Motorcycle Sound Effects

[Winfred] was thinking one day, of how the world would be a different place if everything we owned had little start up and shut down sounds like our computers. Historically computers would just beep after passing their power on self test, and many PC’s still do, but in the 1980’s as machines became more powerful and home users wanted more flexibility in their hardware, startup chimes started to creep into our lives. And why not extend that little moment of joy to other objects, like adding Windows XP startup and shutdown sounds to your motorcycle.

Electronically the bill of materials looks like hobby shop catalog, featuring a Freeduino (Arduino variant), Adafruit wave shield, marine speakers, and a cheap-o mp3 amplifier from ebay. While admittedly not the cheapest way to play an audio clip [Winfred] offers a few suggestions to help drop the 100$ price tag, including just skipping it all together and mimicking the sounds with your voice.

Its a fun idea, its sure to earn some odd looks from his neighbors, and it will probably make you chuckle a little too.

12 thoughts on “Motorcycle Sound Effects

  1. The idea is kinda cool but the sounds… the startup and shutdown sounds were always the first to go after I installed a fresh Windows.

    Something like, ‘computer engaged’ or ‘ignition on’ would, imo, be much cooler

  2. Gah, choose better sound effects!

    I can’t be the only one who has negative associations with the XP startup/shutdown sound clips? I’m not sure what I’d use instead though…

  3. What horror!

    Startup and shutdown sounds are the audio equivalent of splash screens and serve no higher purpose than to be needlessly and annoyingly in-your-face.

    It’s good that you have named this individual, so that he can be dispatched from our collective gene pool post haste.

  4. Why not just use the arduio to play the startup sound. Seems a little over the top when the $4 micro is capable of doing it on it’s own. Granted a startup sound will fill most of the memory it’s still better than throwing $100 worth of parts at in instead of reading a little.

    It took about 15 minutes to convert the sound (following the instuctions here) I wanted to play and then using the simple code here to get it working. Yeah its not going to play a library but a single sound…no problem. Using it to annoy the chickens before opening the coop door.

    http://www.arduino.cc/playground/Code/PCMAudio

  5. Love the comments, keep up the asininity. I’m a Windows sysadmin with barely any electronics skills (or understanding), yet I was able to make this project work with two or three hours of my time and $100 (if time=money, total cost about 5 hours after tax – I think the blog post took me longer than the actual project). Not bad by my standards.

    For those interested in removing me from the gene pool, my kid just told me you’re too late(unless you want to pre-empt him as well?), but if you are still interested, please send me an email and we can meet-up. Look for the 6.5ft, 250lb biker dude with the NRA emblems and prison tattoos :P

  6. A friend of mine has a Kawasaki ZX10 that sounds like a jet engine warming up when you first switch the ignition to “ON”. My EX250, on the other hand, occasionally backfires when I start it, which sounds somewhat like high-caliber gunfire.

    — David

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