You may recall my review of the Low Cost Motorcycle Audio by Shark back in 2009 . Well given to my penchant for low-cost but high value products, I now have a new Shark set up. This is the Shark SHKCYCLEKIT audio 2 speakers+amp . Now don’t get me wrong… I didn’t need it. The existing set-up is perfectly adequate. But when I saw the really cool bullet speakers, all chrome and shiny, my inner-kid kicked in and I simply had to have it. And well… I’m ever-so-happy I got it. Read on.

The Specs (Taken from the Shark website)

Amplifier:

• Working Voltage 10-16V DC
• MAX power @ 4 50WX2
• RMS power @4 25WX2
• THD 50dB
• Channel separation >50dB
• Frequency response 20Hz-20kHz
• Sensitivity 150mv
• N.W. 1.5kg
• G.W. 1.7kg
• Fuse rating 5A

Loudspeakers:

• Each speaker is 3 inches
• Working Voltage 10-16V DC
• VoiceCoil Impedance: 4
• Resonc Frequency: 165HZ
• Effective Frequency Range: Fo-12kHZ
• Puiput Sound Pressure Level: 88dB
• Rated Input Power: 15W
• Max Input Power: 30W
• Distortion: <= 5%

Installation:

Like with my fist Shark set-up, the kit includes a pair of speakers, an amp, and all the brackets and wiring necessary to get everything installed without even one trip to the hardware store.

The actual installation was dead easy. Though I must qualify that. I’ve installed and removed, and installed all of the doo-dads on my bike so many times, I can pretty much do it with my eyes closed. I don’t believe I’m overstating it though… the brackets are easy to use, no puzzles to figure out, and go on with simple tools.  In this case I used the existing wiring so there was no splicing & soldering. Pretty much plug and play.

My only criticism would be the mounting brackets for the speakers. Which are in my view, useless. They’re really nothing more than a single flat piece of chromed metal with a single hole for some screw or bolt or something to slip through. In truth this left me with one mounting option. Under the mirror stems. When you consider that the right and left sets of hardware on most motorcycle handlebars are anything but symmetrical, this left the speaker placement in a visually unbalanced position.

A quick solution was found though. Take a look at these babies… Needless to say, they are already shipping to my house and once I have them, I’ll be switching the mount right away. YAY!

Use:

Dead easy. It’s that simple. Mounted to the left side of the handlebars I can control with a single touch, power, mute, and volume. This allows me to minimize the amount of time my hand isn’t where it really belongs… on the grip.

Sound Quality:

One common issue with any sort of external sound source is what happens at higher speeds where wind noise is amplified. With the previous set up, I lost ability to hear my music at around 80 MPH. With this set up, while on the freeway at about 80 + MPH, I was able to listen to my cool-jams and even caught myself singing along with a couple of my favorites. Okay… you may not have needed to know that part but hey… it’s my ability to hear it clearly that causes me to forget I’m actually trying to judge the things. Another “yay” from me.

My Overall Assessment:

There are many sound solutions to fit the tastes and requirements of most motorcyclists these days. AM, FM, SAT Radio, MP3, etc… Some kits can run you several hundred dollars and require a lot of work to install and cleverly bury components under fairings and such. This is a low-cost, solution with what I’d like to call the mechanical equivalent to “plug-and-play” installation, sounds great, displays sexy chrome (or black) speakers, and costs WAY less than a hundred dollars. Honestly, you can’t beat the value when you consider the sound this little unit produces.

General, Product Reviews