General Cycling Discussion - Let's develop a concept of a device to listen to music safely on bicycle

I learn German language now. I am to listen to German lessons in MP3 format.

Instead of cycling to work I walk those 7.5 km on such days. It takes 1 hour 15 minutes instead of 30 minutes on bike.

I prefer MP3 player, because it does not have any moving parts inside. I am not sure if MP3 players are legal in the US though. Are they?

I do not listen to MP3 player while cycling. Ken Kifer (kenkifer.com) writes that a cyclist needs the stereo sound to track cars around.

I saw the special bicycle radio on sale, which could be mounted on a bicycle. But this radio was combined with the front light and looked too bulky to me.

I would like to see a special bicycle FM-radio & MP3 player, which could be mounted on the wheel bar. It should have a non-headphones acoustic system. The volume should be regulated by a special control without moving a hand from the handle.

Certainly it should be water proof and streamlined. I would like it also to have a function to produce a siren sound to scare away an aggressive dog or to sound alarm.

It should not be impossible to place a mike and a circuit inside so that volume goes down as soon as a car approaching.

The device should be easily dismountable too.

Any other ideas?

Originally posted by Alexey
It should not be impossible to place a mike and a circuit inside so that volume goes down as soon as a car approaching.
?

I like the idea but I think you'll have trouble with this part. A mike-activated attenuator will be difficult to employ considering it's proximity to an external speaker.
Mostly though, such a device may be difficult to market since there's not a huge demand for bike-mounted audio devices as it is.
But I wouldn't mind having something like that! :beer:

perhaps just having a knob that can attach anywhere on the handle bars could adjust sound...

and no mp3 players are not illegal in the U.S.

sounds like an interesting idea, but personally I don't listen to music while I ride because I like to think and concentrate.

what city are you from in the Ukraine?

Right. Mike would not work.

However, if I can tell a word in my handy phone and it dials the respective number, such a large thing as an approaching car could be detected somehow.

I am from Odessa. But I was born and grew up in Russia, in Eastern Siberia.

This is so simple it reeks. It's pretty low tech. Just get a mini boom box that weighs about a pound (Awia makes one that's a radio/cassette combination) and strap it on to your rack with some bunjee cords. No headphones to plug out what you need to hear. Riding with music or whatever you like to listen to makes a long solo ride feel shorter. This is how I handle the music situation. Hey, it works.

I favor BnD's idea... a player with a speaker, so you can hear what's going on around you in addition to your preferred racket. They make portable radios with built-in speakers, but they always have an antenna. Walkman's, etc., use the headphone cable as an antenna, maybe if somebody would just use a flexible wire as an antenna...

The other problem is you might need headphones to pick up pronounciation nuances necessary for learning foreign languages.

I sometimes ride with a walkman with a small speaker instead of headphones. I've tried various methods of attaching this set up to my bike and built alot of little contraptions over the years.
Makes the ride more enjoyable, most people don't like the music , but a training ride isn't a training ride without a little blast of metal.:D

Automakers spend about 10 million to develop a new car bumper.

If bicycle producing industry were receiving some support from governments, then cyclists could be catered much better.

Why to tape a radio or invent handicraft contraptions, when it could be done by the industry, using ergonomic laboratories, modern materials, etc.

I built a radio and speakers into the cantilever section of my Schwinn chopper back in 1976

One of the problems with a bike acoustic system is no bass. And headphones are taboo.

It is possible to place a mechanical transducer on the seat or frame to augument the low frequency component. But it could be dangerous. Playing N'Sync at high volumes would cause sterility.

You can add on as many functions as you want but as long as the market demand isn't there, it will not sell.

I am in Porduct Design major and I came out with this totally workable design with multi-functional features..... but the fact is the market don't want complicated stuffs( like the BMW iDrive).

Anything can be designed as long as the engineers can fit the curcuit boards into the designed space. I am just worried about the sound quality that reaches to your ears. If it's not through headphones, the surrounding environment will definitely destract your attention. Furthermore the sound will be dispersed and it will be practically useless.

If you tune the volume loud, then you will be disturbing the others.

You will need to have a control panel somewhere within your reach if you need to have so many functions. So just think about setting your alarm clock, do you think you can do it while cycling?
It's worse than using a cellphone while driving.

So having multi-functional products can be a problem. Best if there is something that doesn't need visual conformation during adjusting of the functions( vocal notice?) but even so I still have doubts for a audio device for cycling, as I prefer to hear dog barking than artifical sounds.

Why not a device in the helmet?

sometimes in the country on weekend morning with little traffic i will play a walkman (so that is what those pockets in back of my jersey are for) and use earbuds for headphones and listen to mono in one ear only, softly. i only listen in the winter time when my other senses are numb from cold.