I was reading a thread on the various merits of Quartzite, AZ boondocking locals, and one person wrote that the only thing he hears at night was a Honda generator 150 to 200 yards from him.That's up to two football fields. I've been closer than that, and couldn't hear my Yamaha IF2000iS at all. Are those Hondas louder?The Yamaha has this scrunched-up bunch of wires in a disk shape that clamps on the end of the exhaust pipe, which I think acts as a muffler as well as a spark arrestor. Does the Honda have anything like that?The disk has to be cleaned about every oil change, but If you can hear Hondas two football fields away, it's worth it.

Red and blue are about the same when it comes to noise. Even yellow isn't that much louder.It all depends on a noise threshold. At night when in the woods and the wind is still, my Yamaha can carry quite a ways. However, in the daytime with the rush of traffic noise that can make a generator inaudible from 50-100 feet away. There are a lot of variable.I'd look at other differences first. The biggest reason why I'd recommend Honda is that they have parts available -everywhere-. Yamaha parts are harder to find, and service... well, get the service book and DIY, or expect a few weeks as it gets shipped to a depot to be worked on.

Rmack1 wrote:.. one person wrote that the only thing he hears at night was a Honda generator 150 to 200 yards from him.That's up to two football fields. I've been closer than that, and couldn't hear my Yamaha IF2000iS at all. Are those Hondas louder?It's difficult to know the circumstances the Q person was in. It's also hard to know if that's an offhand remark, or if he really went over and looked at what was actually running. It may have been an old honda, non-inverter style. It may have been an eu2000i with a load on it. It can be so quiet in the desert, at night, that you can hear all kinds of noises from a long distance, especially if there are no obstructions between you and the source. Ambient noise covers that up during daylight hours. Frankly, I don't see that many Yamaha's, so it hard to say. I would imagine is about a toss-up.

I have done a lot of parking in mall parking lots, and the noise not only travels across the tarmack, but bounces off the buildings for a double whammy. Not good when trying to be inconspicuous. :(I bought the eu2000i for the low noise, pure sine wave, compact size, etc., and most definitely for the access to service across North America. Much less expensive than the Yamaha, as well.Noise ratings:Honda 53 - 59 dBYamaha 51.5 - 61 dB(assuming same distances)

Thanks, guys.How about that wire disk thing? What does the Hondas have for a muffler/spark arrestor?

Rmack1 wrote:That's up to two football fields. I've been closer than that, and couldn't hear my Yamaha IF2000iS at all. Are those Hondas louder?You have just learned to ignore it.Ask someone to turn it off while your back is turned in the quiet of the evening. You will hear the change.For the price of either you can self install some solar and small inverter.

Honda or Yamaha Generators; which is quietest? | Good Sam Community

2oldman
Explorer II
Feb 06, 2015
bcbigfoot wrote:
.. the low frequencies are what travels for long distances,
So does the whirr of those Home Depot specials.
bcbigfoot
Explorer
Feb 06, 2015
A couple other factors that effect sound transmission is humidity and barometric pressure.

Very difficult to compare apples to apples.

Something that manufacturers don't mention is the amount of low frequency that their machines make, the low frequencies are what travels for long distances, sound levels at 22ft may not have comparible sound levels at 300ft.
Bend
Explorer
Feb 06, 2015
This graphic is a few years old but you should be able to get the idea:
tragusa3
Explorer
Feb 06, 2015
I have always felt my 2400 was quieter under any load, and the eu2000 was quieter at idle. I've camped right next them dozens of times.
Huntindog
Explorer
Feb 06, 2015
Rmack1 wrote:
I was reading a thread on the various merits of Quartzite, AZ boondocking locals, and one person wrote that the only thing he hears at night was a Honda generator 150 to 200 yards from him.

That's up to two football fields. I've been closer than that, and couldn't hear my Yamaha IF2000iS at all. Are those Hondas louder?

The Yamaha has this scrunched-up bunch of wires in a disk shape that clamps on the end of the exhaust pipe, which I think acts as a muffler as well as a spark arrestor. Does the Honda have anything like that?

The disk has to be cleaned about every oil change, but If you can hear Hondas two football fields away, it's worth it.

He said, she said.

Honda makes many types of generators.. All this quote says, is that a unknown Honda model is loud. What I really think you are after is for someone to tell you how superior your Yamaha is.

It's not gonna happen from me.

The truth is that they are about the same noise wise.

The differences are in other areas. What your priorities are will determine which is the one for you.
ericosmith
Explorer
Feb 06, 2015
It's not a fair comparison unless the load is exactly the same. The greater the load, the louder the generator. You can't make a valid comparison based on what you hear in a campground if it has a cord plugged into it.
TomG2
Explorer
Feb 06, 2015
A Honda is not always a Honda. Some generators are assembled with Honda commercial engines which are not as sound-engineered as those in their inverter series. Just saying.
profdant139
Explorer II
Feb 06, 2015
When we absolutely have to use our Honda 2000, I add an extra heavy duty extension cord so that the generator is as far from the trailer as possible (about fifty feet). I then position it behind a big tree or a rock. It is very quiet, but not silent. If the wind is blowing, we often can't hear it at all.

I try never to run it when there is anyone else around. I hate listening to other people's generators, and I don't want to inflict mine on anyone else.
n7bsn
Explorer
Feb 05, 2015
Those that say you can't tell the difference are 100% accurate.

I worked in the sound/noise measurement world for many years and the human ear can barely tell the difference between 3dB, let alone 1dB.

Remember 3dB difference is NOT twice as loud, it's twice as much energy. The human ear is neither log (dB) nor linear. In fact most people call something twice as loud if it is 10dB "louder".
wa8yxm
Explorer III
Feb 05, 2015
In 2006/7 the comparison was between a Honda EU-2000i and a Yahama EF-2400i.

Difference (per manufacture) 1dB, I think Yahama was the one that had the lower sound level.

NOTE: You will never tell the diference at 1dB, takes at least 3dB before you can notice a difference.