You're reading too much into my comment but I can see that I left a few things unsaid so let me clear up a few misconceptions. At around 45 mph, the exhaust is louder than the wind noise so I don't hear the wind noise. That's what I intended. Above that speed, the wind noise starts to equal exhaust noise and increase so now wind noise is more prevalent than exhaust noise to my hearing perception. With the stock shield, the wind noise at around 25 drowned out everything else - exhaust, engine, gear whine. I thought saying how effective the shield is in this manner would be a better comparison that everyone here is familiar with.
At 6'1", they would definitely tell you to get the tall shield or 26 incher. Mind you, the 24" shield is very good but like I said, I think I can get even better results with the bigger still air envelope the larger shield can provide. I started wearing earplugs back in the 80's and still do. This review was a test ride without plugs (still had a number of pairs in my pocket just in case). Don't underestimate the wind noise - if you can't hear your exhaust over the wind, then I definitely recommend ear plugs to protect what may be left of your hearing (don't ask me how I know ).
Gear whine - in 5th gear there is no whine either cruising or accelerating. Switch to 6th in cruising mode (around 65-75), there is a louder whine. However, under power - say going into the wind, up a hill or accelerating - the whine is extremely loud and I mean louder than wind or exhaust noise. A top mechanic might know or Yamaha might know the reason but I suspect the gear lash is not within the tolerances resulting in that whine. Could I be heading for an early gearbox failure? I don't know.
I appreciate you reading my review on the shield and bringing up some points that were due to my not completely clear writing. Ride safe!