Using Starcom1 with Garmin GPS

[Fred W]

I have a Starcom1 Advance (bought from Jeff at Bike Effects) and a Garmin Streetpilot C550 GPS. The C550 is functionally the same as the Zumo 550 (voice prompts, MP3 playback, BT pairing with my cell phone) so I beleive this situation will exist equally on users with Zumos.

I have the GPS wired to the Starcom with the isolated MIC-01 and MUS-04 cables as recommended (Mic-01 cable goes to phone input and MUS-04 goes to Audio input). This works fine to provide music, GPS and phone so long as the VOX is dialed completely down. The GPS handles muting the music when Nav prompts or phone calls are received. However, without any VOX dialed into the Starcom the music does not mute when speaking to my passenger.

If I dial up some VOX then when you speak the Starcom mutes all of the audio coming from the GPS for about 5 seconds (because it is plugged into the music input port) but this makes it impossible to use the cell phone. Anyone figure out a work around for this? Or do I just have to live with no VOX if I want to use the phone?

I can wire the GPS audio for just Nav prompts and cell phone into the Aux input and then use a separate music audio source (iPod or whatever) into the Audio input port or phone input. Then the music will still mute during intercom use (after proper VOX adjustment) and the GPS audio will not mute. But the GPS audio then won't mute the music audio, so during an incoming phone call the music will unmute 5 seconds after I stop talking.

Also, what the heck does DIP switch #2 do? It is labeled as VOX rider sidetone, but no further info is provided as to what exactly that means.

 

[twowheelnut]

Ahhhh, well, this explains why my cell phone quit working well ('well' as meant in the most generous sense) after adjusting the VOX for the B2B radios then.

Thanks, Fred. Been banging my head over this one.

I wonder if this condition is merely a downside to Bluetoof?

 

[Auburn]

Have you asked Jeff at Bike Effects? Maybe he has a work around that works.

 

[Fred W]

Ahhhh, well, this explains why my cell phone quit working well ('well' as meant in the most generous sense) after adjusting the VOX for the B2B radios then.
Thanks, Fred. Been banging my head over this one.

I wonder if this condition is merely a downside to Bluetoof?

Well, yes and no. It's a byproduct of piping the music and phone audio through the Audio input of the Starcom, and that is facilitated by the BT to the GPS, but I don't think it related otherwise.

Have you asked Jeff at Bike Effects? Maybe he has a work around that works.

No, but I'm sure he will weigh in here sooner or later. He is working on resolving a PTT-03 VOX issue I found already.

 

[twowheelnut]

No, but I'm sure he will weigh in here sooner or later. He is working on resolving a PTT-03 VOX issue I found already.

Ping MCML. He's working through that, too. I believe he's reached a conclusion or two.

 

[BikerGeek99]

I have a very similar setup.

Zumo 550, StarCom Advance, and a Sirius Stiletto2.

With the Zumo's audio out plugged into the Phone input on the StarCom, and the Stiletto's audio out plugged in the Music input on the StarCom, I have no problems with the Vox working properly (once adjusted properly) - the music gets muted when speaking, and by having the Zumo plugged in to the Phone input, when it gives me directions, the music also gets muted.

I don't have the mic cable yet to go from the StarCom to the Zumo, but my phone does sync with the Zumo and it does let me know when a call comes in (but I can't talk without the cable).

Is the Mic01 cable going to your Zumo or your cell phone?

 

[Randy]

IIRC, I turned down the VOX, turned down the sound level on the GPS unit itself, and turned up the overall volume of the Starcom. When I speak on the intercom, my voice is louder than the music/GPS, so, it doesn't need to mute - I just have to remember to use a regular speaking voice so I don't get rapped in the back of the head for blowing out her eardrums when I speak. I think there's a fine tuning that could be done so I don't have to do this, but, for the very infrequent times that I use the intercom, it's just fine for me.

 

[Neil San Diego]

Also, what the heck does DIP switch #2 do? It is labeled as VOX rider sidetone, but no further info is provided as to what exactly that means.

Sidetone is the when the unit feedsback to the person talking so that he/she can hear themselves talking through their own speakers. Only useful if you use the Starcom in a situation where you can't hear yourself talking. Hasn't been a problem for us so I never turned the sidetone on for rider or pillion.

...resolving a PTT-03 VOX issue I found already.

Would that be the issue where you either have the VOX for both intercom and radio, or no VOX for both intercom and radio? That's where I am at now with the Advance. I've got a Digital to install as soon as I get the time (the Advance will be going into my wife's bike). The Digital has seperate VOX settings for intercom and radio. Hopefuly that will answer this issue for me.

 

[Fred W]

With the Zumo's audio out plugged into the Phone input on the StarCom, and the Stiletto's audio out plugged in the Music input on the StarCom, I have no problems with the Vox working properly (once adjusted properly) - the music gets muted when speaking, and by having the Zumo plugged in to the Phone input, when it gives me directions, the music also gets muted.

It does? When I tried this the music did not mute. Hmmm. Which cable did you use to hook the Zumo's audio to the Phone input? I used the MUS-04 cable.

Did you ever try with the GPS audio into the Aux port? If so would the GPS still mute the audio? Maybe there's something wrong with my unit.

I don't have the mic cable yet to go from the StarCom to the Zumo, but my phone does sync with the Zumo and it does let me know when a call comes in (but I can't talk without the cable).
Is the Mic01 cable going to your Zumo or your cell phone?

MIC-01 cable goes between the mike jack on the Zumo and the Phone input on the Starcom. This would (obviously) make it impossible to also have the MUS-04 audio output go into the Starcom Phone input without some sort of adapter. I would go about fashioning such a thing if I knew those inputs would mute the music.

Also, what the heck does DIP switch #2 do? It is labeled as VOX rider sidetone, but no further info is provided as to what exactly that means.

Sidetone is the when the unit feedsback to the person talking so that he/she can hear themselves talking through their own speakers. Only useful if you use the Starcom in a situation where you can't hear yourself talking. Hasn't been a problem for us so I never turned the sidetone on for rider or pillion.

Yeah, I already knew what "sidetone" was. That is set on/off using switches 1 and 4 for rider and passenger respectively. The question is what is "VOX rider sidetone" that is set by switch #2?

...resolving a PTT-03 VOX issue I found already.

Would that be the issue where you either have the VOX for both intercom and radio, or no VOX for both intercom and radio? That's where I am at now with the Advance. I've got a Digital to install as soon as I get the time (the Advance will be going into my wife's bike). The Digital has seperate VOX settings for intercom and radio. Hopefuly that will answer this issue for me.

The PTT-03 is supposed to disable the VOX circuit from keying the bike-to-bike transmitter. This is supposed to make it possible to have the VOX active for muting the music when talking over the intercom but not transmitting over the bike to bike, unless you press the PTT switch. According to Jeff, they have received a batch of PTT-03's that aren't doing this. In essence, they are acting like the PTT-02 would (which doesn't have the VOX disable feature).

 

[HaulinAshe]

Just FYI, my PTT-03 with VOX disable, doesn't disable VOX either. The only component in that switch assembly is a resistor sitting across two pins. I've played with different values for that resistor with little results.

Overall, I spent a good evening experimenting with the VOX setup. I finally gave up and disabled VOX completely (adjusted it all the way down). With a Zumo, RD, Passenger headset, and Bike2Bike radio, all piped into the Starcom, it quickly became an adjustment nightmare and just not worth it IMO.

My "solution" was to adjust the Starcom Master Volume to about 70%, so that when either of us speaks it doesn't gain too much and drown out the voices. My RD is connected to the PHONE input and mutes everything else as it should. The PTT switch only comes into action when using Bike2Bike.

After owning the Starcom Advance for a year, I can now see why they make a digital version. It's still a damn good unit, just not perfect.

 

[twowheelnut]

Fred, do you mind if I tag along to add my phone/Starcom Advance problem here?

 

[Fred W]

Fred, do you mind if I tag along to add my phone/Starcom Advance problem here?

Not at all. Maybe someone has a workaround.

 

[MCML]

I never did learn what I wanted to know in response to the note that I sent to Jeff on 24 May:

"The only two explanations that I have been able to come up with are (1) that the PTT03 kills the Vox on older Starcom units but it has no effect on the Digital where the Radio Vox can be set to Hi Lo Off at the Starcom unit. In which case, a PTT 03 is not only unnecessary, but also does not perfom its Vox disabling duties, if the Vox is "On" on the Starcom, with the Starcom Digital; or (2) I have a defective PTT03 switch."

I have turned my Radio Vox off at my Starcom Digital and thus worked around the always transmitting when talking problem. Pressing my PTT03 does mute the music so that part is okay though when the music comes back it is momentarily louder than its normal (un-muted) level and then the level drops. I wonder if this is due to the circuitry that seems to be malfunctioning.

I wish that was the only problem I had with the Starcom but I am working on the other, mostly wind noise related, issues.

 

[twowheelnut]

Fred, do you mind if I tag along to add my phone/Starcom Advance problem here?

Not at all. Maybe someone has a workaround.

Thanks, but I think I fixalled the problem today. Aren't hammers wonderful? <_<

 

[Fred W]

Fred, do you mind if I tag along to add my phone/Starcom Advance problem here?

Not at all. Maybe someone has a workaround.

Thanks, but I think I fixalled the problem today. Aren't hammers wonderful? <_<

Do tell... maybe someone else will benefit.

 

[twowheelnut]

Do tell... maybe someone else will benefit.

Not sure anyone else wants to follow my lead, but I will say that the Razr V3 is a mighty rugged piece of electronics.

 

[MCML]

This from Jeff via email yesterday:

Your are correct in that the PTT-03 is not neccessary for the Digital. The PTT-03 will function as a PTT-02. You need to set the Digital to Radio VOX off. Sorry that I didn't realize this.

I don't know about how the PTT switches interact with the other Starcom models.

 

[Fred W]

Just got off the phone with Jeff from Bike Effects. He told me that the most probably reason that the music input would not mute when I get a GPS prompt (as it should) was because I had set the Starcom1 Advance's master volume control too high. I had it set at about 75% of max volume because I always use earplugs.

By lowering the master volume (to ~50% now) and then cranking up the GPS and MP3 players' output volume controls to compensate, the music does in fact mute properly. It also allows the AVC (automatic volume control) to function better, raising the volume automatically when the ambient noise level increases.

I tried this (just sitting in my garage) and it does now, in fact, mute the music. Whether I now have enough volume for when wearing my preferred (33dB) earplugs is to be seen. Hope so.

 

[skifrik]

My biggest problem with this set is that when I get above 60mph the volume automatically increases too much. I'd like to find a way to turn that feature off on the starcom.