Bike to bike

[John Roberts]

I may be going on a camping trip with some people from the bike club, some of them do have bike-to-bike comms. Will I need to find out which ones they have before getting my own to make sure that I will be able to talk to them, or can all such gadgets of whatever make link up with each other?

 

[Pablo1]

I may be going on a camping trip with some people from the bike club, some of them do have bike-to-bike comms. Will I need to find out which ones they have before getting my own to make sure that I will be able to talk to them, or can all such gadgets of whatever make link up with each other?

If its one off trip John, personally I wouldnt bother, if your likely to be riding with the same bods regularly then ok but research the systems available first and their limitations, IMHO it can be a bit of an expense and its best to get it right first time.
For what its worth I use Scala bluetooth comms which as far as i know can be paired with other scala headsets for bike to bike communication, however it starts to get a wee bit complicated when you start talking about groups of more than 3 .
I have a regular mate we go on trips together etc so we bought a factory paired set of two, works great.
Good luck, im sure someone will be along soon to further confuse you and say im talking pish

 

[Giles]

The unlicensed channels available to use are standard (pre set) channels, so any bog standard comms kit should be able to tune in.

If it is a one off trip, for twenty or thirty quid odd, you can buy a cheap radio, with plug in mike, ear piece and PTT button, that, won't be great, but will do the job.

 

[Giles]

something like this ..

http://www.maplin.co.uk/helmet-speaker-and-microphone-kit-27212

and a cheap radio ...

http://www.google.co.uk/products/ca...a=X&ei=GvwgUO6ACYWi0QWwtYH4AQ&ved=0CHEQ8wIwBA

 

[Bumpkin]

There are two options; PMR licence free radios or Bluetooth

something like this ..

http://www.maplin.co.uk/helmet-speaker-and-microphone-kit-27212

and a cheap radio ...

http://www.google.co.uk/products/ca...a=X&ei=GvwgUO6ACYWi0QWwtYH4AQ&ved=0CHEQ8wIwBA

Just don't expect your mates to be able to hear you at anything over 40mph. Don't use VOX as they'll end up ripping your radio off you and chucking it of a convenient precipice. Use PTT (Press To Talk), that way your interference and wind noise will only be when you're trying to speak.

If you're serious about getting bike to bike comms kit then you'll need to look at spending £100+ on radio and quality noise cancelling headset. The noise cancelling bit is the most important aspect of the whole package. A used Kenwood TK3201 or, alternatively, a Puxing PX777 or PX888 from Hong Kong (make sure it's the UHF version) plus a McKay headset (UK importer) will work very well but won't accommodate any other input like sat nav, phone, MP3 etc. For this you'd need a full intercom set-up such as Autocom or Starcom which will cost quite a bit new but can be had 2nd hand off eBay for reasonable money.

If your riding buddies are using Bluetooth kit then you'll need to do the same, in fact you'll need to ensure that you have the same brand as compatibility is and issue as the long range BT, not having a standard, is proprietary to each manufacturer. Also bear in mind, as Pablo1 said above, that Bluetooth systems have a limited number of headsets that can communicate as a group, this is usually only 3 or 4 at most.

Range will vary greatly depending on many factors. PMR will generally be better and can be enhanced with external antennas etc. To avoid disappointment don't believe manufacturers claims on range for PMR kit, they are all vastly exaggerated. A mile or two at most unless you use external antenna and even then still not much more. We were getting a usable maximum of about 3 miles in France this year (external antenna and 4W). Mountain top to mountain top, with the right atmospherics, you could get quite a bit more, maybe 10 miles. However, you don't encounter these perfect scenarios when riding, in fact you tend to be in close to the worst environment for RF transmission.

Consider this though; Nasa's Curiosity, now on the surface of Mars, can transmit back to Earth, when it's not relaying via the two orbiters, using a mere 10 watts

The receiving antenna here is rather special though, a little more than a 5/8 wave GPI antenna

 

[ianm00]

Scala G9 bluetooth can communicate with 9 others (if using same G9). Scala is also compatible with the BMW/Schumberth systems.

Ive had autocom and recently changed to scala G9. Bluetooth is much more up to date and I think better quality than autocom plus no wires! The G9 fits to your helmet so can also be used on multiple bikes.

Ian

 

[Bumpkin]

Scala G9 bluetooth can communicate with 9 others (if using same G9). Scala is also compatible with the BMW/Schumberth systems.

OK the technology has made some advances, 9 is a reasonable group size. Shame you're all tied into buying the same kit. Probably not in the manufacturers interests to agree an unofficial standard between themselves

Ive had autocom and recently changed to scala G9. Bluetooth is much more up to date and I think better quality than autocom plus no wires! The G9 fits to your helmet so can also be used on multiple bikes.

Yep, that's another advantage of BT kit. Though the reliance on batteries is a bit of pain when camping.

Depends of who you ride with I suppose. If you all have plenty of money and don't mind all buying the same kit then great. I know that if I jumped to Bluetooth it would have to be Intephone as that's what my best m8 uses. We'd be in a minority of two as everyone else has PMR kit, currently he's on his own with only his phone and sat nav to keep him company. Don't mention the Interphone Tribe as that was a heap of expensive junk

 

[ianm00]

The scala batteries last about 7-8 hours, you could charge with a adaptor from the bike accessory socket.

I guess eventually one of the manufacturers will produce something different and exceptional and finally become a standard which would be better for all users!

I just found that autocom required so many extra modules (bluetooth module, various filters etc) it was both expensive and hard work wiring/fitting to the bike!

I do like the fm radio on the scala as well. Its ok but some weak stations just cause noise but there are six presets including RDS so its usually ok to find some good signal stations.

 

[Greenman14]

something like this ..

http://www.maplin.co.uk/helmet-speaker-and-microphone-kit-27212

and a cheap radio ...

http://www.google.co.uk/products/ca...a=X&ei=GvwgUO6ACYWi0QWwtYH4AQ&ved=0CHEQ8wIwBA

This seems just what I'm looking for. I guess I would need a 2.5 to 3.5 jack plug adaptor but these seem readily available. Is your recommendation from personal experience?

 

[Bumpkin]

This seems just what I'm looking for. I guess I would need a 2.5 to 3.5 jack plug adaptor but these seem readily available. Is your recommendation from personal experience?

Nooooo.... the Maplin headsets are shite. The mic isn't noise cancelling. Well if it has any noise cancelling design whatsoever then it's not effective. A mate got one of these, above 40mph we couldn't hear him for wind noise and asked him to switch it off at the first stop. He couldn't see the problem as he could hear us fine, it took a while to convince him...

You need to spend the money on a decent headset at least. Budget for around £100 for headset and radio, get a McKay (you'll also need one of these) and a Puxing. Alternatively buy a used Kenwood TK3201 off eBay to remain totally OFCOM compliant.

 

[mr_magicfingers]

This might help with some information if you're going to get kit that you use for a while.

http://www.ukgser.com/forums/showthread.php?t=221110&highlight=radio

For my girlfriend's bike I just bought the autocom adapter to fit the headset that was already in her helmet for pillion duties and connected the radio to that.

Later I rigged the same power setup for the radio on her bike so she didn't have to rely on batteries.

Should be able to do the whole lot for about £100 and it'll last you for years.