Just Installed SENA SMH10 Bluetooth Headseat & Intercom

[SpongeBob]

I decided to try the SENA SMH10 Bluetooth headset & intercom system for our helmets and also ordered the helmet clamp kit accessory which provided a wired microphone to use instead of the boom mic. My wife and I each have full-face helmets.

The installation was straightforward and, thanks to the Velcro backing on the speakers and mic, I didn't have to remove the cheek pads.

Setup was easy and the units work .... that's about the only positive thing I can say about them.

• The voice activated intercom is slow to respond
• The manually activated intercom is slow to respond when you tap the jog dial to initiate a conversation
• There is a painfully loud audio crack in the right speaker on each unit when initiating or terminating an intercom conversation
• The audio beeps for signaling various functions (power on/off, etc.) are louder than an AC/DC concert
• The microphone is overly sensitive to plosives, regardless of its placement
• There is an annoying ringing in the audio as if some of the signal is fed back or delayed

Oh well, it's quite likely that the SENA units will be returned.

Maybe the Cardo Scala Rider system will offer better performance.

 

[warp10]

thanks for the write up, guess I will not be getting those :gaah:

 

[chickenhoose]

sena

I have that same setup with boom microphones and they work well.

 

[SpongeBob]

Need two more units?

 

[DynamoBT]

Gee, I have heard such good things about the SENA unit. Guess not everyone has the same experience with them. We're still holding off on helmet to helmet communications. Wireless units are a lot of money. We're making do with yelling!!! lol!!!

 

[rdavison]

Sena

Ours worked fine until we got caught in a rain storm leaving Maggie Valley. Now they quit and we have to reconnect 5 times and then they work fine. Odd. No sign of rust or seapage.

 

[dltang]

Ours work fine as well. We do have to replace one microphone that seems couldn't stand up to the 10 hours of rain coming home from Maggie Valley. But overall, very happy with them.

 

[WackyDan]

I had the Scala and now the SENA.... My thoughts to add....

The scala quite frankly was a very polished comm setup. It just plain worked. Phone calls were crystal clear for both parties.

The cons of the scala:

• Not loud enough
• No Ear bud mount (see first bullet)... Ear bud mount would solve the loudness issue.

The Sena:

Pros:

• Available ear bud mount - Music is plenty loud.
• Standard mount has some serious speakers and it is louder than the scala
• Ability to jog music selections from headset.
• Better bluetooth range than scala. My phone can be in my Frunk or any of my bags and I have uninterrupted music. Not so with the scala.
• Has ridden through several hard rains now with no issues - Make sure your charging port is sealed

Cons:

• Jog dial is a major pain if you have another media player on your phone. My Sena would not jog initially. Using the jog function would switch from the media player on my phone to my Amazon Cloud drive media player.... Until I logged out of the Amazon player.
• Mounts are too tall and will not work with some modular flip up helmets.
• Lose right side audio and if I tap the unit it comes back... I think this is dependent on how secure or well you have the Sena module snapped into the mount.
• Microphone sucks. It just plain sucks. I think it just may be the unit I have and hope so. My phone calls are clear for me, but I sound fuzzy and muffled to everyone. The Scala was awesome for calls, except the volume was low.

I have yet to try a software update on the Sena and I will be testing the microphone from my other mount soon to make sure it is just a bad mount in regard to my out bound voice quality.

I think it is a good unit, but if Scala came out with an earbud mount, I'd go back to Scala in a heartbeat.

 

[bullant12]

I decided to try the SENA SMH10 Bluetooth headset & intercom system for our helmets and also ordered the helmet clamp kit accessory which provided a wired microphone to use instead of the boom mic. My wife and I each have full-face helmets.

The installation was straightforward and, thanks to the Velcro backing on the speakers and mic, I didn't have to remove the cheek pads.

Setup was easy and the units work .... that's about the only positive thing I can say about them.

• The voice activated intercom is slow to respond
• The manually activated intercom is slow to respond when you tap the jog dial to initiate a conversation
• There is a painfully loud audio crack in the right speaker on each unit when initiating or terminating an intercom conversation
• The audio beeps for signaling various functions (power on/off, etc.) are louder than an AC/DC concert
• The microphone is overly sensitive to plosives, regardless of its placement
• There is an annoying ringing in the audio as if some of the signal is fed back or delayed

Oh well, it's quite likely that the SENA units will be returned.

Maybe the Cardo Scala Rider system will offer better performance.

Have you tried the firmware update? I did mine right out of the box and don't get any of those issues you mention...

 

[WJS]

I have the SENA SMH10 installed in my and my wife's helmets and for the most part they works well. I do have a problem when I'm riding alone and have the system paired in the following manner:

Motorola Droid 2 Global paired to Garmin Zumo 550
SENA paired to Garmin Zumo 500

In this configuration, I can hear navi alerts from the Zumo to the SENA and also see the caller ID from the Droid on the Zumo. Nice, right? The problem occurs when using the navi alerts and receiving a call; everything un-pairs! When the call coming from the Droid passes through the Zumo then to the SENA it causes something to go buggy.

I tried, last night, using two computers with admin rights, to upgrade the firmware after reading this post in hopes it would help my problem. I can not get the driver installed during the first connection attempt using the USB cable. I emailed SENA but haven't heard back, yet. Has anyone had this problem and found a solution?

 

[SpongeBob]

There was no mention of my performing a software update when I corresponded with SENA tech support in either email or telephone conversations.

 

[WJS]

There was no mention of my performing a software update when I corresponded with SENA tech support in either email or telephone conversations.

I think this update was released August 1st, 2011; how long ago were you in contact with them? Were they helpful?

 

[SpongeBob]

This is the email response I received earlier this week from SENA regarding the issues ...

"SMH10 utilizes Bluetooth technology which is a secure connection requiring some verification before allowing the connection. This is exactly the same concept as your wireless internet which requires security check before connection is allowed. You cannot compare the response to a typical non-secure two-way radios.

Popping sound on the right speaker after the system sound is normal. You can further distance the speakers from your ears or you can cover speakers with additional layer to dampen the sound.

SMH10 is able set different volume setting for each communication mode. The volume change within the communication mode only applies to that particular communication mode. If volume is changed during stand by mode, it applies to system sound and all communication mode. I recommend you to set low volume at standby mode so every mode has low volume and then go into each mode and set(increase) volume to your comfort level.This will reduce system alert sounds.

If microphone sensitivity is related to VOX, then protecting(windshield, full face helmet, and chin skirt) the microphone from outside noise will help prevent unwanted intercom session.If sensitivity is to audio level or quality, try distancing the microphone from your lips. Advising other person to decrease their volume will help with audio comfort level.

During the intercom session, there will some noises(buzz, crackling, popping) which are associate the signal quality. As signal quality becomes poorer, then the severity of the noise will increase. The distance, physical barrier, and wireless traffic have direct effect on signal quality."

More of an explanation ... not much assistance.

 

[Firefly]

I've found the Senas to be far superior to the Cardo units I had before. Easier to use, easier to adjust, etc. We don't use the 'voice control' feature-- just use hand on dial to initiate a conversation. Have used voice commands to iphone to select music, make calls, etc. and it works pretty darn well.

Just got the 'new' usb versions after doing the 'trade-up' deal from them -- and yes there was a firmware update early this month. Current firmware version is 3.1.

 

[WJS]

Just got the 'new' usb versions after doing the 'trade-up' deal from them -- and yes there was a firmware update early this month. Current firmware version is 3.1.

Did you perform the upgrade or did it come installed with the latest version? If you did it, what operating system were you using?

 

[Firefly]

Did you perform the upgrade or did it come installed with the latest version? If you did it, what operating system were you using?

Units I got were only at version 3.0.

Did the upgrade using my Windows XP Pro machine--- super easy to do -- took all of 5 minutes start to finish.

 

[Littlebadwolf]

Have a set of the upgraded Sena's and have zero problems with them...they're perfect.

 

[SpongeBob]

Too Little, Too Late

SENA's tech support insisted that the issues I was experiencing were normal.

Only after the intervention of their sales director did I receive an offer to return the units for repair or replacement.

I have, however, elected to return the units to the vendor for a refund.

Two Dixie Cups and a string, maybe? No batteries required!

Possibly the least hassle-free way to go might be Can-Am's built in communications system.

 

[WJS]

Well, I used my wife's work laptop which is running XP and this time it recognized the SENA unit but, it said I was already at the latest firmware which is very odd since I bought these last year, never performed an upgrade and the 3.1 firmware was released the first week of this August, 2011. :dontknow:

So.... I reconnected the SENA to the Zumo and the Zumo to my phone and also to the other SENA installed on my wife's helmet. I then tried calling my cell from my home phone while the Zumo was running through a route and switching between intercom and the Zumo. I also made calls while the Zumo was running a route and everything worked perfectly. This is always the case when I don't really need it to work. As soon as I get on the road the battery in one of these things will self-destruct; Murphy's Law.

Thanks for the help, guys.

 

[WJS]

Well this explains a lot!! Just got an email from SENA:

From the S/N you have listed, you do not have SMh10 supports firmware update. In order to receive firmware updates, you will need latest SMH10 with mini-USB port. Previous gen of SMH10s do not support firmware update.

Balls!