Starcom + Amplirider?

[stolzy]

Been struggling with this for a while.

I have a Starcom, but found the music quality rather poor. I've fitted some hi-fi speakers in the helmet, which has improved things, but the system clearly needed more power/headroom.

I bought an Amplirider and fitted it between the iPod and the Starcom audio input (easy enough, all 3.5mm jacks).

However, its clear that the extra output from the Amplirider is saturating the input of the amplirider at anything above modest volume.

Obviously the place for the Amplirider is between the output of the Starcom and the headphones.

Question is how to get it there. Further complicated by the fact that the Starcom output requires separate grounds and the headphones have common grounds for left and right channels.

Anyone managed to fit an amplifier on the output side of a Starcom?

 

[karlp]

I have used a Starcom and never experienced lack of music output.

Are your speakers in the correct place?

otherwise a quick call to Starcom may be worthwhile.

 

[stolzy]

I have used a Starcom and never experienced lack of music output.

Are your speakers in the correct place?

otherwise a quick call to Starcom may be worthwhile.

I always wear earplugs, so maybe that's the difference.

I've tried moving the speakers around inside the helmet and moving the helmet around and I'm pretty sure they're in the right place.

I called Starcom and the (very helpful) guy suggested the same things. He told me the pin-outs on the cables, but it will be very complicated to get the cables right.

 

[Chrizm]

The pinouts would be easy enough but you would have to probably common up the grounds and not sure what this would do. All the bits are availiable from Maplins as I have made extension leads for mine and adapter leads to allow iPhone to be used for calls and music, although the 4 pin 3.5mm Jack from Maplins isnt compatable with an iPhone.

 

[stolzy]

The pinouts would be easy enough but you would have to probably common up the grounds and not sure what this would do. All the bits are availiable from Maplins as I have made extension leads for mine and adapter leads to allow iPhone to be used for calls and music, although the 4 pin 3.5mm Jack from Maplins isnt compatable with an iPhone.

The problem seems to be that the grounds on the Starcom speaker cables are not common, whereas the Amplirider has a common ground for the stereo channels.

Starcom say their unit won't work if the -ves are commoned.

 

[stolzy]

Still seeking audio nirvana

It seems more and more likely that I will have to ditch the Starcom unit. For reasons understood only by them, the Starcom uses separate +/- for each channel (the -ves are not common). This means it is impossible to use with normal amplifiers/heradphones/etc without at least rewiring them.

I considered in-ear monitors, but apparently these won't work correctly with the starcom either, not without major surgery.


So what are the options for communication systems now that I know the Starcom is not suitable and the Autocom are, at least for the moment, not available?

 

[Steve the Kiwi]

I always wear earplugs, so maybe that's the difference.

Would the danger be that you are trying to overwhelm the earplugs and the road/wind noise to be able to hear the music clearer... would this then not be exposing your ears to dangerously high levels of sound?? (i'm only guessing?)

 

[Chrizm]

Okies, what you need are 2 x 1:1 audio isolation transformers, then you can common your 2 grounds on the side of your amp then upto your headset, the headset wont mind a common ground but the Starcom unit must be using some strange amplifier circuit I am asuming.

The primary side of your transformers are connected to each channel from your starcom and the secondary side then gets the 2 grounds commoned for your amp, this should work!

 

[stolzy]

Would the danger be that you are trying to overwhelm the earplugs and the road/wind noise to be able to hear the music clearer... would this then not be exposing your ears to dangerously high levels of sound?? (i'm only guessing?)

I don't think so. Road/bike noise is more or less absent with earplugs. The problem is not so much lack of volume, but that the amplifier in the Starcom clips at quite modest (ear-plug attenuated) volumes.

 

[judge]

I considered in-ear monitors, but apparently these won't work correctly with the starcom either, not without major surgery.

Major surgery

Speakers and boom mic out of helmet and replace with either PP-04 or PP-06 replacement headsets (Either part £30). Hundreds of Starcom users have done just this and continue to enjoy their systems and sensible volume, supreme sound and protected hearing - at Ultimate we now carry the PP-06 part in stock.

 

[stolzy]

Major surgery

Speakers and boom mic out of helmet and replace with either PP-04 or PP-06 replacement headsets (Either part £30). Hundreds of Starcom users have done just this and continue to enjoy their systems and sensible volume, supreme sound and protected hearing - at Ultimate we now carry the PP-06 part in stock.

Hmm, I asked the tech guy at Starcom and he said the -ves on Ultimates etc are commoned and wouldn't work with the separate -ves from the Starcom. Now I'm even more confused than before.

Edit - I see now that the PP04/06 has an 'interface circuit'. I'm guessing this is an audio transformer to separate the separate -ves in the Starcom to a commoned -ve in the earphones. A bit bizarre that the tech guy at Starcom didn't suggest it - I've been sourcing transformers to do just this and discussed it with him.

 

[judge]

Hmm, I asked the tech guy at Starcom and he said the -ves on Ultimates etc are commoned and wouldn't work with the separate -ves from the Starcom. Now I'm even more confused than before.

Edit - I see now that the PP04/06 has an 'interface circuit'. I'm guessing this is an audio transformer to separate the separate -ves in the Starcom to a commoned -ve in the earphones. A bit bizarre that the tech guy at Starcom didn't suggest it - I've been sourcing transformers to do just this and discussed it with him.

Yes the PP04/06 overcome this issue of our 'commoned' -ve's and their seperated -ve's. This is not the first time (not even close to it) that we've heard similar grumblings echoing from Tecstar - I couldn't begin to guess why - well not publicly anyway.

Anyway we have sold to Starcom customers since they bought out the PP04 & PP06 and as we bought the Autocom part from them since they bought them out I have instigated us buying in the PP06 so we can sell this alongside Autocom's 2091a so we can provide the complete solution to both sets of customers.

 

[djsky]

Just wondering if anyone here has overcome the issue of the music sound quality from the starcom1?

I recently installed a Starcom1 Digital and I use the PP-04 along with some super Sennheiser IE8 earphones... cost over £200.

Now, being an audiophile, the quality from the starcom1 is unfortunately very poor. it's both underpowered, and lacks a broad frequency response/range so a lot of bass is lacking, and noise is apparent.

So, I'm guessing an "Amplirider" wouldn't solve it either, as you can't replace elements of the audio that isn't coming out of the starcom1 in the first place.

It may well be louder, but it certainly wouldn't satisfy me.

The only thing I can think of is by having some sort of vox activated switch to switch between the sound from the starcom1 and an mp3 player directly.... it's silly, as you would expect the starcom1 to do this at a reasonable quality anyway.

Nevermind, I guess you can't have everything all of the time. :-(