Sena SMH10 Review

[Steve-H]

Gents -
Sorry this took so long...but read as to why....

I ordered two units from radiorider.com, and my main goal with these was to use them as an intercom; as well as to listen to music. My secondary need was to be able to use the phone if necessary.

Fit/Finish - 9
I have to say...The units look SLICK! Quite small and unobtrusive; and lightweight yet there is a feel of quality. They fit my helmet nicely (HJC CL-33 and IS-33), and tuck close to the helmet skin.
The rubber sealing flaps that fit over the headphone jack and charging jack are well made, and fit snugly...However, I have not had a chance to use these in a downpour, so I cannot comment further. The Gold-plated contacts are nice, and give me some comfort that oxidation will not become an issue.

Ease of Use - 7.5
There are definitely pros and cons of only using two buttons to control everything. On the plus side, you can do absolutely everything with gloves on quickly. Button pushes give a positive feel. On the flip-side, sometimes it is hard to figure out what mode you need to be in, as there is a brief switching delay. So wanting to jump from music to the phone and back sometimes can be frustrating...It would be nice if each function had a different 'beep' to audibly let you know where you are at.

Audio Quality - 9
The only reason why these units do not get a 10 is due to the physics involved of having an open speaker in a helmet. Perhaps with the earbud clamp (more on that later), they would get a 10. I can say that:
-Music sounds fantastic. Not audiophile by any means..but come on..its a helmet.
-Intercom works great. As stated above, you need to pause a second or two for the units to cycle and connect but duplex audio quality is excellent, and has been tested at over 90mph.
-Telephone usage. I will only comment on audio, as actual functionality varies way too much on phone hardware. I had phone conversations without any issues while in a 50mph cruise.

Bluetooth - 10
The units sync to themselves and anything else that I have tried stupid easy. I sync'd to other units, my phone (HJC TILT), my laptop (toss it in the 'bag to stream MP3's), and my Nuvi*.
*- more on this below

Battery Life - 11
Yes - 11. Both units have been in use NON-STOP for over 7 hours before the battery gave up the ghost. This means mixed intercom usage, and constant music streaming. The units charge quickly...Truly amazing !

Only one Issue:
-One unit I had initially received was defective. If I was listening to music via the headphone port and switched to the intercom, I could still hear 'staticy' music...Like the unit was not switching completely. I contacted Sena with the problem, and they sent out a completely new unit the next day; no questions asked. You cannot ask for much more than that !

*My Nuvi 265T would only sync one way. In other words, I cannot use the Nuvi to make phone calls; using my Sena as the headset. I need to direcly link to the phone, and use voice-to-dial, instead of the Nuvi's screen. This is an issue with the Nuvi I believe; not the Sena...But worth mentioning.


Overall - 10
What I like the most about Sena is their customer service, and willingness to bring new products. See:
http://www.senabluetooth.com/index.php?tab_menu=acc.
The nice thing is if you want to use earbuds, you don't need a whole new unit - just get the clamp. Have multiple helmets - just get a new clamp. They are under $30 IIRC.

 

[RaYzerman]

I would like to hear more that would convince me to move from a Scala G4.

1. About music quality, particularly bass response and volume, I realize audiophile quality won't be there. I realize this is subjective, but a comparison to Autocom, Edsets, J&M would be helpful as a reference point.

2. Battery life - Scala has it beat by a long shot, I can go 2 days. Perhaps you were giving it heavier duty use than normal with phone calls, constantly talking on intercom, etc.?

3. Advantage if you can plug in some earbuds or better speakers.

 

[Steve-H]

Bass response is acceptable. One thing that I should note is that there will be more than enough volume than you can ever need. I used it on my Ducati w/open Termi's at over 100mph and only had the volume 1/2way.

As for the battery - like I said, it was under constant usage of streaming audio and using the intercom. For my needs anyway, it was more than acceptable.

 

[teglasscock]

Great write up, very helpful. Thanks!

 

[LegoMan]

The battery life will most likely improve somewhat after a few discharge/charge cycles. This is typical of lithium batteries. I wish there was some place local that had the Scala G4 and the Sena units for demo. I've been using the Q2 for a couple of years and the sound quality and quantity are sub-par. I dislike ordering things like this without first being able to work with one in person.

 

[williamsonskot]

I just received the Sena and it works well with my Iphone. I can receive calls, send calls, listen to music and hear directions from a TomTom app. My question, if riding with non- Sena bikes who are using walkie talkies can I hard wire through the mp3 port to communicate via walkie-talkie. So far I have been able to hear conversation but I'm unable to send voice back using the Sena mic.

 

[longdog_cymru]

Thanks for this, the SENA is top of my list for communicating with my Garmin 550 and my co-pilot, (or maybe communicating with my co-pilot is not such a good idea......).

 

[motorpsycho]

I purchased a Sena from RadioRider based on an excellent review in Web Bike World and couldn't be happier. The unit does everything well and I doubt there are any better bluetooth intercoms currently available.

 

[Tom Mac 04a]

The rubber sealing flaps that fit over the headphone jack and charging jack are well made, and fit snugly...However, I have not had a chance to use these in a downpour, so I cannot comment furthe

My wife and I were in and out of showers for about 4 hours... no problem with the cap ( just make sure you push it fully on )

Both units have been in use NON-STOP for over 7 hours before the battery gave up the ghost

I got over 10+ hours (over 2 days) of use without a problem without charinging and intercom or music on both headsets

But before I blow $400 on a setup it MUST be able to stream music, talk, etc constantly for 10 hours

I got more than 10 over 2 days of 5-6hrs each....But Sena does supply in package a 12v cigar adapter to recharge while riding if needed.


I rate it 4 of 5... Audio quality very good as stated, phone usage is clear, plenty of audio for hi speed* (ear speaker placement makes a big diff, careful placement and it has more volume than i can listen to)

Cons; 2 second delay with turning on intercom before speaking... unable to share one source of audio (really BT spec, not the Senas fault)

 

[Throttlejockey]

Well dangit. Now I want one.

I just got mine for $270 shipped off eBay. Started to install it but I'm not done yet. Too many other things going on.

 

[Tom Mac 04a]

Started to install it but I'm not done yet

When you do mount it, plug in a MP3 player to the ear jack... (one ear at a time) Lift and turn your helmet slowly till the music is loudest in the first ear. Remove helmet and move the speaker ( you did use the velcro ) the same distance and direction...after a couple of times you'l get the perfect placement. Do the second ear same.

The diff can be as much as 30% volume if off by 1/2" with ear... After adjusting the speakers I found max volume needed was about 65% of full. All the way up was too loud. Also there is now enough volume for foam earplugs.

 

[jmgatlin]

NICE!

But before I blow $400 on a setup it MUST be able to stream music, talk, etc constantly for 10 hours.

On my recent ride I got 13.5 hours of constant use from this in one day. When around town I'm only charging it once a week. Battery life is working quite well for me at this point.

I did seem to have some interference in larger cities, but not always. Has anyone else experienced this?

 

[nhdiesel]

Its rare that an item actually gives BETTER performance than advertised. These are added to the "priority" level of my ST shopping list when money starts coming in again. The only thing I've heard that I'm not crazy about is the delay for intercom use...but thats pretty minor, and I would be using them much more solo than with my wife. I think it would be easy to get used to and compensate for.

Jim

 

[Throttlejockey]

When you do mount it, plug in a MP3 player to the ear jack... (one ear at a time) Lift and turn your helmet slowly till the music is loudest in the first ear. Remove helmet and move the speaker ( you did use the velcro ) the same distance and direction...after a couple of times you'l get the perfect placement. Do the second ear same.

The diff can be as much as 30% volume if off by 1/2" with ear... After adjusting the speakers I found max volume needed was about 65% of full. All the way up was too loud. Also there is now enough volume for foam earplugs.

I have the new Bell Revolver and it has nice pockets already in the foam with a slightly recessed opening just the right O.D. of the velcro already made. So I stuck the velcro to them and the the speakers weren't very loud. They were just too far away from my ears. I found a piece of bicycle helmet pad that spaced the speaker out just enough. Unfortunately I only had one so I had a brainstorm to cut up a memory foam pillow and use that. The pieces worked great and got the speakers close to my ears. The recessed area in the foam of the helmet is nowhere close to where I need the speakers sitting though. Luckily the Revolver had a mesh piece glued to the helmet so I slipped the foam and speaker behind it and now it's a tight fit and they stay in place. Plenty loud now.

It's going to be nice to control the iPod with the Sena through the bluetooth because now I can run the power cord to it w/o using the battery.

 

[Throttlejockey]

It won't pick up signals from a another bluetooth unit unless it's paired with it. Even then I don't think it would since the directions state you can't stream music to both from the same source.

 

[BC03]

I just received the Sena and it works well with my Iphone. I can receive calls, send calls, listen to music and hear directions from a TomTom app. My question, if riding with non- Sena bikes who are using walkie talkies can I hard wire through the mp3 port to communicate via walkie-talkie. So far I have been able to hear conversation but I'm unable to send voice back using the Sena mic.

sena is bringing out a bluetooth dongle that you can plug your frs/gmrs walkie talkie into, then you could talk with almost any one who uses that platform

 

[AK JAS]

I purchased the SENA double set and after several rides with my wife am very pleased with the purchase.

The box came with 2 wall chargers, 2 bike chargers and all the pieces needed to custom fit them in both our helmets. There was a stick-on base and a clamp-on base, I used the clamp-on style on both helmets and was happy with how secure and durable it looks. My helmet has deeper ear pockets so I used velcro spacers that are included to get the speakers closer to my ears. In my wifes helmet she complained that the speaker hurt her ears slightly so I sliped then under the terry cloth liner and she liked that.

Volume is ample and when turned all the way up we both commented that it was best described as painful. The audio while listening to music is very clear and of high quality at all frequencies with the exception of base which is not really there. The intercom is easy to use and very clear. Once activated both mics are open so you can both talk at the same time just like your sitting in a room together, 2 thumbs up! When on the phone it's easy to add the intercom and include other paired riders in the call. We could talk to our boy and he could tell us both about his adventures with Grandma. We found ourselves listening to music while at highway speeds and chatting when slowed down in towns. Wind noise was minimal and there is a cap which can be used to reduce it however we didn't see the need for it in our fullface helmets.

When out on all day rides I charged them both the night before leaving and when we got to our destination. The battery life was fine. I read some comments here about the need to be able to ride multiple days without charging but I must offer that a bigger battery would mean more weight and more wind resistance hanging on one side of my helmet. As they are we didn't even notice that they were there and my wife forgot which side of her helmet it was on a couple times.

Pairing with our devices was easy and painless. If I left our helmets on a handlebar I would snap the SENA's off and lock them in a box, very slick feature.

My wife never tried to use her voice dialing but with my I-phone 4 it didn't work very well. Receiving calls was simple and easy but to make a call I had to stop and dial with my finger. Once in a call the clarity was great. I was riding along at 70mph with the windscreen up and a coworker told me it was clearer than when we talk using the phone by itself.

If I was forced to find low points I would say the lack of base in the music, it would be handy to know what the battery condition is and the voice dialing issue with my phone.

Overall we both really like them and enjoyed the conversations, music and ability to receive calls. My wife asked me to take her on day long rides this summer. I'm sure this wasn't only because of the SENA's but I know they helped to make the ride enjoyable for her. The ST's smooth comfort played a big part too.

 

[nhdiesel]

Our experiences are similar to AK JAS. We bought these a little over a year ago (latest version, with USB port). The latest update fixed some of the issues, so the only issue we have is that the VOX doesn't work well. We just set them to always on. It would be nice if the VOX worked better, as we are planning a longer ride and having the ability to easily switch to music would be great. Its probably how they are set up...I'm going to experiment more with them.

Battery life is simply awesome. When I did my BBG I did as I do with most of my longer rides- I took both headsets and left one charging in my tankbag. The first one went dead on the return trip, or about 13 hours into the ride. I switched it out...I have become good at doing this while riding, since its so easy to do. On every long ride I have done they have lasted at least 12-13 hours on a charge. The nice thing is that if you don't have the option of swapping headsets (someone riding with you), these can be charged while using them. The charging cord is coiled and depending on where your plug is, can usually reach your helmet. You could easily extend the cord using a USB extension cord.

My voice dialing doesn't work with my LG smartphone, but it works great with my wife's LG flip phone. Mine doesn't matter, since I almost always have it paired through my GPS anyway. I haven't tried voice dialing since the last update, so that may have fixed it.

 

[Sportznut]

+1 on the Sena 10's. I have had mine for about a year.

Great battery life, clear intercom, reliable, pretty simple to use, no problems in rain, great clarity when talking to another bike as well.. I found it has so many features I only use about 1/3 of them. Pretty typical of when I buy electronics. Buy the video recorder with all the bells and whistles but I just end up using the PLAY button.

 

[SteveST1300]

Another thing I haven't seen mentioned is that with the latest update you can pair the Sena to any other brand.