Sena 20S Mic Choices

Dale_I

Dale_I

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Just picked up a couple 20s Evo units from Sena. I have a modular HJC IS-MAX 2 helmet and was originally planning to use the wired boom mic and attach it to the chin bar. However, I have read several posts saying that the standard boom mic is much more clear and easier for the listening parties to understand what you are saying.

What say the wisdom of the power that be?

I'm sure those of you who are using the Sena 20s have played with it, but I didn't see much in the archives.

Intelligentize me....
 
I like the boom mic because it's tougher and will hold up to the contant movement better.. actually, it won't move much as a boom but the wired one will move with the chin bar.
 
A microphone that works whether or not the chin bar is raised is the way to go. I never even considered using the chin bar as the attachment point for the mic in my modular.
 
+1 on all points stated for the boom mike especially about using it with the chin bar raised. I keep the boom positioned so it just touches my lips. I'm told that I'm always 5/5 so that's how I roll.

For a full face I might use the mic attached to the fixed chin bar but if the distance affected volume and/or intelligibility at all I'd go to the boom. Mounting a mic on a modular chin bar would make me a little nervous that the wire would either get pinched or snagged or just fatigued to failure with the opening and closing.
 
One of my problems is the headset not understanding you. I do use the boom mic, but telling it to "play music" can be challenging sometimes. Don't yell into it too much because it seems to ignore your voice. Learn how to use it well. Mine has the bells and whistles and can drive you nuts sometimes. I also had problems connecting with other brands.....in fact I never did. Finally last week I connected to another 20S and come to find out, my buddies wired mic wasn't working. I want to get a cheaper BT for the wife. Now I see they have some 10 models for a few $$ less than I paid for the 20S and that's for the set.
 
I have the same helmet Dale and the same 20S. I use the boom mic and it fits and works great. IMO that is the only way to go for ease of use in the modular helmet. \one thing that after a lot of use, the rubber coating on the boom mic rubs off right at the contact point where the face piece attaches, so a simple fix was a quick wrap of electrical tape to shore that area up. I think it works great the way I have it set up.
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EA6BMECH said:
I want to get a cheaper BT for the wife.
Click to expand...

Here's a thread about the BT-S2 intercom that might fill the bill. Not a Sena but a little cheaper.


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GearBest should have rotated at least one pic 90º anti-clockwise.
 
et al: Thank you! A unanimous decision is a rare find these days.

Tim:
Do you find using the chin curtain is needed? I don't have mine installed and would prefer to leave it that way. But, telephone clarity will dictate comfort and if I have to have my chin tickled... so be it. Thanks for the excellent pics. Looks like you made my install almost cut and paste easy.

During the firmware upgrade I found the customization panel to turn the various features on and off. Just reading through the options told me there is a little learning curve here. But, once used a little, I guess it is like anything and will become second nature. I should probably read the manual...
 
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Dale_I said:
Looks like you made my install almost cut and paste easy.
Click to expand...

Not done yet Dale...More tricks up the skirt for you...

I will take a few photos later, but when installing the speakers in the helmet, take a close look at where your ear canals actually line up. This is not always close to where the foam is factory recessed. I actually cut round foam inserts to make the speakers get closer to my ears (almost touching) and the sound and the entire system is so much improved. I will take photos and post them when I get home later today.
 
Dale_I said:
I should probably read the manual...
Click to expand...


I put that off as long as possible but in the end I had to RTFM and still...

There's a lot of functionality crammed into just a few controls and Sena support isn't what I'd wish for.

Right now with three 20Ss if I turn on my Sena after my ST buddy does his he gets booted from our network and has to rejoin. So it's GW buddy then me then ST buddy. ??

I wish there was a tone or signal when another rider leaves the network to make or receive a phone call. Suddenly they're unavailable and incommunicado with us. We don't know when they've left or when their back. I've never made or taken a call on the Sena.
 
Dale_I said:
I should probably read the manual...
Click to expand...

I have had mine for a season and a half and every spring, I read the manual again. Yes, maybe I am not as intelligent as some, but I need a bit of a refresher each spring, and generally find something new with it. Pairing the phone and hands free is a good one, voice command prompts are good. The biggest thing for me to figure out was the alert volumes, but seems like I have them after all this time. A great device for sure. I love the FM radio, scan and stereo music.
 
Especially if you and your riding buddies wear ear plugs with modular helmets I would have to agree that the boom mic is the way to go. The boom mic stays in front of your mouth when you flip up the modular chin bar and allows you to continue to communicate with the other people in your party. Learned this from experience the very first ride we ever took with a communicator and my riding buddy had installed the wired mic attached to his chin bar. Every time we stopped for only a couple of minutes to take a drink of water or check the map it became a problem. We were only stopping for a couple of minutes so we weren't removing our helmets. It was to hot to keep the chin bar down so he would flip it up. Then I couldn't hear him so he would put it back down. Then he would start to overheat so he would flip it up again. Then I couldn't hear him so he would put it down again. It was like a Laurel & Hardy or Three Stooges routine. It was really frustrating. The very next ride we took he had switched to the boom mic.
 
I talked with JRob over the phone and I seriously couldn't tell he was on his bike. Crystal clear. We'll see how rider to rider goes, but if I can get the pillion approval... that's what I'm after!
 
ST Gui said:
I wish there was a tone or signal when another rider leaves the network to make or receive a phone call.
Click to expand...
I find that surprising for a premium communicator like you have. Is there not a setting for that buried in a sub-menu maybe? I have one of those cheap BT-S2 and my friend has a Sena 20S. Everytime he disconnects from me the BT-S2 beeps to alert me. When he comes back it beeps again so I know that he is back.
 
This is the boom mic I use. I had to cut a littl of the plastic away on the chin pad of my Neotech helmet, but it works great and it is all tucked inside the helmet.

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cdnemsguy said:
Not done yet Dale...More tricks up the skirt for you...

I will take a few photos later, but when installing the speakers in the helmet, take a close look at where your ear canals actually line up. This is not always close to where the foam is factory recessed. I actually cut round foam inserts to make the speakers get closer to my ears (almost touching) and the sound and the entire system is so much improved. I will take photos and post them when I get home later today.
Click to expand...

Wiser words have never been spoken. Do not disregard this advice when you install. I learned from much frustration and trial and error that speaker positioning is critical- more critical than volume.
 
Dale...I have an important question. What are you doing up before 4am...??? Get some sleep dude....

I guess I am too old school.....or stubborn. I don't like music, phone calls, or other riders in my ears when I ride. Just like the sounds of the bike and wind and the occasional sounds of nature. And if a train is coming...or another vehicle.... And I'm not important enough to be glued to my phone.....

I have used intercoms, listened to cassette tapes......ya that old...... Found it all to be just too much for me.

Hope you find the perfect mic location......and then take a nap....:couch1:

ToddC
 
ToddC said:
Dale...I have an important question. What are you doing up before 4am...??? Get some sleep dude....

I guess I am too old school.....or stubborn. I don't like music, phone calls, or other riders in my ears when I ride. Just like the sounds of the bike and wind and the occasional sounds of nature. And if a train is coming...or another vehicle.... And I'm not important enough to be glued to my phone.....

I have used intercoms, listened to cassette tapes......ya that old...... Found it all to be just too much for me.

Hope you find the perfect mic location......and then take a nap....:couch1:

ToddC
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No 8 Track Todd? I love the Sena, even though this is my first communicator ever.
 
Here you go Dale. The little round foam filler pads are the white ones. They are glued into the void of the helmet, and the speakers are tack glued onto the foam, right where my ears are. Sound is so much better.
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