Made a new friend, I think.

If you've ever stood trackside or even by the open highway as a litre-class superbike rips past at full chat, you'll know there are few sounds as intoxicating as an inline-four screaming through a perfectly tuned four-into-one exhaust.

- Christopher Chaves

Take an R1 revving at 14,000rpm or a ZX-10R pushing the limits - that cutting sound is more than just noise. It is a mechanical opera. And yet, as much as I love that sound, I'll admit this: there are times when you will absolutely want none of it.

Top-end sportsbikes are built to howl. That's all part of the spectacle. Even large cruisers - like a Harley-Davidson Softail that has been expensively modded or a Royal Enfield twin whose sound signature creates a different perception in acoustic terms. Less soprano, more baritone. That's a roll of thunder that lets the world know you're coming long before you get there. It’s glorious on an open highway with the sun setting and the road unrolling before you. It feels right; It feels justified.

But parked outside a bedroom window at 6:15am or at 10:30pm? Not quite.