Sena SMH10 Firmware 5.0 - Universal Intercom

[Aasland]

Sorry to jump in on an existing topic, but you guys seem to be very knowledgeable on this subject.
I am looking to purchase a Bluetooth headset to do the following:

a) hear prompts from my Garmin 350

communicate with another rider who is using a Scala G9

c) communicate with possible other riders using SENA products

Is the SENS SMH10 the best/most economical choice?

We have been using Sena's in our group, with a pretty high success rate. The main problem we have is the 3-intercom limit, i.e. you can only pair your unit to three others. We have six Sena riders in our group, and who is on which ride varies, so we have to spend the morning pairing up.

I haven't tried the latest update (5.0) as there is still snow on the ground, but a problem we had was that if I had paired my unit to my GPS (as a phone) and to my phone (as a media device) then others were intermittently unable to intercom with me. For 95% of my riding I am alone and the unit is flawless for listening to music, GPS directions and taking phone calls.

I have no experience with other units (Chatterbox etc) so I cannot provide any input on them. I do know they are more expensive.

The Sena is a very versatile product and the provide new features via software downloads, which will help against obsolescence. If you buy used make sure you get the one with a USB charging port.

 

[GalaxyBlue]

I have the 10R, a buddy has the 10, and another with the scala. I hope the firmware update works!

 

[LKLD]

I have a pair of these units. When updating the software one of them worked fine but the other failed in the middle of the process and it won't respond to anything. It appears to be fully charged but can't get it recognized, can't even power it up to try to connect. Tried all manner of factory reset instructions, but it stays dead.
This particular unit was a replacement from Sena for another one that did precisely the same thing. Anyone know any tricks to get this thing to reset? Otherwise back to Sena for replacement ... again.

Did you put a pin in the small hole on the backside of the unit? If so, and still nothing, then sending it in would be my recommendation.

 

[NormKern]

Does anyone in the FJR group have success pairing & using their Sena SMH10 with latest firmware with a Cardo G9?

Have tried pairing my G9 with two different Sena users (on channel A or

so far with no success. What's the trick to pairing? Once paired, how do you connect? Do you use channel A or B or is it a "1+8" kind of thing?

 

[NormKern]

Just found out the trick to using the Cardo Scala Rider G9 with the Sena SMH10 & new firmware.

The Sena firmware allows the G9 to see it and treat it like a Cel phone. Here is how to set it up:

1. Turn on both units so they are in standby mode (should be a slow flashing blue for both.

2. Hold the jog dial button down on the Sena for ~8 seconds until it flashes blue really fast.

3. Press and hold the Mobile Button for at least 6 seconds. The G9 will first flash RED. Continue to hold the button until the RED and BLUE lights begin rapidly alternating.

4. Then on the Sena click the jog dial button once, wait a good 3-5 seconds, and they are paired.

The G9 user then taps the Mobile button (middle button on top of unit) to turn intercom on & off.

Downsides:

1. G9 only supports 1 cel phone, so you intercom with the Sena OR pair with your Cel phone.

2. Since the Sena is treated like a Cel phone, range is much shorter.

 

[Niehart]

Good info Norm.

 

[Stevesez55]

Anyone else having trouble controlling the volume of their GPS when multiparing a Sena 10 (V5.1 FW) with an iPhone and a Rider V5? It seems that the volume of the music can be controlled with either the phone or the jog wheel. The GPS however is screaming directions in my ear and neither the jog wheel or the GPS itself can lower it. Very annoying.

 

[GalaxyBlue]

Big D and I were talking today, And wondered if the intercom would work with the Bluetooth in a car? That would be an interesting Scenario!

 

[Aasland]

Anyone else having trouble controlling the volume of their GPS when multiparing a Sena 10 (V5.1 FW) with an iPhone and a Rider V5? It seems that the volume of the music can be controlled with either the phone or the jog wheel. The GPS however is screaming directions in my ear and neither the jog wheel or the GPS itself can lower it. Very annoying.

Supposedly, the Sena has separate volumes for each input source; when you turn the wheel it is *supposed* to adjust the current source volume. I've had mixed luck with this, and just adjust down the volume from the GPS itself. Or turn off navigation prompts entirely.

Which GPS are you using? Both my 660 and 550 have nav volume adjustments; the 550 lets me turn off nav to the Sena entirely.

 

[pcarnut]

Okay Garmin aficionados, just bought a 3590 car GPS from Costco, very easy to read in sunlight and only $200. Tried pairing with my Sena but no joy. The GPS recognizes the Sena but won't complete the pairing after multiple tries, any suggestions? I don't use GPS that often so pretty hard to justify $800 for a m/c specific unit.

Have one other issue with the Garmin I'd appreciate help with. On a bike trip this weekend, the GPS would not recognize I had taken an alternate freeway on ramp and for the next 50 miles tried to route me back to the starting point rather than recognize I was already on the proper route. Any reason why it couldn't adapt to the small change in route and compensate?

 

[Madmudder]

Set it up to recalculate once it is off the original route or manually tell it to recalculate. It may also have to do with your route preferences IE fastest route or avoidances IE toll roads, ferries.

 

[Aasland]

Okay Garmin aficionados, just bought a 3590 car GPS from Costco, very easy to read in sunlight and only $200. Tried pairing with my Sena but no joy. The GPS recognizes the Sena but won't complete the pairing after multiple tries, any suggestions? I don't use GPS that often so pretty hard to justify $800 for a m/c specific unit.
Have one other issue with the Garmin I'd appreciate help with. On a bike trip this weekend, the GPS would not recognize I had taken an alternate freeway on ramp and for the next 50 miles tried to route me back to the starting point rather than recognize I was already on the proper route. Any reason why it couldn't adapt to the small change in route and compensate?

How are you pairing? Voice only, media-only, or both?

 

[Fred W]

Okay Garmin aficionados, just bought a 3590 car GPS from Costco, very easy to read in sunlight and only $200. Tried pairing with my Sena but no joy. The GPS recognizes the Sena but won't complete the pairing after multiple tries, any suggestions? I don't use GPS that often so pretty hard to justify $800 for a m/c specific unit.

My guess is that the nuvi 3590, like most of the other nuvi, automotive GPSes from Garmin, has a "hands free" Bluetooth profile to connect a phone in to the GPS for use in a car, but has no Bluetooth Headset profile to connect the audio and microphone out to a BT headset like most of their zumo motorcycle specific GPS devices have. It will show up as a device when you are searching for BT devices but will not pair.

The only exception that I am aware of to this is the nuvi 765 which did have the HeadSet and A2DP stereo output profiles.

 

[BkerChuck]

Okay Garmin aficionados, just bought a 3590 car GPS from Costco, very easy to read in sunlight and only $200. Tried pairing with my Sena but no joy. The GPS recognizes the Sena but won't complete the pairing after multiple tries, any suggestions? I don't use GPS that often so pretty hard to justify $800 for a m/c specific unit.
Have one other issue with the Garmin I'd appreciate help with. On a bike trip this weekend, the GPS would not recognize I had taken an alternate freeway on ramp and for the next 50 miles tried to route me back to the starting point rather than recognize I was already on the proper route. Any reason why it couldn't adapt to the small change in route and compensate?

I contacted Sena about trying to pair my Garmin 2595LMT with the SM10 to use the voice commands. Their response was that they are only making them compatible with the Zumo mc specific units and not any of the automotive units at this time. They did not seem overly interested in changing this.

 

[Fred W]

It's not the Sena at fault. The nuvi cannot do it.

 

[pcarnut]

Set it up to recalculate once it is off the original route or manually tell it to recalculate. It may also have to do with your route preferences IE fastest route or avoidances IE toll roads, ferries.

I'll try playing with that, thank you.

It's not the Sena at fault. The nuvi cannot do it.

That's what I was afraid of. In the Sena owner's manual it says most car GPS will not pair but I was hoping since I updated the Sena to 5.1 it might work. I tried using my Galaxy S4 for navigation and I could get instructions via the headset. I wonder if I could pair my phone to the Garmin and use the phone to piggyback the voice instructions? But if I'm doing that why not just use the phone's navigation. I use this so infrequently I hate to pop for an $800 m/c unit.

 

[Fred W]

Sorry, man. That won't work either. The GPS and Phone will pair, but only as a hands free device for the phone. The nuvi GPS would not send the navigation prompt audio to the phone to be bridged to your headset over that profile, even if your phone would do that bridging (which it couldn't).

That's one of the reasons that those MC specific GPSes can command the high price of admission. We don't have too many other options.

I'd say that your best option to get what you want (on the cheap) is to use the smartphone's GPS functions. Keep the Costco GPS for the cage. It looks like a good one for that. I've never owned a GPS that accepts voice commands. That would be kind of neat

 

[pcarnut]

Thanks Fred, you are right, no luck getting the phone/GPS and intercom to talk nicely. Oh well. My cage has built in GPS, but may keep the Costco one anyway as back up to the phone since it shows no gas stations at all just a route.