Hi all,
Enjoying my inside ride rollers but darn they are noisy. Suggestions for the quietest tire possible? Currently on 700x25 GP 4 season at 120 psi.
Would trainer tires be noticeably quieter?
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Would you say the noise is from tire/rubber squeaking on the rollers, or more of a hum from the tread?
Bit of both but it’s the high pitch squeak I’m trying to get rid of. Hurts my ears!
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What rollers are you using?
On my Elite Quick Motions and the Elite Neros (plastic drums) there is considerably less noise than an aluminum drum roller, but the tire noise is still present.
Continentals and Specialized are more noisy than Schwalbe, in my experience. Also, try running your tires with less pressure. I run 76/78 PSI in my 26c Specialized Turbos. If I run 100 PSI the noise is worse. If I run less than what I’m currently running the noise also gets worse, so there is a balance to be struck.
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Emotion rollers - aluminum drums.
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I think aluminum drums are just loud, I’ve tried trainer tires, GP4000s, Sworks tires and all were loud the best tire were rock hard old Gatorskins which still squeak
Only 76psi? I have pumped them up to 110psi. I will try lower the pressure for sure.
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Turn your music up/get some BT headphones. I have some Veloflex tyres and Kreilter/Sportcrafter rollers. They ring like anything. But I cannot hear them if I have a pair of headphones in or turn up my amplifier. The second option means my neighbours are getting to know Pavement and Ride.
No, that really did not wirk. Went back from 74 to 110. Not only quieter in my opinion but also much more a rolling sensation. With 74 I felt like having a flat tyre.
But for what it is worth, I have more air in my tyres, you Jonathan probably have more air in your lungs 
It’s all relative to weight, rim internal width and tire size, so I certainly didn’t intend for you to just do what I do. Gotta do the not so fun thing of “read the manual” (aka: wheel and tire manufacturer’s recommendations). 
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@blueberrypi I didn’t like the noise either with my e-motions and outdoor tires. I think it’s aluminum drum with resistance that makes it noisier. My solution is to use a dedicated indoor wheelset with trainer tires on the front and back
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I dealt with this last year and pardon me if you find the following slightly insulting.
I was running worn out 28mm Sworks Turbo tires, perfect for rollers because who cares, right. Pumped them up to 120 instead of the normal 75 when outside, and crazy squeaks. Drove me crazy. How did I not notice this outside I thought.
Turns OUT that the extra inflation was causing the tire to grow in size and contact the chainstays. Supremely worn out powertap bearings allowing generous side to side play certainly helped.
There’s barely clearance for the tires in the CAAD10. The extra PSI was enough to make it touch the frame when riding. Tires did not noticeably touch the frame when I just spun the wheel.
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This is the direction I’m leaning. What tires are you using specifically?
I’ve got a bright red Vittoria trainer tire on the front and a Continental Hometrainer tire on the back. I don’t really see a difference between the two. I bought the cheapest I could find at the time
I’m not sure that tyres will make that much difference to the noise level between different brands. I use Elite Arions (plastic drums) and have used Conti GP 4 Seasons (before) and Conti GP5000TLs (now) - both seem about the same, although I’m running the 5000s at 70psi vs 90psi for the 4 Seasons (tubeless vs not).
I find that rollers will make you notice almost all sounds from the bike much more (as a regular experiencer of the Cannondale BB30 creak) as there is no outside wind noise to distract you. Personally, in ear headphones do most of the job needed to drown basic trainer noise out (even when listened just to the TR podcast say - even less an issue when you’ve got music on).
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I agree. My Elite real e-motion rollers (plastic drums) are very quiet, while my Kreitler rollers (aluminum drums) sound like a food processor filled with oatmeal. I’ve ridden both rollers with a variety of tires such as GP4K, Pirelli PZero, Gatorskins (yikes) and the noise levels are consistent. I usually run @ 85psi, but even that doesn’t seem to make a difference.
And finally, with earbuds and enough Ke$ha and Alice Merton, who can hear anything in the first place?
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in my opinion it is not the tires which produce the most sound, but the vibration of the belts of my Quick Motion rollers.
At certain gears, speed and cadence the belts vibrate like a base guitar during long Pink Floyd floating melodic solos…
not that tuned in though unfortunately
I hear that. Belts of my QM even hit the floor during that vibration and be a bad percussion instrument with string. DADADADA!
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I have the Inside Ride E-Motion Rollers (love them!) and always run Continental GP4000 S II tires. I found that they are squeaky and have a buzzy vibration when new; due to the combination of the shiny, slick surface of a brand new tire and its associated tire “whiskers”. But once they’re worn, they quiet down a great deal. I can barely hear the tires over the sound from my drivetrain and the rollers themselves.
I found that it takes about a couple hundred miles of outdoor riding before they quiet down indoors. Swapping front↔rear will also help speed up the process. And whenever I bring my bike inside, I’ll wipe down the tire with a rubbing alcohol dampened rag.
As for pressure, I run mine at 82 PSI when riding rollers (I weigh 156lbs.). The 25mm GP4000 S II tires will measure 27.5mm wide when mounted on my Bontrager Aeolus 5 rims.
For outdoor riding, I’ll usually run 70 PSI front/73 PSI rear (lots of chip-seal around here) so I do increase the pressure when riding indoors, but only ~10 PSI.
Hope this helps!
Explain?