Rather than spending around $100 for ski helmet speakers I cut up a set of Sony 7506s I had in my parts drawer and got the drivers to fit in the helmet. It was pretty easy, the only skilled work was soldering in the cable from left to right so it was the perfect length to hide, and a second to run down to my pocket for the source.
Three lessons that improved sound quality:
- Anchoring the driver plate in the ear flap pocket so it doesn’t move away from optimum placement.
- Using a foam pad on the back of the driver to get closer to closed back (but still open enough so I can hear what’s going on around me) greatly improved the sound.
- The tighter you can get the chin strap, the more bass you get!
I thought “Audiophile Ski Helmet” would be a fantastic title, but alas, the sound is good but not jaw dropping.
Pictures:
Full story: https://www.roninmarketeer.com/2020/01/25/sony-7506-ski-helmet-mod/
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Nice! I used to have the headphone liner for Bern helmets that is basically the same concept. The joints got desoldered easily though so I went through a few of them before I just gave up using it, and just use ear buds now with an ipod shuffle when I snowboard.
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Huh, that’s interesting. I could use a short cord and just velcro a shuffle or nano right to the helmet 
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An update after having this out on the slopes for more than a season:
Instead of plugging into my phone I now use an EarStudio ES100 Bluetooth Amp. I’m able to use the EQ app to tailor the sound and it sounds way better. Going from closed back to more open I’m able to get the bass back and it’s great.
I also use Chubby Buttons on my wrist to control the music and the new version CB2 allows me to hit play twice to bring up Siri so I can have text messages read to me and don’t have to take the phone out of my pocket!
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