I bought a Shoei Qwest helmet the other day, took it out for the first ride yesterday and unless the helmet is closed and locked with the side lock, it whistles very loudly - it seems a downgrade from my cheap HJC IS-16 and doesn’t have a sun visor unlike my HJC
With the helmet open on the first notch, I thought there was an ambulance behind me when accelerating away! - when I use the side lock to break the air seal, anything over 20mph sounds like a gym teacher’s whistle near my ear the whole time
I tried riding with the helmet closed and locked, which eliminates the whistle almost completely, but then the helmet steams up instantly - will try again with the pinlock system soon but testing at home, it seems to steam up even with the pinlock system.
EDIT2: I fixed my whistling problem! - I undid the 2 philips head screws on the mechanism on the left side and aligned it so that it matched the right side - the whistling is gone! - Loving the helmet now.
Sorry about the angle, this is just to demonstrate the sound - I just crammed my iPhone into the helmet.
As for the pinlock lens, the helmet comes with one, but when I put it on, I can see the reflection of my nose and the image is slightly distorted - also, I tried walking around the house in it for a few minutes, and it steamed up behind the pinlock lens and took a fair amount of time to clear when I took the helmet off – I will try it on the bike, but worried about it distorting my vision, especially at night.
EDIT: Sorry, I appreciate the replies, I’m not ignoring them, it’s just all reviews of this helmet say no whistling of any kind, just wind noise - I’m getting some severe, loud, distracting, high pitched whistling, so I’m trying to figure out what’s wrong there before I try the fog mask or pinlock lens.
Hmm, I don’t get it though, my cheap arse HJC, I can crack open and there are no whistling noises of any kind - sure the wind noise is louder and it’s not as comfy and it has a crap safety rating (why I upgraded) - but the loud, high pitched whistle from the Qwest makes me want to smash it to small pieces with a very large mallet
I’ve had a Quest for a few months & it’s been fine, a bit noisier perhaps than my old XR1000, but don’t recall having any whistling noise at all.
Have you tried changing your position on the bike & seeing if it goes away? Just wondering if the airflow off the screen in a certain position is blowing over the visor in such a way as to cause the whistle?
As for the pinlock, it should seal all around the edge, if the visor steams up beneath it then it’s not seated properly, so you’re either not mounting it properly or there’s a defect on either the pinlock, the visor or the mounting posts haven’t been located correctly.
Oh & check it’s the correct pinlock for the Quest visor!
What bike are you on? - My Ninja 250R has a very upright position, but very little wind protection, maybe that is the culprit. I tried to move my head up to an even more upright position, which just made the whistling louder. The pitch changes and it gets a little louder when I look left and right but it’s always present no matter what position my head is in
The pinlock lens came in the box with the helmet so I suspect it is the correct one - do I need to turn the mounting posts after fitting the lens? - the fitting instructions are kind of vague.
EDIT: I re-installed the pinlock and it seems to be working! - only problem is I can see my own eyes and nose reflected in the pinlock lens - not sure how distracting that will be on the road.
I’m on an FZS1000, which likewise is pretty upright, I’ve also got an MRA vario screen & it doesn’t make any difference what position that’s in, I’ve never noticed any whistling.
Thanks for your reply, I fitted my pinlock and it seems to be working! - Other than seeing a faint reflecting of my own eyes, nose, double vision at night and slight distortion, it’s working
I still don’t understand why it’s whistling though when cracked open (with the lock on the side). Are you wearing ear plugs with yours? - Have you had a listen to the video I posted? - any resemblance to the wind noise you hear on yours?
When you ride around London, do you normally keep the visor air sealed, or crack it open with the lock on the side?
the whistling is common on the quest. It happens to mine too. But it doesn’t happen to me when its cracked. I start to hear it when going around 30+ with the visor set to the first ratchet setting…
I couldn’t hack it during commutes so. I went and bought a Schuberth c3.
My problem is that it’s constant at any speed over 20mph with the helmet cracked - It makes it near impossible to use. I close the visor fully at around 50mph, but it’s the 20 to 50mph that’s unbearable with this helmet right now - and that’s the range we commuters use most of the time
I’ve contacted the reseller to see what they say - one youtuber messaged me there may be a screw I can undo and adjust how the visor attaches, but I’m waiting to hear from the reseller first.
The C3 seems a bit out of my budget and a bit too heavy. Any other contenders if I have to send this one back to get something else? My budget is £300 and I’m looking for essentially a Shoei Qwest that doesn’t sound like an old school kettle going off in my ear.
I fixed my whistling problem! - I undid the 2 philips head screws on the mechanism on the left side and aligned it so that it matched the right side - the whistling is gone! - Loving the helmet now.
- sure the wind noise is louder and it’s not as comfy and it has a crap safety rating (why I upgraded) - but the loud, high pitched whistle from the Qwest makes me want to smash it to small pieces with a very large mallet 
