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Bob Hughes
Grounhog One
This is what I want to do, does the Kenwood use 12 volts right off of the bike battery or does it need to be reduced?
Bike to bike autocom configuration help please.
- Thread starter Bob Hughes
- Start date
If you have the Autocom system, you run the radio from the intercom system and not directly from the battery. If you have an Autocom system, then I may be able to help but if it is another make, I would not like to advise you. Your radio would be powered via the intercom system as power is reduced and sorted for you, I would not run a radio directly from the bike battery myself.uneasyrider said:
Some of the newer Icoms and Kenwood radios have drop in chargers to recharge them, but if your radio, be it Kenwood or Icom, has a 12volt input socket to recharge, then you are cooking on gas, because you can use the input socket topower the radio from the bike eventually.
I know, it sounds as clear as muddy water, but if you have drop in chargers for your radio and not a DC input socket, you are stuffed basically. Some Icom radios like the ones I use, when you remove the battery, there are two connections, pos and neg, you get the power lead from Autocom and hey presto, radio is bike powered, you just connect the Autocom power lead.
Take the battery off your radio and look see if you have the pos and neg screw terminals. Also look see if you have in input socket to plug in your charger for the battery. If you have either one of those, we can go further, a DC input to charge the battery or the terminals is what you are looking for, if you have, then I can help and if so, I will call Autocm UK and have words with them about the leads on your behalf, and if needed, I will get them and send them over to you.
Sorry it sounds a little long winded, but if we can get it right, and I can help you, I will. Autocom is about 50 miles South of me, and they are normally very helpful, plus, if I know what I am after, they will make the leads for me.
Phew, time for bed said Zebedee, if I sound a little gobbeldy gook, please excuse me, my brain hurts at the moment LOL. I am in the process of taking over another company so I do not know if I am Punch, Bored or Countersunk at the moment!
Have a good one.
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Bob Hughes
Grounhog One
Thank you Mick
The unit that I am looking at is the Autocom Active Plus. The literiture for that unit say that it can not power a radio directly connected to it. Autocom America told me not to power it from the bike or I will get interference but of course I really want to.
I want to put a radio and the Autocom unit under my seat and not do anything but plug in my helmet.
The unit that I am looking at is the Autocom Active Plus. The literiture for that unit say that it can not power a radio directly connected to it. Autocom America told me not to power it from the bike or I will get interference but of course I really want to.
I want to put a radio and the Autocom unit under my seat and not do anything but plug in my helmet.
I have just gone through the pages on www.autocom.uk and it tells you that the unit can be made to run off bike power as well as batteries. This is the Active Plus.uneasyrider said:
It has three main leads comeing out of the box if it is the DUO version, and they are rider lead, passenger lead and an auxilliary lead. The auxilliary lead is the one you can attach to the radio you want to use, and there is a small connection lead that comes off that auxilliary lead and feed the raio. There are, or maybe were, two types of power leads for the radios, one for Kenwood radios and the other for Icom radios. The difference in the leads are the two prongs that go into the radio itself. I know that as I have each of them.
However, I will call Autocom tomorrow, UK of course, and verify this, and let you know what they say. I know they have made some changes to the units, but I would not have thought they would have done away with these connection leads, too many training schools use Autocom systems in the UK, and if they have done away with those leads, they will lose a lot of users.
Leave it with me and I will ask them and also get the part numbers for you if I can.
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Bob Hughes
Grounhog One
Thanks once again Mick, the reason that I called Autocom America is that there are references to a 12 output in the Active Plus owners manual and I thought that I should be able to do what I wanted with it (power a half watt radio).
Mick: That is basically what I am looking to do, but I'm not running an Icom, I'm running the Yaesu. I will have to pull the back off to refresh my memory, just got back from a two day trip and too tired (lazy) to go back out to the moto and get my radio.
Ray: How long can you talk on your radio before the battery goes dead? I rode with a guy Sat. and Sun. and his Kenwood went dead in a couple of hours, not sure what the status of the battery was before we left, but we did do a lot of talking on the ride.
Here is the note I got from Autocom UK this morning, itiliacs are my input;
Hi Howard,
I would say Top Gear (Autocom USA) are correct on the over heating (when running the new Part 1425), the power supply
is only suitable for certain models of Kenwood or Icom transceivers
that run on .5 watts which is the legal limit for us over here in the UK.
If the radio runs anything higher it will put too much strain on the
unit and cause it to blow. We have also never ran a Yaesu from any of our
units bike powered before due to us not recommending this.
So unfortunately you will need to run the radios from their own
batteries.
Regards
Richard Wallace
Autocom Products Ltd
Unit 4
Tachbrook Link
Tachbrook Park Drive
Warwick
CV34 6RH
01926 431249
www.enquiries.co.uk
Here is the note I got from Autocom UK this morning, itiliacs are my input;
Hi Howard,
I would say Top Gear (Autocom USA) are correct on the over heating (when running the new Part 1425), the power supply
is only suitable for certain models of Kenwood or Icom transceivers
that run on .5 watts which is the legal limit for us over here in the UK.
If the radio runs anything higher it will put too much strain on the
unit and cause it to blow. We have also never ran a Yaesu from any of our
units bike powered before due to us not recommending this.
So unfortunately you will need to run the radios from their own
batteries.
Regards
Richard Wallace
Autocom Products Ltd
Unit 4
Tachbrook Link
Tachbrook Park Drive
Warwick
CV34 6RH
01926 431249
www.enquiries.co.uk
I use it talking bike to bike all day. I do use it on a lower power setting. Those little lithium ion batteries have quite a capacity. It would be easy enough to carry a spare battery or charge during lunch if you were worried about running short.
Ray
Ray
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Bob Hughes
Grounhog One
Do you read that as a .5 watt radio would be alright to use on the Active Plus with the 1425 cable?
Yes, I did read that, that is why I would venture to guess that the radios will only reach line of sight, or should I say line of shout.uneasyrider said:
nm6r said:I use it talking bike to bike all day. I do use it on a lower power setting. Those little lithium ion batteries have quite a capacity. It would be easy enough to carry a spare battery or charge during lunch if you were worried about running short.
Ray
During lunch?! Lunch is on the bike dude!
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Bob Hughes
Grounhog One
That will be far enough for me. Thank you very much for your help. My last variable is which radio to buy in a Kenwood or Icomm .5 watt.
On the ST:
Active Plus 200 kit
Kenwood or Icom radio powered through the Active Plus
Zumo for GPS and MP3
On the VFR:
Active Plus 200 kit
Kenwood or Icom radio powered through the Active Plus
iPod MP3 player
No go with the Active Plus units
From Autocom UK, unfortunatly, the only units that will run a radio on bike power and through the Autocom system, are the Pro Plus and the new AVI.
So it is as you guys were told by Autocom USA, the Easy Rider itself will run from bike power but it will not run a radio via that system. The radio has to work from it's own batteries.
From Autocom UK, unfortunatly, the only units that will run a radio on bike power and through the Autocom system, are the Pro Plus and the new AVI.
So it is as you guys were told by Autocom USA, the Easy Rider itself will run from bike power but it will not run a radio via that system. The radio has to work from it's own batteries.
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Bob Hughes
Grounhog One
I got this email this morning confirming that I will have to spend more on the base unit to do what I want or else I will be charging the batteries every night.
Couldn't you get a radio that's bike powered (i.e. Powerlet) thru a filter, but audio connected to the Active Rider Plus? Doesn't his response mean that if you want to power thru the Autocom, then you go with the SuperPro?uneasyrider said:
Also, do you know about Autocom's connectivety with other brands, such as Midland, etc.? I'm specifically thinking about this one ...
uncal said:Couldn't you get a radio that's bike powered (i.e. Powerlet) thru a filter, but audio connected to the Active Rider Plus? Doesn't his response mean that if you want to power thru the Autocom, then you go with the SuperPro?
Also, do you know about Autocom's connectivety with other brands, such as Midland, etc.? I'm specifically thinking about this one ...
No, apparently not, not unless you use one of the radios specified by Autocom.
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Bob Hughes
Grounhog One
That's a very good idea. Autocom told me on the phone that it would cause interference if it was not powered through the Autocom system. I would love to know from somebody who is doing this.
BTW, that was a CB I pictured, not the bike-to-bike being discussed. Sorry for the confusing post.uneasyrider said:
Re:connectivity - you Autocom users out there are all using Kenwood or Autocom-prescribed radios?