XB500 - how I silenced the speaker of deaf

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Mystify
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XB500 - how I silenced the speaker of deaf

I have seen a few really good guides on how people did things to their bikes... well, I was working on mine tonight to do a few things and I thought I would document what I did so that if anyone else wants to know how to do it, they can.

So. The infamous speaker of deaf... the one that screams bloody murder when you use the turn signal.

Since I was getting into the guts of my bike for a different reason (see the post on the dash switch) I figured I will slay the beast while I was in the neighborhood.

The first thing you need to do is get into the dash. there are several screws located around the unit that you take out and the entire thing more or less falls apart. I found that I didn't really need to force anything. If you have to "force" it, check to make sure you didn't miss any, as sometimes, they are well hidden.

This is just after I managed to get the dash separated.

Now, I don't know about the rest of you, but my innards looked like my small intestines. Jumbled, and in one big bulge.

I turned the key on, and hit the signal and at once I heard the speaker scream for it's life. VERY VERY CAREFULLY did I proceed.

Please note: I do have experience dealing with electronics, therefor, I know what is safe to touch and what is not. If you are in any way not knowing exactly what you are doing, then do NOT turn the power on. The reason I am writing this guide is so you don't HAVE to.

The hunt was on!

Then... when all hope was lost, our mighty knight saw a glimmer of hope on the horizon. As he rode his mighty charger forward, he came at last... face to face with the mighty beast!

GOT YOU! TALLY HO!

I have no idea if this little box is standard for all bikes, all I know was that this little thing was emitting the ear piercing sound that was causing windows to crack.

I then, happily, killed the power. The beast went silent. Victory was about to be mine!

In case the previous image didn't give a clear enough idea of what to look for, here it is from a different angle, albeit a bit fuzzy. Sorry. Stupid auto focus.

The cover just slides off, it was pretty simple.

Here we see the speaker of deaf co-habituating with it's fellow creatures in it's natural habitat.

Now, here's the deal - again - I have no idea if that little box and it's innards are standard for the XB500, or any other model... however, if you are looking at your bike and for some reason you can't find that box, what you are looking for this a board mounted speaker.

Almost every speaker I have ever seen in my life of this nature looks like these, so if you don't find that little box, try looking for the speaker itself.

THIS is what the speaker, or sometimes known as a buzzer, looks like. This is your target.

Once you have located your little harpy, it's time to gag it! The thing is, you don't want to mute it completely... it is a good idea to have some kind of audio signal when your signal lights are on, if for nothing else to remind you that you have it indeed on.

To lower the sound, all you need to do is cover the hole. In my case, a couple of little square bits of masking tape did the trick quite nicely. It could still be heard, but didn't make all the neighborhood cats run in terror.

Choose whatever method of gag you like.

I use 3 layers of tape to get the volume that I liked.

Now remember - the speaker is actually out in the open. You are going to be putting it BACK in the dash, so if it seems a little loud, don't forget that it will be covered yet again by the hardware...

You may want to just play around and use trial and error, but 2 or 3 layers of masking tape should be fine.

Before you put the casing back on, you may want to take note that their are holes in the casing. I would not completely recommend covering them all, because besides allowing sound to pass through, there could possibily be another reason, like heat and air flow - it's doubtful, but better safe than sorry.

Note the holes on the front and side - I already plugged the side one with a single layer of tape.

When I put the casing back on, and tested it, I found that the casing actually amplified the the sound.Go figure. By only blocking the side hole, it significantly reduced it back to the volume I wanted.

I said shut the hell up!

Once the casing was put back on, I was done. Ready to be put back in the spot I pulled it out of and put the bike back together.

And our hero stood triumphantly over the fallen beast, basking in his glory.

So the bottom line and things to make note of.

First of all, you may NOT have to cover the speaker, but just cover the holes in the casing.
I seriously doubt that any harm will happen if you do.
If you don't have alot of experience handling circuit boards, I highly recommend just taping up the casing, Assuming it matches the one in my bike.

Don't worry about getting it EXACT... I mean, your just muting a speaker, it's not rocket science. Sound needs to move through air to get to your ear, block the air and sound doesn't move as easily. (unless you put your ear against it directly - but why would you do that?)

Good luck, and safe driving.

garygid
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Re: XB500 - how I silenced the speaker of deaf

Good pictures and description, Thanks.

With my hearing loss (not much left above 2000-3000 Hz), I cannot hear the flasher-warning in my XM-5000Li unless I get very close to the "beeper". While riding and wearing a helmet, nothing heard.

I did not even know the warning beeper was there, and wished that the designers had included one. Then, a friend told me his has one, and I could barely hear mine when I got quite close to it.

So, for the frequency-challenged like myself, a lower-frequency "beeper" module would be much better. Maybe the beeper can be replaced (with a lower-frequency module)?

Thanks again, Gary

Cheers, Gary
XM-5000Li, wired for cell voltage measuring and logging.

captainslug
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Re: XB500 - how I silenced the speaker of deaf

I just desoldered the speaker from the PCB. It doesn't need to be in the relay for it to work.

mf70
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Re: XB500 - how I silenced the speaker of deaf

Tape's the best. Having ~A~ beeper in the circuit is a good thing. I've ridden blocks with the blinker going. The tape mutes it to a reasonable level.

However, I "tested" the flasher by bridging it across a 12V battery. POP! Oops. A Radio Shack MOSFET for $2.00 got it back in action.

Buzzer
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Re: XB500 - how I silenced the speaker of deaf

Thanks for the clear and detailed instructions! I finally got around to quieting my turn signal beeper today. One suggestion: Masking tape dries out fairly quickly and isn't water resistant. I used electrical tape. Vinyl tape would also be a good choice. I put 3 small circles of electrical tape over the opening on the top of the beeper itself (in other words, 3 thickness of tape over the opening). For the side holes on the beeper circuit's cover, I put a single piece of tape over one hole, over the top of the cover, and over the hole on the other side. I put another piece of tape over the first so there are two layers of tape over the holes and cover. That not only covers the side holes, but it also helps muffle the "sound board" effect of the beeper being amplified by the plastic cover. As you stated, varying the layers of tape adjusts the final sound level. I may remove a layer if I have trouble hearing the beeper in heavy traffic, but right now it's a gentle reminder if I've left my turn signal on.

Buzzer

There are three kinds of people: Those who make things happen, those who watch things happen, and those who wonder what happened.

Rocky Romero
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Re: XB500 - how I silenced the speaker of deaf

So. The infamous speaker of deaf... the one that screams bloody murder when you use the turn signal.

Good luck, and safe driving.

Thanks for this info and efforts on documenting this process.

I once felt the same about silencing the speaker. After all, the XB600 is a stealth bike in the city.

After several months riding in the city, I've realized that safe riding requires that others are aware of my presence, especially when turning at a corner with pedestrians crossing.

Using the horn and the turning signal may have prevented unwanted accidents for me.

For now and for riding in the city, I'll keep the horn, turn signals and speakers.

Regards,

Rocky

Buzzer
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Re: XB500 - how I silenced the speaker of deaf

I think that's an excellent point, and I'm still trying to find the right balance. Most of my riding is in quiet residential neighborhoods with light traffic, so the turn signal beeper became more of an annoyance to my neighbors than a safety feature. I also think of people who ride these bikes in retirement communities, campgrounds, near hospitals, wildlife areas, etc. My biggest hazard in the limited city driving I do has been people opening the doors of their parked cars without looking. If I need to get someone else's attention, I use the horn, not the turn signals, which sounds like a truck backing up. In Maine, pedestrians have the right of way so I have to yield to them, anyway. I think that after I've tried the "low volume" beeper for a while, I may remove some of the layers of tape so that it's more audible, but not quite as ear piercing. Regarding noise, I've had people step out in front of my car while I was driving it without a muffler. Regardless of whether or not people decide to keep the beeper or not, it's nice to know that here's an option to control its volume or disconnect it entirely, depending upon the rider's needs and preferences.

Buzzer

There are three kinds of people: Those who make things happen, those who watch things happen, and those who wonder what happened.

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