I recently bought a Bell CF Hess helmet from Riders. It was $425, and I was under the impression there was a large difference between a nice helmet like a Bell vs. a cheaper one like HJC.
Well, I got the helmet. Very nice quality, fitment, etc, but it's LOUD LOUD LOUD on the road. So loud that I had to buy earplugs because this helmet just muffles air right under your ears. I read many reviews that stated a nice helmet like this was super aerodynamic to improve how you sliced through the air, but I didn't really notice that to be the case, either.
The other day, my buddy and I decided to try out his dad's bluetooth headsets so we could talk/ride. I had to use the helmet pre-fitted with it, a cheapo HJC helmet. I was blown away by how much quieter this thing was. Not only was it quiet, but it was just as comfortable as my Bell. I was shocked when he told me it was a meager $120 for the helmet.
So, I guess I'm just wondering what I spent that extra $300 on. Please tell me it wasn't for that CF shell on it that actually doesn't make my helmet noticeably lighter than the HJC
If you want a good HJC everyone swears by the RSP-10 here.
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RPS-10 owner here... First HJC I've ever owned and it's incredible! What an outstanding helmet. I was always quite partial to the Shoei X-11 and now newer X-12's that I own. Which are still outstanding helmets... But the fit, sight out of the helmet, quiet at speed, and airflow through the helmet are just outstanding!
The Bell is a large helmet shell in general... Never owned a Bell but for under $300 that I spent on the Ben Spies RPS-10, I am nothing but impressed!
Not a fan of Bell myself but I own quite a few of the top end helmets. I love the RPS-10 and the AGV GP-Tech. I have crashed on a AGV and Arai and both have done their jobs perfectly.
The more air flow that a helmet has the louder it will be, the star flows a ton of air. A quieter helmet flows less air hence why it is quieter. Also you should always wear ear plugs while riding. Bell makes a great helmet imo. I have 2 stars and love them both.
I feel like it has nothing to do with the air flow because it's all this air buffeting going on right around my ears that makes it so darn loud. It's just like it wasn't designed well to flow air smoothly around the bottom of the helmet so all of this air just congests and bounces around there. Really driving me insane, I hate riding with earplugs because now I can't hear cars and whatnot going on around me
I feel like it has nothing to do with the air flow because it's all this air buffeting going on right around my ears that makes it so darn loud. It's just like it wasn't designed well to flow air smoothly around the bottom of the helmet so all of this air just congests and bounces around there. Really driving me insane, I hate riding with earplugs because now I can't hear cars and whatnot going on around me
That is correct... The RPS-10 has huge pads around the kneck and front air shield dealy which cuts down on a ton of that air flow buffeting underneath the helmet. Having more air flow through designs ports on the higher end helmets does not cause excess noise. Maybe in the lower end helmets when the R and D are lacking...
Meh... Buy an RPS-10! You wont regret it! So siked I picked one up! May need to buy a second to go in a desplay case on the shelf...
I have an hjc samurai and just got the Ben spies and I'm telling you it's like night and day! Ben spies is the most comfortable piece of helmet I've owned.
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