I like bike comms methods. I’ve had a Cardo PackTalk Edge for some time now, and a PackTalk Black earlier than that — for so long as I’ve severely ridden bikes, I’ve had a comm unit. I like having music in my helmet, I like the power to make telephone calls, I like having the ability to hear my turn-by-turn instructions after I’m going someplace I’ve by no means been earlier than.
But, I hate the set up course of. Placing a comm system right into a helmet is likely one of the worst components of proudly owning bike gear, and it’s at all times one thing I dread. At this time marked one other comm set up, my first shortly, and once more I’m pressured to ask: Why does this need to be so irritating?
Final night time I rode residence from the climbing fitness center within the rain, with the visor on my Arai XD-4 up the entire time to maintain it from fogging. At this time I’ve one other wet trip deliberate, which meant it was lastly time to do the factor I’ve been dreading for weeks now: Transfer my Cardo from the Arai into the AGV K6 I just lately received in for testing.
To be clear, my complaints right here aren’t distinctive to AGV and have little to do with Cardo. I’ve helmets from 4 producers in my bed room proper now, unfold throughout the value spectrum, and just one had a comm set up course of that was in any respect environment friendly. The K6 is as dangerous for comms as my outdated Shoei RF-1200, and as dangerous as my Icon Area might be at any time when I get a spare comm to place there for pillions. It’s an trade normal set up course of, and it sucks so dangerous.
Mounting a comm base on a helmet is okay sufficient. The unit itself will normally find yourself in some barely inconvenient place — too excessive up on the AGV and Arai, too far again on the Shoei — however these are cheap lodging for helmet aerodynamics. I’m not anticipating helmet producers to take third-party comms under consideration when shaping their shells, these might be designed for security and calmness as they’re.
No, my grievance is with helmets’ inside pads and liners. They’re constructed with out consideration for wires operating between the comm unit and the audio system and mic, which makes getting every little thing into place a serious trouble. Add within the finnicky clips and snaps that each helmet maker makes use of, and you find yourself continuously positioning and repositioning and fidgeting with a helmet to get every little thing shut sufficient, earlier than finally chucking up the sponge and settling for “every little thing is contained in the helmet.”
For this K6, putting in my Cardo meant slicing out a part of the inflexible skirt across the cheek pads. That is the half that truly clips in on the shell aspect of the EPS foam, and it’s routinely designed with none type of channel for cables. You must make that channel your self, after which have an absolute ache of a time getting the skirt again in place.
Then, after all, it’s a must to work out the interior wiring. Comm harnesses have a number of plugs for a number of units of mics and audio system, which implies you must discover methods to safe a full 3.5-mm jack and plug someplace in your consolation liner with out it jabbing your neck. That is one scenario the place I’d genuinely favor some type of proprietary ribbon cable connector, as a result of no less than that would lay flat in opposition to the froth.
Find base on shell. Mount base. Pull out pads. Mark wiring location on skirt. Reduce skirt. Mount velcro for audio system and mic. Mount audio system and mic. Place pads again in. Skirt doesn’t match proper. Place pads again in with a special orientation. Do this three extra occasions till every little thing matches. Understand one in every of your audio system fell out someday in that course of. Slam your head into your sofa. Pull out liner. Lather, rinse, repeat, till you’ve lastly received every little thing in there. Why is that this nonetheless the way it works?
Some helmets, I admit, provide an answer. My very own Icon Area has a useful cutout for a proprietary comms system, a Sena unit that slots proper in simply — assuming you might have an Icon Area, as a result of it doesn’t match anything even in Icon’s personal lineup. Now you’re spending $350 for tech that solely matches your one helmet, so that you’re caught upgrading each when your comm dies or your EPS ages out and you discover the Area has been changed with some up to date design. In the meantime my $360 Cardo is now on its third helmet, throughout two completely different manufacturers. If wanted, I may put it on one other, the best way I did at the moment with the AGV. I may even swap it to the Area, the place it could play good with my Cardo-owning driving mates, not like the Sena.
You will have observed a conspicuous absence in my record of helmets that suck to put in comms into. That’s as a result of each Arai XD-4s I’ve had, with their distinctive and peculiar pad design, have been significantly simpler than every other helmet I’ve put comms into. Perhaps it’s aided by the apply of getting needed to do a second set up after I crashed my first helmet, however Arai’s inside format simply makes wiring and speaker finding simpler. It’s a disgrace you may solely get that marginal enchancment for Arai cash, although, and it’s a nonstarter for anybody whose head form doesn’t fairly match the model.
Fashionable helmets could have cutouts for audio system, however they nonetheless aren’t really constructed to have comms put in in them. No model that I’ve but discovered has made the method straightforward, and any model that tries solely finally ends up with a proprietary money seize — even worse than the frustration of a common unit set up. From the most effective of the most effective to the worst of the worst, helmet makers simply aren’t excited about Cardo or Sena. Is it a security factor? Is there no cash in being the helmet producer that accommodates comms? Why does this course of need to be a lot of a ache?
