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Cardo Scala Rider Q2

pawork

New member
I've seen a few folks asking about the Scala Rider Q2 headset/intercom so will share my experience.

Helmet: Nolan N102. There's a Nolan intercom option for it, but $$$ and mixed reviews.
Phone: Crackberry Curve 8310 with bluetooth
GPS: TomTom 720 with bluetooth and fm transmitter

I figured I'd have some trouble getting all this gear to talk to each other, and I was right.

I installed the headset in the helmet pretty easily. The electronics pod clamps onto the side of the helmet; reasonably secure but definitely a bit of a kluge. I powered it up and confirmed that the built-in FM radio was working. A bit awkward to change stations or volume, but it sounds ok (despite the dual speakers, unit is mono). Supposedly has active volume adjustment to account for road noise; have not tried on bike yet. Electronics pod pops off of clamp; I'll probably remove for rain events (it is claimed to be "rain resistant" - in my experience that just means that it will last a bit longer than something that isn't).

Unit paired up easily with my Crackberry. Can answer or initiate calls from the helmet. Not a high priority for me but I figure if I hear a call come in I can pull over and answer without pulling helmet off and searching for phone. Phone would not send music to the helmet, though - apparently Crackberry cannot send music to any bluetooth devices as configured.

And GPS would not pair up with helmet at all. But I guess I can use the fm transmitter to send spoken directions and music to the helmet if desired.

Have not yet tested the intercom. If this part works as designed, would make for a nice intercom or bike-to-bike communications option. Claimed range is "up to" 500 m.
 

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speaker

Here's what the speaker looks like. Reasonably unobtrusive.
 

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I have the same setup. It synched with my Zumo easily and works well. A good friend and his wife use them for bike to bike communication along with the phone and have ridden with them in the rain with no problems. I have used mine in the rain with no problems.
They have a decent battery life and the charger is small and easily transported. Overall I like them.
 
Hey pawork -

Thanks for the review.

I have been concerned about the battery life on those - I have heard 8 hours or so, shich would not get me through a day out on the highway - I hate the idea of riding all day and in the last couple of hours losing voice prompts or music due to a dead battery.

Do you have any idea how it works on a long day - 10 hours or more?
 
Hey pawork -

Thanks for the review.

I have been concerned about the battery life on those - I have heard 8 hours or so, shich would not get me through a day out on the highway - I hate the idea of riding all day and in the last couple of hours losing voice prompts or music due to a dead battery.

Do you have any idea how it works on a long day - 10 hours or more?

I bought one recently as well. I had no problems pairing it to my Zumo, which is the only device I've used it with. I've found that the eight hour battery life is optimistic, best I've got out of it is about five. Using it for music eats up the battery even quicker than that. I bought a universal 12v charger so that I can recharge it from the bike since I am not always able to access a 110v outlet when travelling.

I also found that the volume is weak. At highway speeds, the wind noise all but drowns out the sound. I also found that when the volume is turned up to the maximum, the sound quality is rather poor. If I drop the volume one step, the quality is better, but then it is virtually inaudible above city speeds. With the volume maxed out, I can detect that a voice prompt from the Zumo has been sent, but I cannot make out the message. For reference, I was using it on my F650GS with minimal windshield protection, wearing custom earplugs and a full face helmet. As a comparison, I have an Autocom system on my RS and under similar conditions have no issues with sound quaility or audibility.

I do like th FM feature for commuting, but the main reason for getting it was to get the audio from my Zumo, so thus far, it is not really working so great for me on that.

I have a Camos BTS300 on its way (it was my first choice of units, but it was delayed getting to me, so I picked up the Q2 for my trip last week) and will report a comparison of the two units.
 
I bought one recently as well. I had no problems pairing it to my Zumo, which is the only device I've used it with. I've found that the eight hour battery life is optimistic, best I've got out of it is about five. Using it for music eats up the battery even quicker than that.

Thanks - that's the type of feedback I was looking for, and kind of what I was expecting to hear. I'm sticking with the hard-wire AutoCom setup for the time being, but would be nice to see some more advanced bluetooth products come along.
 
I've just picked up a pair of these Q2's last week. My wife and I ride identical K1200s'.

If you look at the directions, it clearly states that if you have a GPS, you need to pair the Q2 with the GPS and NOT the phone. Phone/BB should be synch'ed with the GPS and you access the phone from the Q2 via the GPS.

We previously had the Collett communicators and these Q2's are much less intrusive and easier to mount than the Colletts.

I've found the volume to be excellent, right up to speeds in excess of 160km (100mph), for GPS, Phone and FM. The music from the GPS is dependent on the audio quality of the mp3 itself. If it's low, it will be low on the Q2. The automatic vol control works pretty good up to 100km, after that we need to turn them up a bit.

Audio between the 2 units is much better compared to the Colletts we had, and significantly better than the reception we got from screaming at eachother without the communicators.

The voice quality for someone listening on the other end of a cell phone call is phenominal. I had conversations with people right up to 120km/h and they had no idea that I was on a motorcycle, let alone in a vehicle. In fact, it was better than normal bluetooth headsets. It was only at 160 and above that wind noise was present.

Battery power was comparable to the Colletts. 8 hours no problem with normal bike to bike and GPS/Phone use. Using the radio would bring it down to 4 hours.

All in all, I highly recommend these units.

A couple of additional points...these observations were made without earplugs and with the speakers properly placed in front of my ears. If earplugs are worn, there is no question that it would affect volume, but then again, that would likely be the case regardless of the system being used. The Autocom has the ability to be very loud, however I would question the logic of wearing earplugs only to turn up the volume on a radio full blast to overcome the protection.
 
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I recently installed a set of, factory pre-paired, Cardo Scala Rider Q2 bluetooth headsets on wife's flip-face helmet, and my flip-face helmet. My wife rides an '05 R1200RT and I ride an '07 R1200RT.

Primarily, we use the Scala Rider Q2 bluetooth headsets to communicate between the two bikes and to make and receive mobile phone calls using voice activated dialing. The unit is capable of prioritizing intercom communication, GPS voice prompts, mobile phone conversations, and FM music.

We absolutely love the system. It just plain works flawlessly for us.

Even while riding at interstate highway speeds, communication between the two bikes has been clear, free of distortion, with little or no background noise.

I use a Nokia 6301 Bluetooth-enabled phone. Placing a voice activated mobile phone call using the Scala Rider Q2 headset while riding is simple -- receiving a phone call is even easier. People I speak with find it hard to believe am not using a land-line.

Scala Rider Q2 to Scala Rider Q2 communication is claimed to have max range of 500 meters, which seems very realistic, if not conservative.

If you are riding alone, you can pass the time while listening to the Scala Rider Q2's built-in FM radio. When a call comes in, the radio mutes itself and you can answer the phone by simply speaking.

If you ride with a spouse or buddy, it's hard to imagine a better system. I highly recommend the Cardo Scala Rider Q2!
 
Purchased a pair of Q2s last spring and used them on a trip to Texas in April (me on a GT and my buddy on a GoldWing). Used them as bike to bike and at first the volume and quality was minimal. I repositioned the speakers in my helmet to better point into my ear canal and was very pleased with the volume and sound quality.

We could visit for up to a half mile and the battery would last for the entire day. Used the charger at nights. Like others, if the FM radio was used the battery life was shorter.

Later in the summer, used them on my HD ElectroGlide with much louder pipes. My wife and I enjoyed day long intercom use without difficulty, both with full face helmets. I imagine the auto volume control helped to overcome the louder environment on the Harley.

Overall I've been please with the performance. Have ordered additonal helmet mounts so I just have to move the module from helmet to helmet.
 
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