how many of us (me included) dont like to ride with music yet drive a car with music on.

Slightly off topic but when I did a BikeSafe one of the speakers was chatting about attitude etc and said how surprising it was is that many of us will drink the night before we are due to drive somewhere in our cars yet very few will do so if they are planning a bike trip :-?

Music's not for me I'll stick with the earplugs but each to their own - I can certainly understand having music if you have a boring commute.

Squashed_Fly

15-03-12, 01:29 PM

I must admit, the only reason I don't, is because I find it uncomfortable to wear earphones under my helmet. Not from a distraction point of view...

I saw some moulded earplugs you can get though, that you can also plug into an ipod etc, so maybe they might be worth a shot as they don't 'stick out' from your ears and drop out when you squeeze your helmet on...

or I might try this....

http://www.howtogeek.com/57481/how-to-make-custom-silicone-ear-molds-for-your-in-ear-monitors/

Kevinb

15-03-12, 01:29 PM

I find a musician with a double base in the sidecar and a violinist as pillion works quite well as you just can't beat the real thing.
Mind you having the Saturday's strapped to the tank also might work well ;D

Snowy

15-03-12, 01:35 PM

Swanny

15-03-12, 03:58 PM

Always have music on in the van, not so much in the car as I like to hear the sound of the exhaust :)
I never understand people walking around Bath centre etcwith earphones in. Some great stuff to hear as you're wandering around.
If I had some of those flat speakers that go in your helmet I'd try listening to music while I ride.

Each to their own

Dan505

15-03-12, 05:47 PM

interesting points guys, i'm not against people who do choose to listen to music, i just don't think i could as i find the road distracting enough for me :)