A while back we discussed ear plugs on a couple of motorcycle forums. Some
riders use them, others didn't like the fact that they felt that they could
not hear what was going on around them.

On my FXD, the D&D 2-into-1 exhaust is reasonably quiet, until you get on
the gas hard. Just riding around country roads at under less than 65 mph is
not all that loud. But putting in several hours on the super-slab at 65+,
especially when going up hills is a lot louder than I like. Noise fatigue is
a very real thing.

Yesterday I stopped at a gas station for a drink. When taking out my ear
plugs I dropped one in a mud puddle. So when I got ready to take off again I
was down to one ear plug. Since the exhaust is on the right side of the bike
I decided to put the plug in the right ear. What immediately hit me as I
accelerated to over 65 mph was that the bike didn't seem to be much noisier
than it was with two ear plugs in. Sure, I heard more wind noise in the left
ear without an ear plug, but the roar that the exhaust and intake produce
was just as muffled as it have been with two ear plugs.

My guess is that the intake and exhaust sound energy is very localized with
most of it emitting directly from these two sources as well as being
reflected off the pavement.

If you ride with a full face helmet, as I do, or with a 3/4 helmet, your
ears are already being protected from a lot of noise, especially indirect
noise. For those of you who would like to tone down the noise that you
receive from your intake and exhaust without feeling like you can't hear
what is going on around you, using an ear plug in just the right ear might
be a useful compromise.

By the way, not all ear plugs are created equal, as if anything is. I
purchased a box of Laser-Lite earplugs. They are smaller than most and very
comfortable too, unlike the bigger plugs that you can get in drug stores and
department stores.

Pete