Underseat power supply

[gregory]

Greetings all,

I am sans manual, so I am wondering what is a good source of power for the starcom under the seat?

Thanks everybody,

Greg

 

[sonicspeed]

i ran a 10 ga wire from my battery to a blue sea fuse block under my passenger seat, then mounted my starcomm under my seat and powered into the fuseblock

 

[Ignacio]

Not good IMO. I ran a wire from the battery and did a small barrier strip ala FJRTech.com.

 

[Wrenchtwistr]

Ran a 10 gauge wire (fuse close to battery) to a 30 amp relay,(which is picked up from the OEM grip heater connector) to a Bluesea fuse block under the seat, . Also ran the 10 ga. wire in a heat resistant sleeve (used for ignition wires) under/alongside the tank . It was a kinda spendy solution... but then what for a bike isn't and it offers a miriad of powered possibilities...

Wrench

 

[HaulinAshe]

+1 on the multi-stage feed to relay power blocks.

I enjoy having switched/fused power that fires-up when the switch is turned on, and a second one that engages when the engine starts.

However, the Starcom draws very little power. If you are looking for the simplest solution, I would consider the tail light circuit. If you want to be REALLY lazy, purchase one of the custom wire harnesses for the Scorpio alarm system. It splits off power from the OEM connectors for the tail light assembly.

 

[kulwen]

I will get around to my installation in the next couple weeks.

For those of you getting power from the bluesea block, does the StarComm lose settings such as the VOX settings or volume when it loses power when you turn the bike off?

I have a ZUMO and need to turn my VOX delay to zero to work correctly during phone conversation. I would prefer not to need reset the settings each time I start up the unit.

NOTE: I am not using the phone while riding. It is very nice to use the phone at the gas station and call the wife without taking the helmet off.

 

[Wicked Webby]

Not good IMO. I ran a wire from the battery and did a small barrier strip ala FJRTech.com.

Ignacio,

Nice setup!

WW

 

[sonicspeed]

I will get around to my installation in the next couple weeks.
For those of you getting power from the bluesea block, does the StarComm lose settings such as the VOX settings or volume when it loses power when you turn the bike off?

I have a ZUMO and need to turn my VOX delay to zero to work correctly during phone conversation. I would prefer not to need reset the settings each time I start up the unit.

NOTE: I am not using the phone while riding. It is very nice to use the phone at the gas station and call the wife without taking the helmet off.

no it doesn't

 

[NSrider]

However, the Starcom draws very little power. If you are looking for the simplest solution, I would consider the tail light circuit.

What color is the 12V tail light wiring? Since all I have is the starcom right now this what i would like to do.

Also Ignacio, being an electronics noob what is wrong with the way that Sonicspeed has his?

 

[Ignacio]

Also Ignacio, being an electronics noob what is wrong with the way that Sonicspeed has his?

Nothing wrong at all. I would guess the BlueSea is more expensive and tidier, but there is rarely one way for these things.

 

[LDRydr]

For those of you getting power from the bluesea block, does the StarComm lose settings such as the VOX settings or volume when it loses power when you turn the bike off?
I have a ZUMO and need to turn my VOX delay to zero to work correctly during phone conversation. I would prefer not to need reset the settings each time I start up the unit.

NOTE: I am not using the phone while riding. It is very nice to use the phone at the gas station and call the wife without taking the helmet off.

I'm running the Starcom1 Digital, using non-switched power to it, as it only turns on when you plug in the rider headset. That said, take note since you may want to do the same if you want to be able to talk with a passenger when you have the bike turned off, such as when fueling or stopped to check a map. I have my Starcom bluetooth powered by the swtiched 12v output that comes out of the Starcom (not sure it's on all models) so my bluetooth power follows the Starcom power. I don't have the ability to dial out on the bike (flip-phone), but I wanted to be able to make a call when stopped without worrying about whether the bike is on or off.

I got the chance to use the bluetooth phone interface for the first time last weekend during the S&M 1000. My wife (ok, and my mom) loved being able to check in with me, and we had a nice chat about how miserable it was to be crossing Montana at night, in the cold rain, with forest rats everywhere. She reminded me I could be home with her, snuggling under a blanket, watching a movie and having a cocktail. I opted instead for a quick break under an awning at a closed fuel-stop in the middle-of-nowhere Washington, watching the rain fall, eating jerky and drinking a Red Bull to try to stay awake. Such fun we have on our bikes.

 

[EODSarge]

If you're using the tail light lead to provide a switched power source... how the heck do you get enough slack in that wire to tap into it? Or remove the bulb to change it, for that matter...

 

[evilmedic13]

If you're using the tail light lead to provide a switched power source... how the heck do you get enough slack in that wire to tap into it? Or remove the bulb to change it, for that matter...

It's not too hard. Give yourself enough wire up the the tail light so that you have enough slack to do what you want. I think I have about 8 inches or so between the relay and the soldered lead into the tail light. This way I can switch bulbs w/o any worry of breaking the connection.

 

[Nikk]

I used the Starcom battery power cable under the tank in heat tolerant tubing; some aircraft stuff a budy gave me. Easy breezy! I run my com wires between the tank and seat into my tank bag. I have a header plug for the rider connect that I, again, run under the tank to the small square panel on the left fairing near the glove box.

Hope that helps.

-Nik

 

[EODSarge]

This is before making the tap... I mean getting enough slack in that existing wire loom to get it out far enough to make the tap in the first place. I think I'm just going to strip some of the wire shroud where it passes by the rear underseat tray and tap in there (same wire, just further up the wire loom).

Not trying to hijack the thread, but... what about the headset connection (to the helmet)? I haven't purchased the Starcom yet, but am looking for places to mount the bulkhead connector. Doesn't look like there's a lot of places... where have others installed them?

 

[Bike Effects]

I will get around to my installation in the next couple weeks.
For those of you getting power from the bluesea block, does the StarComm lose settings such as the VOX settings or volume when it loses power when you turn the bike off?

I have a ZUMO and need to turn my VOX delay to zero to work correctly during phone conversation. I would prefer not to need reset the settings each time I start up the unit.

NOTE: I am not using the phone while riding. It is very nice to use the phone at the gas station and call the wife without taking the helmet off.

No settings will be lost.

 

[Bounce]

i tend to want to avoid tapping into the OEM harness. it may lead to a failure point later. running an independent harness using relays and properly-sized wire for the loads to be used it also more robust.

i took the FJR-Tech idea and ran with it in my own direction with switched, unswitched, and ground blocks as documented here:

https://www.bikes-n-spikes.org/mods/pdb/pdb.html

 

[NightShine]

This is before making the tap... I mean getting enough slack in that existing wire loom to get it out far enough to make the tap in the first place. I think I'm just going to strip some of the wire shroud where it passes by the rear underseat tray and tap in there (same wire, just further up the wire loom).

I need to tap into my brake wiring harness to drive the brake light flasher (comagination) that drives the LEDs on my license plate frame. I ended up stripping about an inch of the outer sheathing at the brake end to get enough exposed wire for posi-tap connectors.

i tend to want to avoid tapping into the OEM harness. it may lead to a failure point later. running an independent harness using relays and properly-sized wire for the loads to be used it also more robust.

Bounce is right! I didn't need to drive any more load than several LEDs directly from the brake harness. Otherwise, I'd only consider tapping power from here as a switched power signal to drive a relay of a power block.

 

[LDRydr]

Not trying to hijack the thread, but... what about the headset connection (to the helmet)? I haven't purchased the Starcom yet, but am looking for places to mount the bulkhead connector. Doesn't look like there's a lot of places... where have others installed them?

I'm not using one, my lead just comes up right at the front of the rider seat. I will be using one for my wife, just haven't mounted it yet. But there's lots of plastic in the tail piece to drill a hole. I just want her to be able to plug in easily after she's mounted the bike.