Starcom advance vs. Autocom Active Plus

[taterides]

Need to pick one of these for the latest farkle. :yahoo: I have searched, read and have spoken to distributors . What I am looking for is owner comments. How happy are you as far as works as advertised. Are you happy with overall performance and construction? If you have owned one of each brand, even better. Thanks for any comments. I am trying to not make a 400-500 mistake. Thanks-Tate

 

[MartyA]

I am trying to not make a 400-500 mistake. Thanks-Tate

Aww-w-w where's your sense of adventure?

I have the Starcom1 Advance and love it. I don't have a GPS yet, and I have not hooked up my phone yet, but it works great for intercom and 2 way radio / group communication and MP3.

Without any experience I am gonna guess here and say the Autocom would do fine for me also.

 

[Capt. Bob]

I'm using an older model Autocom that I purchased from a member on this forum. I only have my GPS and V1 hooked up but it seems to work fine.

The former owner like it a lot and also had bike to bike and pillion hooked up. He ended selling the FJR and parted it out.

There's good support from a gentleman in Tulsa (?) but do a search and you'll get the right info.

Good luck.

 

[snikr]

I too have the Starcom1 Advance and I like it. But I only use it for driver to passenger usage plus I've hooked in my Escort X50. That said I think that the Starcom and Autocom units are good units from the research I did before I bought mine. And if you go Starcom, Jeff at BikeEffects.com is your friend (FJRForum discount helps a LOT).

Tom

 

[mdisher]

I too have the Starcom1 Advance and I like it. But I only use it for driver to passenger usage plus I've hooked in my Escort X50. That said I think that the Starcom and Autocom units are good units from the research I did before I bought mine. And if you go Starcom, Jeff at BikeEffects.com is your friend (FJRForum discount helps a LOT).
Tom

What he said...

The StarComm/AutoComm debate is kind of like Pepsi/Coke. They each have their own issues. I'm happy with my StarComm, but I don't use it for rider/passenger... Just for Zumo-Audio-Radar and it works great for that.

Speaker placement is the key.

 

[Fred W]

Need to pick one of these for the latest farkle. :yahoo: I have searched, read and have spoken to distributors . What I am looking for is owner comments. How happy are you as far as works as advertised. Are you happy with overall performance and construction? If you have owned one of each brand, even better. Thanks for any comments. I am trying to not make a 400-500 mistake. Thanks-Tate

Tell us what you want to do with the unit as it makes some difference.

BTW - I have a Starcom1 Advance and like it.

 

[Toecutter]

I like my Autocom for the fact that the leads plug into leads from the control unit, rather than sockets in the control unit. This allows the unit to "flex" more, without the leads being prone to rattling unplugged. The plugs are also rather beefy, so they're easier to find by feel and plug/unplug with gloves on than smaller plugs.

The best source for Autocom information and acquisition (IMO) is Keith Goudelock (pr. Godlock) at Tulsa Truck Center 918.446.2245

He is the master who will lead you to enlightenment, and cut you a deal at the same time. Ask him about why he chose to sell Autocom over all the others out there....

 

[taterides]

Looking for zumo/phone/radar/passenger. Went for a 400 mile ride to Key West and felt bad for my wife. She had no way to tell me she was having a leg cramp. Well that and her ipod earbuds seems to annoy her when the fall out under her helmet in 90 ish heat and 90 ish humidity. This is a purchase she definitely supports. Don't need this just buying for her benefit. Thanks for the input so far.

 

[luvtoride]

tate... did a search for you. I expect you will find myriads of info somewhere here:lotta posts about this

 

[quicksilver]

I have the old school Starcom1.

I think Jeff still sales it for much cheaper than the Advance.

Main difference for me was the Advance is smaller, because it does not have an internal 9V battery power option.

Consider sticking with the original for most "bang for the buck". They work fine once the VOX gets set.

Notes:

1. Mine is very sensitive to grounding with the intercom and cell phone.

A poor ground (like through paint on the frame) results in noise from overhead power lines and

phone static. So ground it well. If your wanting GPS, radar, etc., strongly consider the Centech switched/unswitch fuse box. (or similar competitor)

Hit: EasternBeaver.com - look for the AP-2 with custom wiring harness. It may save much aggrevation.

You get what you pay for on this item.

2. The audio cable is a standard jack. The high doller audio cable from Starcom is junk.

Four of the tiniest conductors on earth snap the first time they are flexed. The Radio Shack "gold plated with stress relief springs at the connectors" is actually cheaper and there are real wires in there.

3. The rest of my cables have been in use for 5 years now and zero issues. No flex or loosening issues here.

4. I run a tankbag setup because it seems to make sense for having everything accessable and portable.

5. Helmet hardware is very good with amazing clarity. Mic placement is important.

Have fun

 

[taterides]

tate... did a search for you. I expect you will find myriads of info somewhere here:lotta posts about this

Like stated I did that search. Thanks for your efforts. I am just looking for someone who may have used both. So far have gotten some good info. By chance do you own a starcom or autocom and have a preference? Thanks-Tate

 

[Ignacio]

Like stated I did that search. Thanks for your efforts.

Actually no.

You said you "have searched" without qualification. You didn't state you did that search in particular. Had you done that search in particular I'm sure you would have said something like, "I have searched on starcomm autocomm site:fjrforum.com at Google and didn't find what I was hoping."

Like most of the high-end farkles people who have actually have used both are probably very rare.

 

[luvtoride]

Nahh, I'm running a low tech Chatterbox. Works well, though. Sorry, didn't see that you'd done that search already. Thought that there was firsthand info in there & it'd help.

I hear good about the Starcomm, though. Except something about a PTT vs VOX problem.

 

[taterides]

I'll have to word more carefully as to not get whacked by the hall patrol...

 

[HaulinAshe]

[ Like most of the high-end farkles people who have actually have used both are probably very rare.

+1 Gunny on that!

When I was debating Autocomm/Starcom, I could not find anyone that had owned both. Probably aren't many even today.

Seems that once you make the investment for either brand, a bit of brand loyalty and definite unwillingness to try on a new set of issues arises. Think of it as owning a summer house at the lake. Why own another house at the same lake if you don't need it and would have to sell it for half of what you paid for it.

I have owned several comm systems leading up to the Starcom Advance. My (now outdated) research indicated that those who primarily ride two-up would prefer Autocomm performance, while the Starcom meets or exceeds the Autocomm in a solo config and offers a better bang for the $$$. How's that for a summary!

Of course, I invested in the entire Starcom setup, cables and all for everything you can imagine, only to turn into a predominantly two-up rider a few months later. Go figure!!! Maybe I should have bought the OTHER lake house!

 

[taterides]

Cool, Thanks Haulin, thats the feedback I was kinda hoping to hear.

 

[taterides]

Gotta used starcom advanced for $150. Will give it a shot. If not I may be that rare guy owning both of them.-Thanks.

 

[Fred W]

Looking for zumo/phone/radar/passenger. Went for a 400 mile ride to Key West and felt bad for my wife. She had no way to tell me she was having a leg cramp. Well that and her ipod earbuds seems to annoy her when the fall out under her helmet in 90 ish heat and 90 ish humidity. This is a purchase she definitely supports. Don't need this just buying for her benefit. Thanks for the input so far.

OK, based on your above criteria I would whole-heartedly recommend the Starcom1 Advance unit, with two reservations:

1) You didn't say that you want bike to bike

and

2) You didn't say anything about music.

There is an issue with the bike to bike VOX circuit when using it with a music source hooked up to the audio input. What happens is if you adjust the VOX to mute your music input when using the intercom to talk to your passenger, then the VOX also keys the two-way radio transmitter. Using a PTT-03 Press to Talk switch accesory is supposed to disable the VOX to the two-way, but so far this does not work for a lot of folks. I am currently investigating this problem with the help of Jeff at Bike Effects. We may have a solution very soon, or maybe not. More info on this soon.

The second issue is when using a Zumo or any other GPS with a music output feature. If you plug the GPS output into the Audio input it will allow you to adjust the VOX and mute the music when using intercom. But when you get a phone call through the Zumo, it will mute the audio from the phone anytime you try to speak into the phone.

The only way around this is to either not use VOX (just set it to zero) and set the music level at a low enough volume level so that you can hear each other over the tunes, or you can plug the GPS output into the monaural aux port and have a seperate stereo audio source (ipod, XM radio, what have you) into the audio port. The aux port does not get muted by VOX, and it will also cause the audio port to mute when there is traffic on it, ie when GPS is prompting or when receiving a cell call.

There is no other way around this as the Starcom was not designed with an all-in-one audio source like the Zumo in mind.

 

[Bike Effects]

I like my Autocom for the fact that the leads plug into leads from the control unit, rather than sockets in the control unit.

Aaah, same as Starcom.