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Schuberth SRC comm system.. using it..

deilenberger

A bozo on the bus
Rather then tag this on to the end of the C3 thread, I figured this deserved it's own thread... and after searching, and coming up with nothing, here it is.

Got the SRC system from an Ebay auction (BMW Motorcycles of Countryside).. slightly used apparently (although it looked like new, it didn't have the manuals, cords or velcro.. all of those were readily available, so at $203.50 it seemed a bargain.)

Took about 3 hours to fully charge up (using my cell phone charger).. and then I worked my way though the not terribly well written manual. It's another manual sort of written by experts for other experts sorta thing. Things are assumed that you know, because the author knew them.

What's really needed is flow charts of the different functions and how to achieve them with the 5 buttons on the SRC.

I managed to get it to do most of what I think it does - with one small exception. The MP3 playing capability via BlueToof - hooking it up to my HTC Incredible-II got me MP3 music, but aside from pausing it and playing it - I wasn't able to control it very well from the SRC.

The FM receiver is simply noise - but that's no surprise at my house.. a good $1,000 FM tuner has a hard time receiving stations (I'm in an RF black hole of some type - when I pull into my driveway in my car - the radio just fades away.)

Anyway - the question I'll start off with - is how do you have it paired with your cellular communications device. The manual shows two ways to do it. Do a direct pairing between the SRC and the cell phone and a direct pairing of the SRC and GPS, or do what looks like a daisy chain to me: SRC <--> GPS <--> Cell phone.

I tried both and right now I'm opting for SRC <--> GPS and SRC <--> Cell phone. That scenerio does allow me to voice control the phone (not terribly well..) and also have the streaming audio from the phone.

The other scenerio (the daisy-chain) - nicely did upload my phone book to the GPS, and did allow me to control the cell phone via the GPS, but it didn't appear that I could stream MP3s that way.

So - what'cha doin' and why? My GPS is a BMW Navigator-III, which is very similar to the Garmin 2370 series, with BlueToof.
 
I'm using an SRC paired to the radio on my '12 RT and the GPS (Nav III). My iPhone is then paired to the GPS.

Things I like about this setup:
1. I can listen to music from the bike, and it's automatically interrupted by GPS directions or a phone call without any button pushing.
2. Music volume is automatically regulated by the noise in the helmet (more noise means more volume) so I never have to worry about volume.

Things I don't like:
1. The only way I've figured out how to answer a call is to lean forward to hit the button on the GPS (or fumble around for the button on the collar).
2. Can't listen to music from the iPhone.
3. The bluetooth connection between the SRC and the bike is not reliable. I have to use a specific order of powering on equipment to get it all to pair up, and sometimes when it pairs I don't get any audio in the helmet so I have to power everything down and start all over. Very frustrating when making a quick stop for fueling up or something.
4. The audio quality from the bike is not good, and the quality from the GPS is worse. The phone quality is just okay when going through the GPS, but if I pair the phone directly to the SRC, the quality is great.
 
Hi Jeff,

Thanks! One thing I noticed.. when streaming MP3s directly from my phone to the SRC, there is more then adequate volume available.. but if I try it through the GPS, the GPS doesn't allow for controlling the volume and it isn't really capable of being loud enough to use with earplugs (which I'd like..)

I checked the software version on the SRC, and it's the current 3.0 release.. which allows for individual and stored volume settings for each function/mode.. seems the GPS Bluetooth connection simply doesn't get loud enough. Phone is fine.

I tried calling a friend - wearing the helmet in my office. SWMBO came in and just looked at me. I think it's like the "Cone of Silence" - from Get Smart!..

Will be trying it on the bike tomorrow.. and report back how I like it. Luckily it's not hard to switch the modes around to try the daisy-chain setup.
 
Schuberth

I gave up on pairing to the bike since I like to listen to my iPhone most of the time anyway. I pair directly to the phone, then just set my RT radio on aux and let the GPS instructions come thru that. The audio quality coming straight from the bike to the bluetooth is very poor. If I had it to do over, I would not get the radio option.
 
I don't listen to music when riding, and don't take calls while riding. So that leaves GPS instructions and communicating with my riding buddy. But that was a mixed blessing. I'm more introverted, and enjoy riding in silence knowing we can talk around a campfire at night. He is as chatty as a pre-teen girl and can easily drain my SRC battery in a single day of riding. The final straw came when he had to take a leak, pulled over, raced into the bushes...and my helmet was filled with the sounds of his delight in his own bodily functions!

That's when I decided communication was highly overrated.
 
I don't listen to music either - usually the songs and voices in my head are plenty to keep me amused.. but 'ya never know. I have been on some long slab rides where I start to zone out a bit, and music might help that. Maybe.

I used SRC today with earplugs (Bob Weiss custom ones), and it is still comfortable (the speakers don't impinge on the ear space) and was useable with my BMW Navigator-III. The volume was just about adequate.. It could use a bit more. When I tried other sources like streaming MP3 from my phone - the volume is capable of being much louder without any distortion, so I suspect this is a software setting issue. I think I'll write to Schuberth and see if they can do anything with the next update for the firmware in the SRC.

I did find the SRC apparently is - either - GPS or phone, not both connected to it at the same time. I think... The manual also implies this, but I had to try it to see what happened.

So that means to have the phone connected - it has to be routed through the GPS, with the attendant low volume. It also didn't seem capable of streaming MP3s hooked up this way - at least not while routing.

QUESTION: Anyone else have comments on the GPS volume?

When I got home I played with the FM tuner a bit.. and with the manual right in front of me, managed to get one station and store it.

To make the FM work:

- Press B button for about 6 seconds to turn the radio on

- Tune to the presets by pressing the B button briefly, it wil move one preset for each quick push.

- To look for stations, first go to the preset you want to store the station in, then press and HOLD the volume button (either one - one scans up, one scans down) and the radio will tune itself to what it thinks is the next station. Once you find one that you want to store, you have 20 seconds to store it by quickly pressing the B button again.

If you want to store more - after the 20 seconds - use the B button to move to the next preset you want to store it in before searching for another station.

Right now - I have the one station I can get (a local station) stored in 3 preset spots. If I can ever find any more stations I have plenty of available presets to store them in.

FWIW - sometimes when it scans - it finds a station where you know it's there, but the noise is so bad you can't actually hear it. And sometimes it stops on what sounds like a carrier (dead-air, not static) with no audio on it. Dunno what's up with that.
 
Schuberth

We have 2 with the SRC system, and just got back from a 2200 mile trip, which was the first time we have used it that much.

Pairing is to the cellphones & to each other. We have one blackberry bold, pairs well for voice command of phone, streams music well, and I am really happy with the quality of everything so far. My wife has an iPhone and it paired fine, streamed Pandora, and worked very well. The only issue we've had it that her voice doesn't always trigger the VOX microphone. So far, I haven't found a sensitivity setting.

On the website, there's a way to update the software for the systems. Ours was brand new, and one of the units needed the update. You can also manually adjust the settings for the helmet there. All in all, I am very happy with the way it's all working.
 
My wife and I have the SRCs. Mine is paired to the bike for music and hers is paired to her iPhone and of course we are paired to each other. It works great and it is the system of choice for the two of us. The only thing we noticed, as mentioned above, is that the VOX was difficult to engage sometimes. Our fix is to hit the "A" button to start and stop talking. We also found that the person initiating needs to also cancel the intercom or we would lose our pairing to the bike (for me) or to the iPhone (for her). I have no idea why but I don't lose any sleep over it. Normally when in a terminal area we will turn it on and leave it on for safety and instant communications. Trying to pair more than this is where most people run into problems. Fortunately this is all we need. Btw, I turn off GPS directions so needing to hear the GPS isn't in the equation for our setup. When I'm solo I prefer the Sena BT system. It is easier to control the volume and seems to pair quicker. This is especially convenient for commuting or running errands. Also, the battery lasts about an hour longer and can be charged while in use.
 
When I'm solo I prefer the Sena BT system. It is easier to control the volume and seems to pair quicker. This is especially convenient for commuting or running errands. Also, the battery lasts about an hour longer and can be charged while in use.

So does that mean you have 2 helmets - the C3 for riding 2-up and something else with the Sena for riding solo?

Since you use the bike radio, how does the Sena compare to the SRC in terms of audio quality?
 
So does that mean you have 2 helmets - the C3 for riding 2-up and something else with the Sena for riding solo?

Since you use the bike radio, how does the Sena compare to the SRC in terms of audio quality?

Actually I have 3 street helmets that I use regularly. The C3 with SRC that I only use for 2-up and a Shoei and HJC with Sena BT. I use the Sena stick on mount without the mic for both since I only use the Sena for music. The quality of the sound is about the same but the Sena is louder and easier to use (big rotating knob to adjust volume). It is easier to charge too since you can pop it off and plug in any where. The helmet with SRC needs to be taken to an electrical source. You can't charge it while riding either. This may or may not be a big deal to people. Unless I'm doing 12 hour days it isn't for me.
 
Actually - you could charge the SRC while riding, you just need an adaptor for USB charging... there are people who use thier phones as GPS's that have this setup.

Found out how to get the radio to work..

I just got a new IP based radio, that happens to include an FM radio - with a very precise digital readout (more precise then is needed actually)..

I was setting it up and figured for the heck of it I'd try the FM function. I found that it got a few more stations then my older Marantz stand-alone FM tuner, and that I could get the exact frequency of each station. So.. I sat and worked through the entire spectrum and wrote down the stations that the IP based radio received clearly.

I then used the SCR PC-utility to program these frequencies into the 6 presets slots on the helmet for FM reception. Put the helmet on, and I could receive all 6, even in an area where FM reception is really iffy.

Haven't had a chance to try them out on the road, but at least they're in there.

A note on the volume.. on a thread over on ADV-Rider, there is mention that the SRC system sets it's overall volume based on ambient noise.. and apparently it only does this once on turn-on. What people there found was they got better results by starting their bikes first and then turning on the SRC.. or even taking off on their bike and turning on the SRC.

Gonna have to try that..
 
A note on the volume.. on a thread over on ADV-Rider, there is mention that the SRC system sets it's overall volume based on ambient noise.. and apparently it only does this once on turn-on. What people there found was they got better results by starting their bikes first and then turning on the SRC.. or even taking off on their bike and turning on the SRC.

That's interesting Don.

The SRC is essentially the G4 which I have. You can definitely hear an increase in volume from the speakers if you start talking or singing which adds to the ambient background noise. So the Automatic Gain Control does work on the fly and not just at startup.

But the entire Scala system is so finicky that nothing would surprise me. I just finished a 3,000 mile trip with one buddy who also has a G4 and another buddy who has the new G9. We could get the three intercoms to pair and work just fine in the Channel Button Select mode, but the VOX mode didn't work at all on any of our headsets (it worked OK previously between just the two G4 units). And once you tried to pair a GPS or phone to the Scala, they messed up the intercom so we rode with them disconnected from the Scalas.
 
src volume

Yeah, I asked the Schuberth technical "expert" at the RA rally about the volume. I can turn mine on before I get on the bike, after I'm on it, running down the highway with the windshield down on my RT, you name it and the max volume is loud enough to hear music, but not audible books or podcasts. If I stick my head up above the windshield or open the face shield, the volume gets noticeably louder. If I try to increase the volume manually, it goes to a certain point and no further. The "expert's" answer was "well, max volume should be max volume". No...max volume is when I open the shield, seems to me the volume should be able to be manually increased to at least that but it's not. I thought I might be imagining it so I tried it several more times....same issue. I have one for my girlfriend and hers is the same way. I love the helmet and get along ok with just music but sure would be nice to hear all those old Sidestand Up podcasts as I'm headed down the highway.
 
A note on the volume.. on a thread over on ADV-Rider, there is mention that the SRC system sets it's overall volume based on ambient noise.. and apparently it only does this once on turn-on. What people there found was they got better results by starting their bikes first and then turning on the SRC.. or even taking off on their bike and turning on the SRC.

Interesting. My volume definitely adjusts on the fly. Gets lower when stopped or at low speeds, and then much louder at higher speeds and higher ambient noise.

And I've tried all kinds of different power-on sequences and find that if I turn on the SRC first, and then turn the ignition on within a minute or so of turning on the SRC, I get the most consistent pairing success with the bike.
 
Interesting. My volume definitely adjusts on the fly. Gets lower when stopped or at low speeds, and then much louder at higher speeds and higher ambient noise.

And I've tried all kinds of different power-on sequences and find that if I turn on the SRC first, and then turn the ignition on within a minute or so of turning on the SRC, I get the most consistent pairing success with the bike.
Jeff - is that the overall volume, or just the GPS?

My NAV-III has a speed/volume auto-adjustment, and you can set it for different volume increases with speed.
 
Jeff - is that the overall volume, or just the GPS?

The overall volume. I like to listen to music, and the music volume goes up and down depending on ambient noise. I know a lot of riders don't like the distraction of music, and just like the sound of the wind. I'm one of those who like having music playing low in the background. Just tends to calm me as I'm tooling down the road. The SRC lets me set a base volume while I'm sitting still, and then when the ambient noise goes up, the volume kicks up, keeping the overall effect the same (low and in the background, yet recognizable).
 
I was using the FM feature today.. and found that the volume does respond to ambient noise. By moving the microphone up a bit - it ends up behind where the opening is if I crack the shield open.. and the overall volume goes up.

Leaving it there was actually quite useful. The GPS volume was then adequate, and the microphone wasn't tickling my beard.. (such as it is..) Win/Win. Dunno how it would work there as a microphone for voice since I didn't try it.
 
A short update after using the SRC for 1,700 miles:

1. Helmet to helmet is great. A friend on the ride has the identical setup.. and they paired with no problem. Distance of reception seems good, on flat land it appeared to be a good 1/4 mile.. on hills - less. More or less line of sight, but good enough that we were never out of contact with each other. Being able to chat about the riding of the 3rd person in our group was fun, as was warning each other of upcoming curves, hazards in the road, idiot drivers "I'm about to.." things.. The full-duplex is a real winner. A big thumbs up for this ability.

2. FM is much better outside my local area. I was able to find listenable FM stations from about the beginning of the NY thruway to above Lake George on the Northway, then picked up some more when I got near Plattsburg NY. Once I learned how to get it to seek the next station (using the volume buttons), it was a minimal distraction to tune it on the fly.

3. Volume. It's all about getting the speakers in the right place. I noticed that if I wiggled the helmet on my head (it doesn't move much, it's purposely a snug fit) the volume got louder as the speakers lined up with my ears better. So, I took it off and started experimenting with speaker location. What worked best for me was the speakers all the way forward and down in the recesses. With them located there, volume for all functions (including the GPS) was more then adequate at any speed I wanted to go at - with my custom earplugs in.

4. Phone. Only used it a few times when off the bike (but wearing the helmet) or stopped, but it works quite well. Tested it by calling my home answering machine and leaving myself a message, and under those conditions, you wouldn't know I was talking from inside a helmet.

5. Streaming: Haven't figured out a good way to really use it. It appears to use the GPS, the GPS has to be the "hub" - ie, helmet and phone link to the GPS. While it would stream fine if I linked the Android phone directly to the SRC - when hooked up that way, the SRC ignored the GPS. If I use the GPS as the hub, I do have phone functionality on the GPS (Navigator-III), but it has no ability to pipe streaming music from the phone into the SRC. Apparently to make this work as I'd like will require a new GPS with built in memory/app for streaming.

6. Battery life. At least all day. Only once did I have it go dead on me, and that was after it had been on for 24 hours (I forgot to turn it off..) It could easily power itself for an 8 hour ride (about my max anyway..)

I'm now a fan, and it gets a big thumbs up from me!

General comment on GPS's: My friend was using the new BMW Navigator (IV?) - with lane guidance, streaming, etc. Several times the NAV-IV got confused, telling him things like "left-lane/right-lane/left-lane/right-lane..etc.." or telling him to "Take Rt 3 north Take Rt 3 south". He was less then happy with it. I never experienced this with the NAV-III. This makes me a bit hesitant to consider a new BMW Navigator, even if it would provide me with streaming capabilities. The voice directions are really critical to me since I want to HEAR where I should be going, not having to try to sort it out on the GPS screen.

Oh - one other neat thing. I'd forgotten I even had it installed, but someplace I found a speed-trap database for Garmin GPS's.. and it was quite handy and accurate along the Taconic Parkway in NY state. At first I didn't understand the big BONG-BONG- noise I was hearing, until I glanced down at the GPS and saw a red band flashing across the top of the screen warning about a speed trap. Slowed down a tad, and sure enough, got to wave to the LEO as we passed by him.
 
Schuberth SRC

I've had mine for about 3 months now and had some of the same problems in the beginning. Placement of the helmet speakers is critical, if you get it right the volume and quality of the sound is great. I will pair my android phone with the Garmin 665 and it works perfectly for making and receiving calls, the music pauses when an incoming call comes in and starts back up where I left off when the call is done. One thing that was pretty annoying with mine was that it would sometimes have static or a fuzzy quality to the sound, I contacted Schuberth and the helpful tech suggested that when I turn my systems on, that I turn on the helmet first, then the GPS........problem solved. The tech was pretty helpful and told me that if this didn't solve the problem I could just send it back for a new unit no questions asked.....I was impressed. So far I like mine very much and I too, bought mine from E-Bay for considerably less than retail. Good luck with yours and thanks for the report, it is very helpful information.
 
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