Bluetooth head-unit?

[ST1100Y]

Running with a wired Autocom since almost 24 years now, I have it all:

- radio (Kenwood TK)
- tunes (Sony car stereo (TA!) + IceLink/iPod)
- GPS audio
- wired phone in (used briefly... people are reckless and annoying... not needed/recommended)

No time wasted on pairing issues, nothing...
Just turn the key, systems comes alive, go ride...
But it comes into age, coiled leads show brittle insulation...

However will any changes require massive investment...
Alone the Sena SRL2 (Neotec 2) comes for € 260,-...
And I cannot locate a suitable, bike powered BT base unit offering:

- stereo in (tunes)
- AUX in (mono, GPS)
- radio (could get eliminated due to BT, but unsure about the range)

Sena offers a kit compatible with the BUS of a GoldWing or HD, but they've completely omitted stand-alone kits...

 

[Mellow]

Not sure I understand.

You can get a 30k and it has a built in FM radio. Depending on what gps you have, pair your 30k to that and then pair your phone to the gps. The Garmin xt will allow you to stream whatever you're running on the phone thru the gps.

The GPS becomes a bluetooth base/hub.

 

[Mellow]

Ok, I just saw your other post....

That Freewire looks a lot like the SM10 they no longer show on the site.

 

[ST1100Y]

The Garmin xt will allow you to stream whatever you're running on the phone thru the gps.
The GPS becomes a bluetooth base/hub.

Which is exactly what I'm trying to avoid...
i) that XT2 costs me another € 600,-...
ii) newer Garmin units are so full of flaws and bugs, won't work with PC planning anymore, screw up navigation while on the road, screw up BT connectivity, etc...

So before I'll renew my trusty Quest with one of their "oh so new" thingies I'll rather buy a 6,5" China made rugged smartphone and throw Calimoto on it...
But by this I'll loose redundancy... so I would need to maintain two of those phones, carry a spare bike power supply...

PS the 30K won't fit my helmet...

PPS that Freewire has only one audio-in... and mentioned BUS interface (via USB port)

 

[jfheilman]

This is not directly on the topic, but is there a reason you want to dump the Autocom system? I have two systems and a spare unit. I now built my own interfaces, helmet mikes and in the ear stuff or in the helmet speakers.

 

[ST1100Y]

This is not directly on the topic, but is there a reason you want to dump the Autocom system?

Well, I don't want to dump the Autocom... the old bugger (Pro-M1) still works perfectly, but there other issues:

- the coiled rider leads age, insulation get brittle... 5-pin cords have been superseded... (already refurbished the helmet harness 3 times over the years)
- since the dawn of WiFi the signal quality of the attached Kenwood PMR radio suffers significantly... works brilliant in abandoned landscapes, sucks in rural places...
- my GF rides with a BT headset, was quite an issue to find an interface for a Kenwood radio for her...

So I figured if I could change to a BT headset as well (while keeping all my wired farkels alive), we could eliminate the Kenwood PMR's and have BT bike to bike...
Hence the question about a BT base unit that has wired audio-in, and connects to the BT headsets... which doesn't exist...

The expensive alternative is that I rip it all out, get a Zumo 369LMT-S and the mentioned Sena SLR2 for my Neotec II...
And do the same on the other ST1100... second Garmin cradle, etc... and possible the third ST already resting in the garage...

 

[jfheilman]

Thanks for the feedback. I will continue to use the Autocom system.

 

[wjbertrand]

Similarly I was running a Starcom1 wired unit for many years. Trouble is bike to bike coms are only via CB or FRS radio and most of my riding friends have abandoned those systems for BT headsets, mostly Cardo. I reluctantly retired my old Starcom1 system as a result. I do like not being tethered to the bike by a headphone cable and a much simpler install. The Starcom1 headsets were complete garbage, a constant struggle with blown speakers and broken hair-fine wiring. Don't know how many times I've had to fix or replace them on the road. I also like that the Bluetooth mesh groups are private and you don't get interrupted by random transmissions outside your group.

The main downside with the Bluetooth headsets for me is a loss in flexibility regarding the number of things you can connect. For example adding a radar detector, so I can hear the alert in my helmet has been an exercise in frustration. I think I finally have it working using an old Sena SR-1 Bluetooth dongle, but not without some niggles still. The other issue is inter-brand compatibility, although recently Cardo has introduced a less fiddle free way to connect to Sena headsets. No experience how well this works yet though.

 

[ST1100Y]

The Starcom1 headsets were complete garbage, a constant struggle with blown speakers and broken hair-fine wiring.

The Autocom headsets/cables are quite rigid; areas where cables get kinked/cut by the helmet rim can be an issue every couple of years, rubber insulation fades due environmental effects... again, takes years... (I run my Autocom since '99...)
So I'm too reluctant to dump this brilliant kit...

The other issue is inter-brand compatibility, although recently Cardo has introduced a less fiddle free way to connect to Sena headsets. No experience how well this works yet though.

GF has an old Sena S5 on her Schubert S3 lid
And SENA offers an app for you phone through which you can manage all kinds of pairings... so they say, glossy pamphlets and that...

Haven't changed yet, despite hours of research I can't make up my mind...
Mostly because the nearly 20 year(!) old Garmin Quest I is such a simple, thus reliable kit... as is the Autocom, and my Sony stereo...
No quirks, no bugs, just ticks along the computer planned route, doesn't convert shaping points to full way-points (like with flags on the screen and audio announcement), take a detour, a leak, wear off the road for fuel or food (total standard situations in daily motorcycle life...), ride back into the plotted line and it picks up the navigation right there as if nothing happened...
When roaming through the threads on satnav forums I grow real hesitations about "upgrading"... the new kits suffer of soooo many issues...

 

[ST1100Y]

Well, my SENA dilemma continues...

GF is upgraded with a new lid, hence getting an SC10UA for her...
She still has the SR10 for the Kenwood PMR installed/hardwired in her NT, enabling bike to bike...

General question:
how good is bike to bike com via BT compared to PMR?
(frankly PMR suffers tremendously in habituated areas due to the (increasing) load of WiFi frequencies...)

What can I do on my ST1100 now?
Got a wired car stereo plus a wired GPS audio...
The SR10 is mono... possible not needed anyway when we ditch the Kenwood radios...
The SM10 seems ideal, but is discontinued...
The FREEWIRE appears as enclosed system due to stereo cords only avail for HD, GW, Kawa, etc... can't locate a reliable PIN layout...

The whole maneuver would set me back a few hundred greenbacks though...
The SENA FREEWIRE goes for like € 200,-...
The SENA 10U-SH-12 for my Shoei Neotec for another € 300,-...

 

[Uncle Phil]

FWIW, I first went with the Sena 20 EVO to replace my Honda Valkryie CB system.
It did fine with no issues.
Then I picked up some Sena 30Ks that fit on the same base so I could do Sena Mesh (most of the other riders I ride with have Senas).
I've been very happy with both units but I use the 30ks because the Sena Mesh is so easy - just turn it on and you're in business!
If I'm by myself, I use the 20 EVOs because I find the battery life is much better.
I have a '3 into 1' amplifier that has my GPS, radar detector and MP3 Jukebox merged into in one output.
Then I plug a cord from the Sena base to the amplifier - saves me all the hassle of bluetoothing!

 

[ST1100Y]

Then I plug a cord from the Sena base to the amplifier - saves me all the hassle of bluetoothing!

So I could as well stick with my wired Autocom headsets...

 

[ST1100Y]

Would this DIN-connector pin-layout be identical with the HD or Honda GW USB-cables SENA delivers with the FREEWIRE??

 

[Larry Fine]

Got a wired car stereo plus a wired GPS audio...

Where? Any pics, please?

 

[ST1100Y]

Where? Any pics, please?

Huh?!
The setup exists since decades...
Sony HU resting in the tailcone (together with the Autocom ProM1 HU)




some soldering done...




ending up with this:




but this all has nothing to do with this topic about needing a BT head-unit...

 

[Uncle Phil]

So I could as well stick with my wired Autocom headsets...

Well, I have 4 different ST1100s so I did not want to have to 're Bluetooth' every time I swapped bikes.
I'm already 'tethered' for heated gear and now air vest, so one more made no difference at all.
I just turn the Sena on, plug it in and I'm good to go.
The beauty is that all the 'brains' are the side of the helmet in the unit so you don't have stuff you've got to put in the tailpiece or elsewhere.
Getting rid of the Honda Valk CB system got rid of a lot of hardware on the bikes and cleaned up some wiring.
I could have BT'd to the amplifier but I wanted to keep it simple and reliable.
I have found over the years that when BT works it's nice, but when it doesn't, it's a royal pain in the anatomy.
I've been 'wired' for years so it's no big deal for me.

 

[ST1100Y]

Well, I have 4 different ST1100s so I did not want to have to 're Bluetooth' every time I swapped bikes.

I was under the impression that I can manage those on the phone via their SENA app...
Same with bike to bike, by letting your partner scan the QR-code provided...
Hence no fumbling with buttons or having to memorize 10,000 steps for the pairing procedures...

Anyway, two ST's hence two FREEWIRE units...
Two Neotec helmets, hence two 10U-SH-12 kits...
The costs are adding up...

 

[Uncle Phil]

I was under the impression that I can manage those on the phone via their SENA app...
Same with bike to bike, by letting your partner scan the QR-code provided...
Hence no fumbling with buttons or having to memorize 10,000 steps for the pairing procedures...

Anyway, two ST's hence two FREEWIRE units...
Two Neotec helmets, hence two 10U-SH-12 kits...
The costs are adding up...

I don't fuss with the phone stuff so I don't know about all of that.
Mine are as simple 'plug it in, turn the unit on' and I am good to go regardless of what bike I am riding.
I live a simple life and take the simple approach - and Mesh is about as simple as turning it on with a button.
***WARNING- NO PHONES ARE HARMED OR USED IN THIS METHOD***

 

[Daboo]

...
Anyway, two ST's hence two FREEWIRE units...
Two Neotec helmets, hence two 10U-SH-12 kits...
The costs are adding up...

It sounds like it'd be cheaper to get rid of the GF.

Chris

 

[Sadlsor]

It sounds like it'd be cheaper to get rid of the GF.

Chris

Nah, she saves him the time and expense of trip planning and routing, not to mention his investment in her bike, it's maintenance, her gear, and the time teaching her to ride.