Bluetooth Communicators - Sena, Cardo, other?

[Trevor]

I had four Sena 10 units for 5 years and recently upgraded to Sena 30 units...I have 3 of them. I use them for music, phone calls, texts, navigation and of course for communicating with my pals...all my riding buddies have them...including my dirt riding buddies. Great product....and good service...when after a few years of use the sena 10 units I had were not lasting all day anymore...I called sena about getting new batteries...I was happy to pay....they had me send the two units back and a week later they sent me two new ones....no charge!

[aviator]

Trevor, any issues with the 30 especially the mesh pairing in a group. I think most folks had an issue or two in this regard.

[Trevor]

Trevor, any issues with the 30 especially the mesh pairing in a group. I think most folks had an issue or two in this regard.

We have used the mesh but only a couple of times...not an issue,,,I really only use the regular hook up way...I do here the mesh eats up batteries.

[aviator]

My original 20S (i mean when they first came out) has been flawless. I have the urge to upgrade to the 30K every now and then, but when I hear of issues , think why should I?

[Trevor]

My original 20S (i mean when they first came out) has been flawless. I have the urge to upgrade to the 30K every now and then, but when I hear of issues , think why should I?

If your batteries are still lasting all day I would keep the 20...save your money for gas.

[aviator]

If your batteries are still lasting all day I would keep the 20...save your money for gas.

It does, and this with com use and some radio listening. A lot of folks had static, crackling and other issues, but mine have been good so far.

[MattB]

It does, and this with com use and some radio listening. A lot of folks had static, crackling and other issues, but mine have been good so far.

[aviator]

Good to know, Matt. Mine never did. Some units are bad, i guess. If it persists call Sena and they will replace.

[MattB]

So, my Sena 30k units finally arrived the other day after being held hostage at the Fedex facility waiting for a signature. Just opened the box over lunch and had a good laugh while skimming the literature... "Warning: Do not use the product in direct sunlight for a long period of time. Doing so can damage the product and generate heat that can cause burns."

Good thing that I live in Pennsylvania I guess, so that I do not have to be overly concerned with long periods of direct sunlight... But seriously,

[justjoe]

So, my Sena 30k units finally arrived the other day after being held hostage at the Fedex facility waiting for a signature. Just opened the box over lunch and had a good laugh while skimming the literature... "Warning: Do not use the product in direct sunlight for a long period of time. Doing so can damage the product and generate heat that can cause burns."

Good thing that I live in Pennsylvania I guess, so that I do not have to be overly concerned with long periods of direct sunlight... But seriously,

Should I go and find all of the best warning's found on products today?

[MattB]

So another for you experienced folk... I gave the Sena units to my son and said "figure it out and let's bench test them before installing in helmets".

While running the intercoms in BT mode, he claims that you can't also BT stream music from your phone. I'm calling BS on this, but honestly I have no idea... sure seems like BS though. Running the intercoms in "mesh" mode, the music plays/reduces when the mic hears you talking over the intercom. That behavior is what I'd expect, regardless if we are in BT intercom or mesh intercom.

I'll also say that the intercom distance is underwhelming. I know that everybody wanted to get away from the wires, but it's hard to consider this an "upgrade" when it seems to be good for about 700 feet and my old intercoms operating on FRS signal were good for a solid mile even when in the mountains.

[justjoe]

So another for you experienced folk... I gave the Sena units to my son and said "figure it out and let's bench test them before installing in helmets".

While running the intercoms in BT mode, he claims that you can't also BT stream music from your phone. I'm calling BS on this, but honestly I have no idea... sure seems like BS though. Running the intercoms in "mesh" mode, the music plays/reduces when the mic hears you talking over the intercom. That behavior is what I'd expect, regardless if we are in BT intercom or mesh intercom.

I'll also say that the intercom distance is underwhelming. I know that everybody wanted to get away from the wires, but it's hard to consider this an "upgrade" when it seems to be good for about 700 feet and my old intercoms operating on FRS signal were good for a solid mile even when in the mountains.

Range is nothing like FRS, but the amount of real estate the FRS takes up compared to the Sena unit is much larger as well. The tech just isn't there for that kind of range. And while 700 feet might be tight, it is closer to accurate than a mile.

And yes, you can stream music from a phone and yes, the music volume reduces while talking. That's how I use my Sena.

[BillGsa]

Matt make sure all the firmware is up to date.
I use an SR10 for my radar detector it wasn't working properly I updated the firmware now it's working great.

[MattB]

Range is nothing like FRS, but the amount of real estate the FRS takes up compared to the Sena unit is much larger as well. The tech just isn't there for that kind of range. And while 700 feet might be tight, it is closer to accurate than a mile.

And yes, you can stream music from a phone and yes, the music volume reduces while talking. That's how I use my Sena.

Joe, you missed me.... read ... my ... lips ....

While I don't know, I can't imagine that they went backward with the new units to where you can't play music and BT intercom at the same time. I'm sure that he'll love me, but I'll tell him that he needs to do more researching. We could use mesh (THAT seem to be working fine/as I'd expect), but I've read that it uses more battery and if it's just the two of us we don't really need it. Also, me losing my radar to talk to those of you on older units at DGR would be a real deal breaker. I need some warnin' of the law man.

[MattB]

Matt make sure all the firmware is up to date.
I use an SR10 for my radar detector it wasn't working properly I updated the firmware now it's working great.

Great advice Bill. I was TRYING to stay on the sidelines and let youngster handle these. What happened to the time when kids were tech savy? Somehow this old geezer is still the family tech support.

When I loaded their utility to update firrmware, it also exposed me to a console to make configuration settings. I don't know why, but Audio Multitasking was disabled by default. I've turned it on and think this will cure the issue once my son is home and we get a chance to test it out.

I'm now trying to figure out how to delete (forget) paired bluetooth devices with the unit as I'd like to do some experimenting in trying to make things work the way that I wish (Radar/GPS Priority).