Split: Sena Use

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Necro-posting but...

Sena shirts/user customer communications are virtually non-existent. Customer services from very good to clueless. Warranty support varies - it's crap shoot. I know folks who sent their SMH-10 back for a new battery and had to push hard to get it done. I sent back a Prism camera and it was replaced with a NIB camera after a month+. Unfortunately, compared to Yi, SJCam, GoPro, it's simply a loser. Too bad, I like the form factor. The manual is poorly written.

Following the described steps for pairing BT to phone and, BT to GPS works. Ditto for unit-unit pairing; I've never tried group ride pairing. The steps should be laid out more clearly - recipe style. It takes too much time and patience to parse the instructions.

20S-SMH-10 pairing, once the instructions are read and followed closely, is not hard.

I've had no problems with firmware updates. I do keep the old rev.s in case I have to back out of a new rev. with problems. I may have done it once or twice. The prompts for connecting to the PC are right, but confusing only because all of the how-to's are squeezed together.

I use speed dial and normal phone calls, phone media, and a Garmin 660. This a place where Sena has failed and won't reply to "we need..." The volume of the incoming phone, GPS, and media can't be balanced out. The 660 has no volume control for BT, only the speaker. Phone media volume is far below the 660. Turn down the overall volume and the media become almost inaudible, although the GPS is now clear and the phone volume is acceptable. My current "fix" is to use a player app (PlayerPro or PowerAmp) with a "preamp" setting to punch up the media volume. With that the GPS is usable with media. The phone, however, still too darn loud. Sigh...

While the batteries are not user replaceable (open the door, pop one out, stuff new one in), there are YouTube how-to's for the SMH-10 and 20S. That needs a small (8??) Torx driver and soldering skill, and close attention to opening and closing the device. In the process, it's easy to see the o-ring gaskets used - IMHO they do a very good job. On the 20S, the flap over the charge port must be closed and the flap fully seated to keep water out of the device (note: closing the flap blocks the ambient sound mic - open the flap in dry weather to use ambient sound.)

IMHO the "shake" feature is a PITA - it can trip unintentionally. I disabled it - pushing the button at the bottom of the mount is 100% "only when I want it". Pairing with BMW's is heartache waiting to happen. Only fanatics should try doing it.

I've used the FM a few times, but usually in a fringe area for even my car's Kenwood radio. Meh - don't much care anyway. I rarely pop the 20S antenna, if the intercom link drops, it because the other guy is way ahead or back or over a hill. Typically we stay fairly close - 5-10 yds - no problems there.

Finally R T F M ! ! ! Many of the gripes above are clearly either missing steps or doing it the "well, my buddy says..." way. R T F M! Any needed procedure is in there, it's just a PITA to find it.

 
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jblanken64 posted: I quit using FM on the Sena in favor of the TuneIn Radio app on my phone. I was picking up too much electrical noise and the reception didn't seem to be that great anyway.
Good thought. TuneIn will get a tryout on the FJR, but I've always enjoyed hearing the commercials, traffic reports, and whatnot on the local radio stations wherever I'm passing through.

I've also noticed the FM reception was subject to electrical interference from the bike, but can't find any ungrounded/unprotected circuits that would bleed ignition noise.

FWIW, the 20S Owner's Manual includes not one sentence about the FM antenna or what external components might be used for FM reception. Several places on the internet state that right speaker wire is the FM antenna, but cite no source for that information. Those same places say the Owner's Manual asks you to route the right side speaker wire over your head, while my Owner's Manual does not say anything at all about routing speaker wires.

If the Sena battery dies while I've still got miles to go, I plug it into a portable power bank that rides in a chest pocket. When hooked up to the power bank, the FM reception goes from shitty to non-existent -- and convinces me each time: the speaker wires are NOT the antenna.

 
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jblanken64 posted: I quit using FM on the Sena in favor of the TuneIn Radio app on my phone. I was picking up too much electrical noise and the reception didn't seem to be that great anyway.
Good thought. TuneIn will get a tryout on the FJR, but I've always enjoyed hearing the commercials, traffic reports, and whatnot on the local radio stations wherever I'm passing through.

I've also noticed the FM reception was subject to electrical interference from the bike, but can't find any ungrounded/unprotected circuits that would bleed ignition noise.

FWIW, the 20S Owner's Manual includes not one sentence about the FM antenna or what external components might be used for FM reception. Several places on the internet state that right speaker wire is the FM antenna, but cite no source for that information. Those same places say the Owner's Manual asks you to route the right side speaker wire over your head, while my Owner's Manual does not say anything at all about routing speaker wires.

If the Sena battery dies while I've still got miles to go, I plug it into a portable power bank that rides in a chest pocket. When hooked up to the power bank, the FM reception goes from shitty to non-existent -- and convinces me each time: the speaker wires are NOT the antenna.
I use TuneIn to listen to local stations. My electrical interference level really racheted up when I add the auxiliary lights. TuneIn, Spotify, or the XM app is what I generally use now.

 
I just did a search of the 20S OM (available from Sena in PDF format). There's nothing about routing the speaker wire over the head. The installation video doesn't have any recommendations for routing the wires, period.

My guess is losing FM is a function of charging, but why that's so escapes me.

RFI from the plugs and alternator aren't likely to go away. Sorry.

In general, I'm surprised that FM works at all. TuneIn sounds like a more reliable solution.

 
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