Is it time to end the cult of loud hubs?

Cyclists, from mountain bikers to roadies, have an addiction. We all seem to love the sound of our own hubs. The louder a freewheel is while coasting, the more expensive a bike it is likely bolted onto. Which seems weird, when you think about it. Shouldn’t paying more for something, and some of use are paying near a $1,000 for a set of hubs alone these days, mean its quieter when working properly, not louder?

Loud hubs didn’t start off being loud. Initially, the buzz was a byproduct of high engagement. That was at a time when not many hubs were offering quick engagement and, with mountain biking growing in popularity, quicker engagement was a growing concern.

Decades later, we seem to have lost the plot. Somewhere along the way, loud became shorthand for “good.” Now it’s not just trails that are subject to rampant noise pollution of whiney hubs. Group rides on tarmac and gravel are all punctuated by the conversation-killing squeal of a “fancy” hub. Or two. Or more.

But is volume actually an accurate proxy for quality anymore, or even for engagement speed? Or have loud hubs become so fashionable that they’re unnecessarily loud. Loud for the sake of being loud. And, more importantly, is it time for this nonsense to end? Is it time to mute the cult of loud hubs.

A muted trail experience

To be clear, I do love a high-engagement hub. And I am as guilty as anyone of lusting over high polish, high quality manufacturing. But I’m growing less and less enamoured with the high pitched wail coming from many of these high-end hubs. While I can spill endless digital ink here, I’m not the loudest person in real life. And if I can’t casually converse with a ride buddy because my voice is being drowned out by my freewheel, then I think something has gone awry.

This resentment has built over a few years. But riding a silent hub kicked it up into outright annoyance. While riding a very fancy set of Berd-spoked wheels from NOBL, I realized that sound of my own tires cutting into (and skittering across) the dirt caught me off guard. I knew the Onyx hub anchoring those weird, maybe magic, Berd spokes was supposed to be silent. But I’d forgotten what silent sounded like on the trail. And it was amazing. Floating through the woods accompanied by nothing but the sound of tires (and my own heavy breathing) felt so much more refreshing. I’d nearly go as far as to call it a revelatory experience.

Now, the Onyx hubs aren’t perfect. And they certainly aren’t less fancy or expensive. But it did make me think. If I’m riding at least in part to escape the noise of the city, and of day-to-day life, why would I want to bring a particularly annoying frequency of that manufactured world with me into “nature?”

690 P.O.E. gives 0.52-degree engagement, but the decibel number is decidedly higher

How did we get here? A tale of insects and sea monsters

So, how did we get to this louder place?  Well, as far as I can remember, Chris King is probably the first brand to really push acoustic volume as a positive attribute of its hubs. The Oregon brand advertises durability,  local production and quality, environmentally friendly manufacturing, But CK really leans into “Buzz.” It’s logo is a hub-bee hybrid creature. Its newsletter is The Buzz. There’s even a Buzz Pilsner. The main description for its hubs concludes it’s sales pitch by reminding you buying its hubs will “give you that legendary Chris King angry-bee sound.” And I doubt the brand means that as a warning.

But I shouldn’t pick on King alone. Other brands have enthusiastically joined the pursuit of the sound of speed. Industry Nine’s hubs started with a higher frequency whine than King. Each product generation that comes out of the Asheville, N.C. factory since seems to have escalated that noise until, with Hydra, coasting at even moderate speeds produces a siren-like whine loud enough to startle the heartiest sailor, let alone the average unsuspecting trail user.

Neither brand is alone in its pursuit of “buzz,” though they are two of the loudest. But, as volume has become synonymous with quality in some circles, most brands seems to have a distinctive pitch, frequency and volume to their hubs.

Do loud hubs save lives?

There’s a saying in the world of motorcycles that “loud pipes save lives.” The idea being that if other drivers can hear you, they know to look out for you. But does the same theory hold true for loud hubs? Can coasting effectively warn others to our passing presence? Or are we just terrorizing trails and multi-use paths with our high-pitched whine?

In my experience, loud hubs don’t tend to project noise forward on the the trail, at least not in an effective way. Yes, riding a swarm of angry bees, or hornets, along a multi-use path will alert pedestrians to my presence. Eventually. But, depending on speed, usually not until too late. Usually the actual effect is to startle other trail users, not safely warn them.

At the absolute very best, a loud set of hubs is still vastly inferior in function and cost-effectiveness compared to a simple bell. A bell is designed to project sound forward. Loud hubs are seemingly designed to provide audible comfort their owners. A bell can be run at different volumes and at different distances from other trail users, according to your speed. A hub only makes noise when you’re coasting. Shelling out for a fancy hub shell can set you back over $500 (often for the rear hub alone, not a pair or even a wheel). I can get an effective bell for $15 (or less), though you certainly can spend more if that’s what you’re looking to do.

So, sure, you can argue your aggressively audible hubs are that loud for safety’s sake. But if that’s really what you cared about, you’d also be sporting a bell on your bars.

Or, if you really just want to be a jerk about it, shouting “On your left!” as you brush past a pedestrian’s shoulder is totally free.

When you envision yourself riding this trail, do you hear tires gripping dirt? Or a screaming freehub? Photo: Felix Burke

Hub engagement isn’t an auditory quality

Let’s get back to the main justification for loud hubs. That is that higher-pitched coasting is, generally, correlated to faster engagement hubs. Which is a good thing. I love high engagement. Riding weird, technical trails, high engagement vastly improves my mountain bike experience. Racing cyclocross, where it seems like I’m trying to pedal out of a corner every few seconds, the ability to instantly get on the gas is amazing.

But engagement isn’t and auditory quality. And hub engineers are getting creative. You can now get quick engagement without awakening a swarm of whatever species of insects your favourite brand is emulating. Onyx is silent, but it isn’t the only brand making quality hubs that function on a lower register. Mavic and some DT Swiss hubs provide more of a low rumble. Same with some FSA wheels. Project 321, now based in Ontario, is aiming for ultra-high engagement with just moderate buzz.

This list isn’t exhaustive. It is, though, certainly long enough that we shouldn’t have to put up with a screaming hub any longer. Stop marketing annoying noises as performance. Let’s bring the sweet sound of silence back to the trails and roads.

A final note: Engagement speed and volume aren’t the only attributes that determine the performance of a hub. I am by no means saying a silent hub is the only thing that matters to me. But high-engagement also isn’t a trump card that silences any other qualities. All I want is a little more balance in the discussion. And a little less noise while I’m out riding my bike.

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