Reading all the posts I can see that I need to mentally put the noise issue into the "don't care" box and adjust my expectations. I might never get my wife to ride in it but you never know. One of the first things she asked me (and I had no idea at the time) was if they were noisy. I told her no, of course not, it's a Honda. My 2KW generator purrs like a kitten so how different could a SxS be? (Well, so much for assumptions, right?)
I do question the analysis of the demographics though, i.e. that most purchasers would like noisy machines. From what I've read the SxS market has exploded in recent years to include a lot more than recreational riders and a fair amount of older people who, like me, have no particular infatuation with loud machinery. But then, I never have, even in my teens or 20's. If I'm on the outside of the bell curve, so be it but it does seem to me that if a Goldwing and an Odyssey can be whisper quiet then so could a 1000cc SxS. If it's not then it must be intentional and I think they are missing a beat by not making some way to quiet them down. JMO.
I do question the analysis of the demographics though, i.e. that most purchasers would like noisy machines. From what I've read the SxS market has exploded in recent years to include a lot more than recreational riders and a fair amount of older people who, like me, have no particular infatuation with loud machinery. But then, I never have, even in my teens or 20's. If I'm on the outside of the bell curve, so be it but it does seem to me that if a Goldwing and an Odyssey can be whisper quiet then so could a 1000cc SxS. If it's not then it must be intentional and I think they are missing a beat by not making some way to quiet them down. JMO.
