Thinking about bluetooth for music

[ian]

I have a MixIt in my tank bag that I run the GPS, Escort RD and ITouch MP3 through. I'm getting tired of replacing/repairing the stereo cord that I run to my in-ear speakers (either Westones or ER6i). I used to have a female 3.5 mm hanging out the tank bag zipper to connect to but it would eventually quit working because the constant movement in the wind caused wire failure. I bought a double female hard connector that I zip tied to some other wires running out the zipper and connected the ear speaker cord to this. Now, this cord is going south because of the same movement.

A few years back there was a Bluetooth receiver that you could put in a jacket pocket and connect the ear buds to. The transmitter would hook into the MixIt or any other device. At that time, the battery life wasn't that good and the stereo quality was questionable. I've heard these problems have been fixed.

I don't want a large device stuck on the side of my helmet. Any suggestions appreciated. Ian, Iowa

 

[chrisflock]

I have a MixIt in my tank bag that I run the GPS, Escort RD and ITouch MP3 through. I'm getting tired of replacing/repairing the stereo cord that I run to my in-ear speakers (either Westones or ER6i). I used to have a female 3.5 mm hanging out the tank bag zipper to connect to but it would eventually quit working because the constant movement in the wind caused wire failure. I bought a double female hard connector that I zip tied to some other wires running out the zipper and connected the ear speaker cord to this. Now, this cord is going south because of the same movement.

A few years back there was a Bluetooth receiver that you could put in a jacket pocket and connect the ear buds to. The transmitter would hook into the MixIt or any other device. At that time, the battery life wasn't that good and the stereo quality was questionable. I've heard these problems have been fixed.

I don't want a large device stuck on the side of my helmet. Any suggestions appreciated. Ian, Iowa

I'm confused, which cord is it that is going bad? Is it the cord where it goes out of the tank bag, or the cord running up to your headphones? I'm just trying to envision what the problem is, is it that the cord is repeatedly flexing in the same spot (perhaps up against the zipper?) and the wires are breaking at that point?

Perhaps there's a different way you could route this cord to prevent the problem?

As far as bluetooth goes, you'd need to make sure that the devices you are looking at have stereo sound (as many bluetooth devices don't) and battery life is always going to be a consideration (those little receivers run a long time when used with a phone, but then they are only 'on' when you are on a call). One of the gold wingers I regularly ride with has been less than happy with his bluetooth headsets. I don't have an experience with any particular units, though, and I think your best bet on finding the right receiver/transmitter is going to be heading from someone who has a setup that works.

 

[RaYzerman19]

I would think you'd want to keep the earbuds as they are good quality.... if the cord to the earbuds is breaking, perhaps strengthening it up with some heat shrink tubing would help, and of course, attaching it somewhere to your jacket to provide strain relief and not constantly pulling on it.

 

[airportcop]

I use the Cardo Scala Rider Q2 Powerset and it uses bluetooth from my phone. I enjoy it and I can also talk to my son on his bike.

 

[maffud]

I use a Sena SMH-10 bluetooth headset to get music (and directions) from my GPS via Bluetooth. I bought an extra bracket for the headset that has an audio output jack instead of the hard-wired speakers so I can use the headset with my custom-molded earphones. Since the earphone cable is too long, I just stuff it into my jacket when I'm riding, so it is only exposed from the headset unit into the jacket, and then back out of the jacket into the helmet.

Also, before I got the bluetooth headset, I was just using my earphones wired directly into the GPS. I never had any problem with the cable. I would always route it up through my jacket, and that seems to keep it from blowing around in the wind too much (not much wind down between the GPS and the bottom of my jacket). If you don't want to make the switch to bluetooth, better cable routing could help preserve them.

 

[HotRodZilla]

I run my music out of my Zumo, but run the cord down the inside of my jacket and connect it near the seat. Neither the plug nor the wire ever sees much movement routed like this. I donno what your solution is, but as said above, maybe a simple re-route will serve you better.

 

[ian]

I run my music out of my Zumo, but run the cord down the inside of my jacket and connect it near the seat. Neither the plug or the wire ever sees much movement routed like this. I donno what your solution is, but as said above, maybe a simple re-route will serve you better.

Great post, Shows how I wasn't thinking "outside the box". I'll run a cord from the Mixit from the tank bag to the front of the seat and hook my ear bud male end into that. Thanks, Ian