JackMcClymont Posted January 29 Share Posted January 29 Hi all, I am completing a project for school on a motorbike with an electric engine, and was wondering how important people think the sound a motorcycle produces is. I know people around me that practically choose their bikes based on the noise, and was wondering what the general opinion was. Any replies would be greatly appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mississippi Bullfrog Posted January 29 Share Posted January 29 I was certainly very much swayed by the sound my Triumph Bobber creates. The soundtrack is a key part in the joy of riding it. Triumph spent a lot of effort getting it right. My CBF by contrast has no character in terms of engine noise. Riding the two bikes is totally different. In traffic a lot of motorists will cheerfully pull over to allow the Bobber through with a wave. The Honda gets ignored. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S-Westerly Posted January 29 Share Posted January 29 Decent engine sound is a key part of having a bike. A V twin has a special note. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fiddlesticks Posted January 29 Share Posted January 29 Different engines have different characteristics. I have an inline four muscle bike (still no offers, hint hint ) a parallel twin cruiser, and a triple cylinder adventure bike. The inline four is smooth and torquey. And, due to the aftermarket exhaust, loud. Probably too loud for polite company. The cruiser does not quite have the whop whop sound of the big Harley v twins but it's deep, resonant and very pleasing to the ear. The Triple sounds like a tractor mated with a bag of spanners until you get it over 5000 revs, at which point it takes on a visceral roar. This lessens the frustration of listening to it rattle and clunk away at tickover speeds. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick the wanderer Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 I like the way the exhaust note changes as the revs increase, especially when you hit the power band, the tones alter to an almost shouting out. I hate too loud exhausts and don't believe loud pipes save lives, they are just obnoxious. But get it right and no greater sound. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RideWithStyles Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 (edited) Ive ridden and owned commons apart from v4 (darn was so close to it) and straight 6 (many cars i have). singles, 125-690... errmm very vibby especially nearing larger ones (white fingers) and that sound of ....would i own one out of choices of others for the road, no. parallel twin, can sound sort of pleasing if the engine has a nice firing order out of the many you can have and decent exhaust note to match. Bad Vibes made me sell mine. v twin, sounds better than the pars and goes very well for the road...best ones? Well depending if ur a purest Honda v storm / suzuki or a mechanical person ducati 916 witha dry clutch for example's, HDs are just left wing wrong and way worse than pars in my opinion. Triples -inline 3 like in triumph daytona 955 or 675 are just my favourite for sound and feel. Just that they change sound alone from low end grunt to high end snarls. Like a angry bear chewing on asian hornets..., i so miss that bike..... now to me a even though i have owned many inline 4s including currently, they do have many positives and very appropriate and adapt but is it my favourite, no but it would be my if all else fails... they can be made a different though harmonics of either air force (intake) or exhaust ( they dont need to be loud but most just make them do that but these are harder to get just right for an individual. Edited January 30 by RideWithStyles Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geofferz Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 If electric bikes had good range, quick swap batteries, and were cheaper, faster and generally better than petrol ones I'd seriously consider one, sound notwithstanding. I like the exhaust note, but if electric was say half the price of petrol, in addition to the above, I'd swap in a heartbeat, exhaust note be damned. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RideWithStyles Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 Got to agree with Geoff, if by nob head politicians we have to give up something that is a integral part of something (ice) that has and still does make alot of sense then it had better make a better case for itself.... id go further than that as it would have to be way cheaper to buy, charge (speed and cost), go further per charge ( inside or outside), one single universal connection etc oh and less likely to explode destroying my house before id willingly buy one with my own money. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve_M Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 I’ve ridden a selection of electric bikes and really wasn’t bothered by the different sound they make. However… The sound from the air box of my ZXR 750 when the revs hit 10,000 rpm was practically musical - and potentially licence shredding. Something I wish I’d explored on a track day - the A47 Norwich by-pass had to do (in first gear only, honest officer). My VFR 800 (and the 750 before it - keep forgetting I owned the 750, too) had, for want of a better word, a growl as it was revved reasonably hard - and, yes, I did explore that on numerous track days. My other bikes were MEH (down with the kids there, eh? ). Until this one. I will admit to the exhaust sound being a bit of a selling point on the R1200GS. The tale is a long one and I’ll try to précis. 1995 - Brands Hatch, Carl Fogarty et al on Ducatis with that glorious bass exhaust note as I sat and watched - and listened - as they hurtled down from Paddock Bend. 2018. We were having a picnic by the side of a stream not too far from the road on the Maloja pass. Several BMW R1200GS bikes came past and their exhaust note brought back memories of Brands Hatch. Not the same note but a resonance. My good lady also mentioned they sounded better than the dreadful FJR1300 we were on at the time, I’m not sure if that helps… Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KiwiBob Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 3 hours ago, geofferz said: If electric bikes had good range, quick swap batteries, and were cheaper, faster and generally better than petrol ones I'd seriously consider one, sound notwithstanding. I like the exhaust note, but if electric was say half the price of petrol, in addition to the above, I'd swap in a heartbeat, exhaust note be damned. Me too! .. When they have a true range of 150+ miles and a charge time of 10/15 minutes I'm in! The Zero has a range of around 90 miles and a charge time of 4 hours! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve_M Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 17 hours ago, JackMcClymont said: Hi all, I am completing a project for school on a motorbike with an electric engine, and was wondering how important people think the sound a motorcycle produces is. I know people around me that practically choose their bikes based on the noise, and was wondering what the general opinion was. Any replies would be greatly appreciated. Just a passing thought. If you chose to give it an ICE motorbike sound which would you choose? Imagine choosing, say, a Ducati. Turn up to your local bike meet, heads turn and… what a disappointment. And how much ribbing would you get? This, though, could be an option. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mississippi Bullfrog Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 1 hour ago, KiwiBob said: Me too! .. When they have a true range of 150+ miles and a charge time of 10/15 minutes I'm in! The Zero has a range of around 90 miles and a charge time of 4 hours! Just to add that someone I know set up as a Zero dealership and found they were a nightmare when it came to warranty work. In the end he gave up because they fell to bits so quickly and customers weren't getting the support they needed from the company. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RideWithStyles Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 . Someone will say two strokes soon enough... this is where to put it bluntly hgaf cos it will always be the wrong thing unless you make it to account for everybody's so called preference. no point asking a load of old dudes (dinosaurs) cos ice is being killed off and that is that, just like asking about what music is better. Next best for us is a mobility scooter (EV) then we'll all be wheeled in an old folks home left forgotten about soon enough. question id go with is what does YOUR generation want or think? if you're making and designing something for them? What attracts them? Noises of Music (i just get the vision of old peeps with theirgoldwings play on the ghetto blaster of pink floyd or some music from their bikes that sound shite while they cant actually hear it on the move but when they slow down is LAF, terrible AND SO CRINGY, so would memes, downloaded sounds be better? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve_M Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 4 minutes ago, RideWithStyles said: . Someone will say two strokes soon enough... this is where to put it bluntly hgaf cos it will always be the wrong thing unless you make it to account for everybody's so called preference. no point asking a load of old dudes (dinosaurs) cos ice is being killed off and that is that, just like asking about what music is better. Next best for us is a mobility scooter (EV) then we'll all be wheeled in an old folks home left forgotten about soon enough. question id go with is what does YOUR generation want or think? if you're making and designing something for them? What attracts them? Noises of Music (i just get the vision of old peeps with theirgoldwings play on the ghetto blaster of pink floyd or some music from their bikes that sound shite while they cant actually hear it on the move but when they slow down is LAF, terrible AND SO CRINGY, so would memes, downloaded sounds be better? I test rode a Goldwing. I forgot to ask how the stereo worked on it so no idea how to turn it off. That was half an hour of some god-awful music I had nightmares about for days after. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geofferz Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 5 hours ago, Steve_M said: Just a passing thought. If you chose to give it an ICE motorbike sound which would you choose? Imagine choosing, say, a Ducati. Turn up to your local bike meet, heads turn and… what a disappointment. And how much ribbing would you get? This, though, could be an option. Don't think I'd want that. Although I don't like the idea of fake engine noise in my car, yet when I turn it off its too quiet! I hate myself every time I turn it on. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geofferz Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 5 hours ago, Mississippi Bullfrog said: Just to add that someone I know set up as a Zero dealership and found they were a nightmare when it came to warranty work. In the end he gave up because they fell to bits so quickly and customers weren't getting the support they needed from the company. Same as mv agusta a few years back but hey 'Italian spirit' 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bonio Posted January 31 Share Posted January 31 2 hours ago, geofferz said: Same as mv agusta a few years back but hey 'Italian spirit' To be fair, the guys are being as good as gold over warranty stuff on mine. Big improvement on BMW. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RideWithStyles Posted January 31 Share Posted January 31 10 hours ago, geofferz said: Don't think I'd want that. Although I don't like the idea of fake engine noise in my car, yet when I turn it off its too quiet! I hate myself every time I turn it on. loads of manufactures even in their budget models have been playing acoustic through either harmonic reverberations in boxes or directly digitally through your head unit speakers for years....Ford (fiesta,focus rs and st), lotus (elise, exige), renault (clio, twingo), bmw 3and5 series etc. some are just better or less noticeable than others... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RideWithStyles Posted January 31 Share Posted January 31 (edited) Zero i can underStand the difficulty especially the budgets let alone the logistics, planning, stock with limited resources from ill refer to kindly as a start up. BMW have been in the game a very long time, been ther done that, had that million project thrown in the bin while sat on the toilet..... budgets and resources are just absence when you really put them all together....so bm have very few excuses. Edited January 31 by RideWithStyles Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Throttled Posted January 31 Share Posted January 31 The engine noise of the CF Moto 650GT was horrible and that alone would stop me from buying it. When I replaced stock exhausts on two Kawasakis, that had come apart, with exhausts from a company called Black Widow, the sound was like a WWI machine gun, which was fun, but got tiring on long journeys. I could also not cope with a really loud exhaust, for long journeys. My favourite so far is the Akrapovic that came with my present bike. It is nice and quiet on start up and pottering about, but then howls as the revs rise. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bianco2564 Posted January 31 Share Posted January 31 I think as the current generation grow up and EVs become more mainstream, they will be less exposed to different engine noises and therefore less interested in it. Probably be more interested in their ring tone, they couldn't tell a V-twin from a V12. Unless you are an enthusiast, a car or bike is just transport and there are more important reasons for owning that particular vehicle than the noise it makes. I like the sound many engines make, ones with slightly off beat pulses like a V10, x plane V8, I5 or triple really stand out. Exception I make is a flat 4, I think they sound cr@p. I do also like my 3.2 litre M3 straight 6 at 8000rpm and let's not forget two strokes, which are a bit marmite, that sound of a well set up bike on spannies hitting the power band..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bonio Posted January 31 Share Posted January 31 The sound is a big part of being on a bike. My two each have their moments where just the noise is enough to put a big smile on your face. But I remember when I tried out a Zero - this must have been over 10 years ago - I loved being on a bike that was almost silent. The best bit was being out on a country road and reaching a village with its neat little green and its pond and a red telephone box. I liked being able to go through and be part of the peacefulness of the scene. And there wasn't any feeling of having to keep the bike under control so as not to be a nuisance. Made for a really enjoyable ride. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve_M Posted January 31 Share Posted January 31 Just now, bonio said: The sound is a big part of being on a bike. My two each have their moments where just the noise is enough to put a big smile on your face. But I remember when I tried out a Zero - this must have been over 10 years ago - I loved being on a bike that was almost silent. The best bit was being out on a country road and reaching a village with its neat little green and its pond and a red telephone box. I liked being able to go through and be part of the peacefulness of the scene. And there wasn't any feeling of having to keep the bike under control so as not to be a nuisance. Made for a really enjoyable ride. I once a Ducati Monster M1200 for a test ride. It came complete with obscenely loud pipes. I passed through numerous small Norfolk villages and felt embarrassed that I was spoiling their quiet places. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bonio Posted January 31 Share Posted January 31 5 minutes ago, Steve_M said: I once a Ducati Monster M1200 for a test ride. It came complete with obscenely loud pipes. I passed through numerous small Norfolk villages and felt embarrassed that I was spoiling their quiet places. Sounds awesome I had a GSX600RR that was similarly rude. Whenever I parked up in a town, I was instantly surrounded by a swarm of teenage boys. Had to get rid. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RideWithStyles Posted February 1 Share Posted February 1 10 hours ago, bonio said: Sounds awesome Whenever I parked up in a town, I was instantly surrounded by a swarm of teenage boys. Had to get rid. Some cant even prey or pay for that experience!! . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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