[Aussie]

Thought id share some experience here after spending a fair bit of time and cash over the last few years using, trialling bluetooth helmet solutions.

Now let me start with saying that i'm not looking for the purists to come along and tell me of the dangers regarding distraction, not being able to hear ambulances etc. I'm a grown up and ive read all the press on this and have spent some years now using the technology. The line share of my biking where I use this technology is on long hall runs to Cork, Mayo or indeed a couple of days touring, that said as I use the bike for work a lot I need to be contactable on the phone, if I can't be then its back to the cage.

So, where to start??? well I suppose with the first bit of kit.

Spyball Hello Biker

The first unit I bought was Spyballs Hello Biker, apart from having a pretty gay sounding name the unit was cheap and easy to install. The bluetooth unit itself sticks on the back of the helmet and is only slightly smaller than a ciggarette pack, it comes with 2 speakers and a selection of microphones to match either flip front, open or full face lids. For flip or open lids the mic is on a flexible boom and for full face it is a stick on type. I paid €130 for this some 3 years ago as it was the first time id seen anything of the sort and I got the money back off the company as they had a policy of paying to have car kits installed, I explained that this would be my car kit and they parted with the cash.

So how good / bad was it, well as I said above it comes complete with 2 speakers, I dont know why as its only capable of reproducing sound in mono, yes it comes through both earpieces but mono nonetheless, the stick on mic in the full face worked quite well but I was always disappointed with the boom mic, they only work when facing one way and had a habit of twisting the wrong was as you put on or removed the lid. Pairing it with a mobile is relatively easy, pairing it with another unit on the pillions helmet was a fecking nightmare and even when you did get it done if you didnt turn them on / off in a specific sequence they would lock up and the only way to reset them was to plug them back into mains power, not great when you stop for fuel in Abbeyleix on the way to Cork.

Dianese Bluetooth Helmet D-Nect

Much like the Spyball the Dinese was a crime of opportunity, I was in bikeworld and the lid was down at half price due to being showroom stock, even at half price it was €380!!! Once again the lid has 2 speakers, factory fitted microphone and the nicety of it all was the kit was fully embedded into the lid with a single button on the left side to turn the unit on, answer a call, adjust volume etc. Far superior in sound quality for both speaking and listening than the Spyball I was able to have a conversation and speeds that shouldnt be mentioned here and was regularly surprised by people not knowing that I was on the bike. 2 speakers produced mono sound again.

Scala Rider

I was actually given this by a mate of mine, whilst the bluetooth in the Dinese was very good I never really liked the lid itself, the lining was very hard and the size is quite odd, its very tight around the collar but once you get it on your head floats around inside it, if you buy a smaller one you can't get your head through the collar of the helment, but anyways the Scala rider is a single earpiece with a boom mic that clamps nicely onto the side of the helmet. The sound quality was superior to anything id tried previously and I must admitt i liked having one ear free to hear what was going on or to be able to have a conversation with another biker at a set of traffic lights. Overall i believe these to be cheap and simple and a very good piece of kit for getting the job done

Scala Rider FM

So impressed with the Scala Rider I looked at the Scala Rider FM, why, well it has MP3 connectivity, you can plug your MP3 player straight into it via a line cable, in addition to this it has the FM radio which is very handy for getting on the bike and going to work in the morning. I should have said earlier but on all these devices I was streaming music to the headset via bluetooth over my phone which is great as its your own mp3 music collection but you have to star the player on your phone, star the music, pair the bluetooth etc everytime you get on the bike, it only takes a couple of seconds but that can be the difference between being behind Kido or haing Jay46 in the way ;-) As per the original this was a great piece of kit at a reasonable price, finally 2 speakers that worked in stereo for the radio although sadly not over bluetooth, theres a newer bluetooth protocal called A2DP that the device must have in order to playback bluetooth in stereo. The other big let down was whilst you could plug your MP3 player straight in you couldnt use any of the controls on the headset, couldnt even adjust the volume!! so when you turned your Ipod on and set the volume that was what you were stuck with for the trip. As did all of the above the headset was clever enough to stop playing music when a call came in but this was the first unit I tried that actually resumed the music connection after the call hung up.

Nolan Ncom

Ummm, WOW what a piece of kit, unfortunately only designed to fit Nolan helmets but this is the best bit of kit ive tried yet. Full stereo and choice between fixed or book mic's you have to install it yourself but the Nolan helmets marked with the Ncom badge are designed to take them, that said the manual said 30 minutes to install and it took me nearly 2 and a half hours. The sound for both speaking and listening is superb with the Music sreaming in stereo via bluetooth A2DP its as good as any pair of headphones ive ever tried it also comes with line in and out jacks for connection of MP3 players, GPS, another lid as intercomm etc. I dont think theres anything that Ive thought of yet that I can plug this into. But the BIG win on this is something called AVRC protocol, what is it? the headset is able to function as a remote control to devices that you connect it to, instead of pairing the helmet, launching the player on the phone starting the track, adjusting the volume etc all i have to do is turn it on and hold down a button to launch the mp3 player on my blackberry. Similarly i can pause the music and adjust the volume on the move. A truly wonderous piece of kit but it should be at the price of it, in excess of £200 and also requiring a Nolan NCOM lid you're not going to set yourself up with one of these for much less than €400

Overall I think the Scala's are a good investment, they now have an A2DP stereo model available but one thing to watch out for its that if you want to use them as an intercom then both Scala units must be exactly the same, you can't pair a Scala Rider with a Scala Rider FM, the best way to check is to make sure that the colour of the buttons on both headsets is the same.

Anyways, thats it really just thought id share incase anyone was thinking of investing or needed the technology, the only caviat that id add is that this technology changes all the time, it probably changed in the time it took me to write this so check, check and check again on what devices are available and feel free to PM me if I can offer any advice.

[Animal]

Aussie, on Apr 12 2010, 02:07 PM, said:

New from Scala, seems to have pretty much everything

Scala Rider G4 Bluetooth Communication System (Single Unit)


Product Information


Scala Rider take Bluetooth motorcycle communications to the next level with the G4 being one of the most advanced universal Bluetooth systems available to date.


All of the electronics are contained within the box, including battery, which clamps or sticks to the side of your helmet. The buttons are raised and easy to find with a positive click so you can feel what you're doing but all commands are confirmed with tones inside the speakers and the system even speaks to you to tell you what you're connected to!

Wired and Wireless connection options are available, a 3.5mm stereo jack can be found on the helmet bracket, a mini USB socket behind a cover on the Bluetooth unit and the Scala Rider G4 uses Bluetooth2 for wireless communications to most other Bluetooth devices. Wired connection options include an MP3 player or similar device (coiled 3.5mm jack lead included), the PC for charging by USB or updating the system firmware (USB lead included) and mains charging (Mains adaptor included).

The Scala Rider G4 can be used as a Rider/Passenger Intercom, Bike to Bike or can be used for 3-way conference calling with a range up to 1 mile - it is the first Bluetooth system to do this (aeriel needs to be extended). At the same time, stay connected to your mobile phone or sat nav while you're listening to music. Of course you don't have to be doing all of this at once, but you can!


Music can be connected by wire or by Bluetooth depending on your player. The Scala Rider G4 uses Bluetooth A2DP for better quality sound (in fact without A2DP I wouldn't bother listening to music through a Bluetooth connection!) and this also means that you can control your MP3 player directly from the helmet. In addition to this, there is an FM Radio with RDS function built into the system.

Included in the box:


•Scala Rider G4 Bluetooth Unit

•Scala Rider G4 Headset

•Stick on bracket

•Clamp on bracket

•3.5mm Stereo music lead

•USB Charger/PC cable

•Mains adaptor

•Bluetooth unit fabric carry case

•Spare mike sponge and velcro pads

•User manual


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Scala Rider G4 Technical Specs:



•Talk Time: up to 10 hours
•Standby: up to 7 days
•Charging time: 3 Hours
•Bluetooth Version 2.1 Class 1

Motorcycle Intercom


•4-Way (2 Drivers and 2 Passengers)
•3-Way (3 separate bikers)
•2-Way (rider to rider or rider to passenger)
•Mobile Phone Conference Mode (rider, passanger and outside caller)

GPS (requires headset profile)


•Compatible with most major Bluetooth GPS devices
•GPS voioce instructions override music, FM Radio and Intercom calls

Supported Mobile Phone Profiles and Functions


•Headset and Handsfree profiles
•A2DP/AVRCP profile for wireless streaming stereo from MP3 player or other A2DP device
•Voice Dial, Redial and Call Reject

•Conference mode between outside caller, rider and passenger

Built-in FM Radio


•87.5 MHz to 108 MHz FM Receiver
•RDS Functionality (adjusts to best frequencies according to zones)
•6-station memory with Search and Store functions
•Automatic radio muting for incoming calls

Firmware Update


•Firmware update ready directly from PC (requires Windows XP or Vista based PC)

MP3 / Music


•Wireless MP3 music (A2DP) or through cable connected MP3 player

Mechanical / Functional Features


•Fits virtually all helmets
•Quick release mechanism to detach Bluetooth unit from headset clamp
•Stick on bracket option included
•Two slim speakers to fit even tight helmets
•Multiple control buttons

Audio Features


•Multi-Lingual spoken status announcements
•Noise cancellation microphone
•AGC technology: automatic volume adjustment of audio signals according to riding speed and ambient noise
•VOX technology: accept or reject calls by voice commands

Charger


•110/240V 50/60Hz Universal Travel Charger
Charger unit uses USB cable that also serves as firmware download cable.

So how much will this set me back then?

[Aussie]

Mr. Black, on Apr 12 2010, 05:46 PM, said:

So how much will this set me back then?

http://www.smart-riders.co.uk/index.php?ac...;productId=1026

[roadsmart]

I know this is an old thread, but I have a Dnect helmet and I feel the OP neglected to mention an important point. these helmets have a bluetooth range of 400m, so if any of your group have the same lid you can communicate with them. Excellent all round lid.

[Spiceburger]

I use the basic scalable rider and have no problems as of such with it the last two years.The newer ones have a range of 1 mile range for helmet to helmet range

[Magnets]

Spiceburger, on 01 November 2010 - 09:47 AM, said:

I use the basic scalable rider and have no problems as of such with it the last two years.The newer ones have a range of 1 mile range for helmet to helmet range

Shark have a new system called 'shark tooth' on the way in the coming weeks, I'll be having a play with one soon ( ie mr technophobe will no doubt break it) and will let you no how I get on with it.

[Sprint]

For those with a Schuberth lid, there is the Schuberth SRC-System available. Only fits the Schuberth C2, C3 and Concept flip-up helmets. A very neat attachment. I'd love to get one

Main features are :

* Intercom between rider and pillion passenger
* Bike-to-bike intercom (up to 300m)
* Intercom conference mode for 3 bikers
* Mobile phone, MP3, GPS connection
* Integrated VHF radio with RDS


Click here

On sale in Phillip McCallen's for £299.

This post has been edited by newsprint: 01 November 2010 - 01:36 PM

[bala]

I have the Dainese Infinity Bluetooth lid, and so has the missus. The technology in the lids is great. It takes a few hours to charge and when the lid is paired with my Zumo 550 I'd get about 10 hrs and that would be with music playing from the Zumo and also the phone paired with the Zumo.
Phone conversations are excellent. I have spoken to people at motorway speeds and they wouldn't have known I was on the bike. Music is in both ears and it's fairly good quality.

When paired with my wifes helmet in infinity mode the quality is also very good. The only bad thing when both lids are in infinity mode is the battery life, as my lid acts as the master lid battery life is only about 5 hrs.

What's great about the infinity mode is that I can listen to sat nav directions, listen to music and use phone, and at the same time my wife can listen to her own music and use her own phone, and then with a press of a switch we then have comms between us.

As for the lid itself it's quite good. The only problem I find with it is that it can be a bit draughty at times

[oakers]

I'm planning on getting a twin headset for myself and Snooze. It's unlikely it'll get used for anything else as I like the peace and quiet on the bike to be honest. When we're out and about together it would be nice to chat and so on.

So, the front runners appear to be......

The interphone F4
The Scale Rider G4
The Sena SMH10

Now..... I'm a deaf gitt. So if somebody of normal hearing needs it up on the loudest setting to hear it I'm royally stuffed. Thus I'm asking if anybody has had much experience of these. This is kind of a loaded question as Stellar told me her and Giller had just got the Scala set.

Also, if you have got them. What sort of damage should I be looking at? I'm planning to have a nose at what's on offer at the bike show on Saturday.

[rymus]

Just received and installed an interphone F4 into my shoei multitec this morning. So far so good, paired with the iphone and music is as loud as I'll need it. Will get to test making & receiving phone calls later on and maybe a bit of intercom action with the other unit. I ordered the double pack from an ebay seller in italy. Worked out a good few quid cheaper than buying locally.

[Magnets]

I'm using the new Shark Vision-R with their own 'Shark Tooth' system. easy to pair with GPS, Phone, iPod etc and as the battery is inside the lid the external part is tiny so no wind drag like most other systems. I wear era plugs and the clarity is excellent.