Headphones for Cycling

[ewenm]

hondafanatic said:

VEA said:

hondafanatic said:

surfymark said:

What are people's thoughts?

[The masses]Not wear them when cycling [/The masses]

I use Sennheiser CX 300-II. They come with a range of different rubber bungs so you can size them perfectly.

Edited by hondafanatic on Wednesday 14th July 13:16

Another vote for these! Never fallen out once.

Oddly enough, after a some fiddling with the different size bungs, I ended up with one ear need a smaller bung than the other.

I must be OCD because it really annoys the feck out of me.

Just have some cosmetic surgery to make your ears the same size

[bigandclever]

ewenm said:

hondafanatic said:

VEA said:

hondafanatic said:

surfymark said:

What are people's thoughts?

[The masses]Not wear them when cycling [/The masses]

I use Sennheiser CX 300-II. They come with a range of different rubber bungs so you can size them perfectly.

Edited by hondafanatic on Wednesday 14th July 13:16

Another vote for these! Never fallen out once.

Oddly enough, after a some fiddling with the different size bungs, I ended up with one ear need a smaller bung than the other.

I must be OCD because it really annoys the feck out of me.

Just have some cosmetic surgery to make your ears the same size

Or get yourself some Comply foam tips that will expand to fit your ear canal

[jellison]

Soovy said:

surfymark said:

Soovy said:

I think that anyone who wears headphones when cycling is an ingorant selfish bellend.

That's what I think.

Edited by Soovy on Thursday 15th July 09:38

I don't actually remember asking for people's opinion on whether or not I should wear earphones while travelling on well marked cycle paths and off-road.

Is there any chance we could get back to the question I asked please. Moderators any chance that you could clean up the thread please in case other people searching might like to know the answer!

M

Oh dear oh dear.

It was a fat prick on a bike wearing earphones that flattened my Mrs and then rode off, presumably because he was like most cyclists and uninsured despite the fact that a fat git on a bike at 25mph can kill someone.

Cyclists should be licensed and insured.

Read the above - now Mod is going to remove this - this is a primarily a motoring forum with punters that don't want Dicks with headphones cycling about unaware of other road users. Don't give us that guff about quiet cycle ways and offroad.

Christ - I MBK ALOT BTW

[NitroNick]

Soovy said:

It was a fat prick on a bike wearing earphones that flattened my Mrs and then rode off,

So it wouldn't have happened if he hadn't been wearing earphones.

In all the years that I have been cycling when wearing earphones I have never once had any incident which could have been avoided if I hadn't been wearing earphones.
One of my friends is 100% deaf and never ever has any problems when cycling and he covers close to 10,000 miles per year.

Sorry for OT.

I wear cheap maxell ones, they're 7 euros a pair, I buy a few pairs at a time. Have bought premium ones in the past but didn't find them to be any better than the cheap ones, although I might give which ever one proves most popular in this thread a go.

[walm]

Soovy said:

Oh dear oh dear.

It was a fat prick on a bike wearing earphones that flattened my Mrs and then rode off, presumably because he was like most cyclists and uninsured despite the fact that a fat git on a bike at 25mph can kill someone.

Cyclists should be licensed and insured.

I am sorry to hear about your Mrs but unless she is a REALLY heavy breather I am not sure whether he had earphones in or not would have made a difference.

Not sure about licensing but definitely agree on the insurance.

Feel free to continue with the sweeping generalisations though - this is PH after all.

To the OP I seem to get through headphones (for running) at a tremendous rate (lost/broken/eaten by dog etc...) so I went for the surprisingly good quality SkullCandy in-ear buds for something like £12...

[Garlick]

I can't imagine what it must be like to cycle with headphones in? In London I need all of my senses available just to know what is going on around me. Does it still enable you to be aware of your surroundings?

Oh, and let's keep the discussion civil please.......

[surfymark]

Don't you start Garlick! :-)

I personally would not dare ride at all in London. What with all those huge trucks and bendy buses!

However in my sleepy village, there are not too many people around at 6:30am when I ride to the station! I must see a dozen cars (and very few pedestrians) in the whole 40 minute ride!

I can't see how headphones will affect awareness of your surroundings. If I am not wearing headphones then I get bored and my mind starts to wander so I am probably less aware than when I am wearing headphones.

I was taught to always be aware whether in a car or on a bike. I always look over my shoulder every few minutes in much the same way as I look in the rear view mirror of my car every few minutes. I look over my shoulder before I make any manoeuvres. I am not a particularly fast cyclist and am on cycle paths for over 80% of my journey.

I simply can't see how a cyclists can knock down a pedestrian at all unless either the cyclist is doing something illegal (i.e. riding on the pavement or running a red light) or the pedestrian steps out in front of a cyclist which is not the cyclist's fault whether or not they are wearing headphones.

M

[bigandclever]

surfymark said:

I was taught to always be aware whether in a car or on a bike. I always look over my shoulder every few minutes in much the same way as I look in the rear view mirror of my car every few minutes.
M

You mean seconds, right?

[Garlick]

I agree that it would be nice in the countryside, and I understand where you are coming from

In my part of town I need all the ear and eye power I can get to avoid getting squashed!

As for the debates over the rights and wrongs, I repeat my request of keeping it civil, keeping it on- topic and avoid it becoming personal.

[surfymark]

bigandclever said:

surfymark said:

I was taught to always be aware whether in a car or on a bike. I always look over my shoulder every few minutes in much the same way as I look in the rear view mirror of my car every few minutes.
M

You mean seconds, right?

Yeah true. I just do it automatically so don't really think about how often but thinking about it now it is more like every 4 or 5 seconds I guess.

M

[shalmaneser]

Soovy said:

I think that anyone who wears headphones when cycling is an ingorant selfish bellend.

That's what I think.

Edited by Soovy on Thursday 15th July 09:38

How much riding do you do?

You're being a cock, that's what I think.

Riding in earphones is fine if you've half an ounce of common sense.

I'm using Seinheiser CX 400 II at the moment, CX 300s previously and they're brilliant. Be careful though, there are a LOT of fakes out there, so best to buy from a reputable dealer (Richer Sounds for example).

[surfymark]

shalmaneser said:

I'm using Seinheiser CX 400 II at the moment, CX 300s previously and they're brilliant. Be careful though, there are a LOT of fakes out there, so best to buy from a reputable dealer (Richer Sounds for example).

Thanks for this. Sennheisers seem to be a recurring theme here. The 400s look particularly good as they seem to come with a cable winder and a cable clip which would be useful I think.

I had a budget up to £150 so these are a long way below. I did look at the 870s and 880s but they don't look like they would be that much better considering the extra price. The 880s can be bought with ear hooks but I haven't got on with the hooks in the past so maybe I will just go for the 400s.

cheers
Mark

[Mr Will]

My advice would be avoid any of the ear-plug type, I use these in the office when I need to concentrate as they block out a lot of external sounds but this is precisely not what I want while cycling.

For cycling (Yes, I do listen to music whilst cycling) I use a pair of "old-style" earphones which sit in the outer ear and mean that (with the volume at a reasonable level) I can still hear what is going on around me, which is vitally important (for obvious reasons!)

[NitroNick]

Mr Will said:

I can still hear what is going on around me, which is vitally important (for obvious reasons!)

What are the obvious reasons?
If you ride cautiously and stay out of the way of vehicles, indicate when appropriate to do so and look around you frequently to see where the traffic is then I dont understand why it is so important to be able to hear when cycling.

[Mr Will]

NitroNick said:

Mr Will said:

I can still hear what is going on around me, which is vitally important (for obvious reasons!)

What are the obvious reasons?
If you ride cautiously and stay out of the way of vehicles, indicate when appropriate to do so and look around you frequently to see where the traffic is then I dont understand why it is so important to be able to hear when cycling.

I cycled once with my ear-plug type in and hated it, too many idiots around here to stay out of the way of them all of the time and being able to hear what they are up to behind me is extremely useful (but then I am cycling in SW London, not the sleepy countryside)

[ewenm]

Mr Will said:

NitroNick said:

Mr Will said:

I can still hear what is going on around me, which is vitally important (for obvious reasons!)

What are the obvious reasons?
If you ride cautiously and stay out of the way of vehicles, indicate when appropriate to do so and look around you frequently to see where the traffic is then I dont understand why it is so important to be able to hear when cycling.

I cycled once with my ear-plug type in and hated it, too many idiots around here to stay out of the way of them all of the time and being able to hear what they are up to behind me is extremely useful (but then I am cycling in SW London, not the sleepy countryside)

Same for me too. When I used to commute from Holloway to Streatham I needed every sense to be turned up to the maximum to avoid sleepy commuters and bus/taxi/truck drivers.

Trundling along the old railway path here, the risks are somewhat lower so I can afford to be less attentive to my immediate environment.

[surfymark]

Mr Will said:

NitroNick said:

Mr Will said:

I can still hear what is going on around me, which is vitally important (for obvious reasons!)

What are the obvious reasons?
If you ride cautiously and stay out of the way of vehicles, indicate when appropriate to do so and look around you frequently to see where the traffic is then I dont understand why it is so important to be able to hear when cycling.

I cycled once with my ear-plug type in and hated it, too many idiots around here to stay out of the way of them all of the time and being able to hear what they are up to behind me is extremely useful (but then I am cycling in SW London, not the sleepy countryside)

But I don't find that I need to use my ears particularly if I use my eyes enough. If someone is really revving behind me then I can still hear it over my music even with in-ear phones in. If not then they simply pass and it is really down to them to give me enough room. When driving I always give cyclists plenty of room in much the same way as I would give motorcycles plenty of room or even cars when I am overtaking them.

in-ear phones don't cut off the sound completely.

M

[Mr Will]

surfymark said:

Mr Will said:

NitroNick said:

Mr Will said:

I can still hear what is going on around me, which is vitally important (for obvious reasons!)

What are the obvious reasons?
If you ride cautiously and stay out of the way of vehicles, indicate when appropriate to do so and look around you frequently to see where the traffic is then I dont understand why it is so important to be able to hear when cycling.

I cycled once with my ear-plug type in and hated it, too many idiots around here to stay out of the way of them all of the time and being able to hear what they are up to behind me is extremely useful (but then I am cycling in SW London, not the sleepy countryside)

But I don't find that I need to use my ears particularly if I use my eyes enough. If someone is really revving behind me then I can still hear it over my music even with in-ear phones in. If not then they simply pass and it is really down to them to give me enough room. When driving I always give cyclists plenty of room in much the same way as I would give motorcycles plenty of room or even cars when I am overtaking them.

in-ear phones don't cut off the sound completely.

M

Just in case there is confusion here, I'm saying get this type:


not this type:


The latter sort are designed to cut out external noise, which I don't see as an advantage when cycling.

[surfymark]

Mr Will said:

surfymark said:

Mr Will said:

NitroNick said:

Mr Will said:

I can still hear what is going on around me, which is vitally important (for obvious reasons!)

What are the obvious reasons?
If you ride cautiously and stay out of the way of vehicles, indicate when appropriate to do so and look around you frequently to see where the traffic is then I dont understand why it is so important to be able to hear when cycling.

I cycled once with my ear-plug type in and hated it, too many idiots around here to stay out of the way of them all of the time and being able to hear what they are up to behind me is extremely useful (but then I am cycling in SW London, not the sleepy countryside)

But I don't find that I need to use my ears particularly if I use my eyes enough. If someone is really revving behind me then I can still hear it over my music even with in-ear phones in. If not then they simply pass and it is really down to them to give me enough room. When driving I always give cyclists plenty of room in much the same way as I would give motorcycles plenty of room or even cars when I am overtaking them.

in-ear phones don't cut off the sound completely.

M

Just in case there is confusion here, I'm saying get this type:


not this type:


The latter sort are designed to cut out external noise, which I don't see as an advantage when cycling.

Ok but the problem with the ones you are suggesting is that they fall out of my ears all the time. I spend so much time putting them back in that I am paying less attention to the road.

Thanks for the advice though. Now if you could get phones that are secure like the second ones but are not as isolating, that would be an excellent compromise.

M

[BliarOut]

I wear the original Apple ones all the time and I can still hear tyre roar well before a car is anywhere near me Noise cancelling ones would be a bit daft, but I can still carry on a conversation with mine in...

Don't assume because you see headphones that the rider can't hear.