How much louder is...

[Swedishfish]

the P compared to the I?

I want to make sure I am not hearing things, but the P seems much much louder than the I series.

Thanks for any help anyone can provide.

-SwedishFish

Don't Tread on Me.

[Dragan]

Our P is somewhat louder than the i series, and most of the ones we've sold have been as well. It's hard to say what it is about the p that makes it a louder machine generally. You'll likely find that it will get quieter as parts wear in.
Wayne

Segway of Alberta - Calgary
www.mysegway.ca

[legpain]

Isn't the base smaller? Would that be a vibration compensator? Not enough material to dampen the vibrations/noise.

John

[Brooster]

Yep, the p-Series has always been a little louder than the i-Series ... why, I don't know, but rest assured that it's normal and not just your machine. Hope you're having fun!

Brooster

[SegwayUtah]

The tires on the i-series are larger than the tires on the p-series. The tires on the Segway HT act as sound dampeners. I don't know what else is different, but my first guess is that this would have a lot to do with it.

Chris

[Freddy]

Yep
I have a bunch of p s and when new they are a little noise but in time they seem to quiet down
It just seems loud in the begining
Fred

[Neelix]

The P's gearboxes and motors are different, which also contribute to the louder sound. It has to spin the motor faster in order to achieve the same speed as an I.

-------------------------
Fear not, for even though I come from the Forbidden City, I surely do not agree with the rules.
Chris Knight

[hhaurgon]

The p's are almost always louder due to their structural differences. It doesn't really have much to do with vibration damping, but instead vibration resonance. As Chris said, the wheels/tires make the biggest difference. I think a different type wheel, maybe with spokes, would be quieter. The machine base also has different structural properties, but the effect is maybe only 25% of the difference.

The gearboxes are supposed to be the same, at least they are the same design, but I have heard of LLC "sorting" gearboxes to put the better ones on the higher profit machines (i series, XT, GT).


Hope this helps.


Hugh

[Brian]

I asked Doug this question at SegFest '04. He said the reason why its louder is because the gearboxes are the same, but the motors on the P are a little smaller. He said that the P's motors spin 20% faster than those of the I. So if a P and an I were riding side by side, going the same speed, the P's motors would be spinning 20% faster than the I.

Brian

[Swedishfish]

Brian, very interesting.

Can it be assumed that since the motors spin 20% faster, they use up more energy than the I motors as well? (not a physics expert by any means). But if they work harder than the I series motors, the slight lack in speed and range is a wonder of compact engineering in my humble opinion, because, well: the battery packs are smaller, motors are smaller, wheels, etc... everything is smaller, but the lack of range/speed is only slight compared to the I series, and the motors still work 20% harder to achieve this. What a wonderful little machine!


-SwedishFish

Don't Tread on Me.