lois

I bought a chatter box, and for the first 6 months I couldn't hear nothing on it ....then I found the power button.

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Call me "Captain Mudbucket".

CanadianBird

As much as I love my wife, I don't want to talk to her when we're riding. Or anyone else for that matter. I like the voices in my head.

diamondhead

Try Moto-Comm everything together.........multiple inputs......built in FM.......only drawback is battery powered ......which I am circumventing with a direct wired conversion. Wind noise is a problem if you have a cheap helmet or keep your head in dirty air. Motocomm only rated up to 100mph for clear speech whereas the Autocomm is rated higher but costs twice as much. I think the Moto is more than half as good however I have never owned the Autocomm.

Banshee

Madness does not always scream. Sometimes it's that quiet little voice in the evening that says, "Hey! Is there room in there for one more?"

back.in.black

In other news...........
Your friend bought a ZX14 as a FIRST BIKE

RSJ

A zx14 as a first bike????????? Holy Sh--! I wouldnt be doing any talking on a chatterbox to him

Catenaccio

Chatterbox or at least a smaller version would be nice when I ride with my kids. That way I could figure out where to wait for them.

heisti

the hard will survive

while riding i only listen to mp3 or my navigation system

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deadman

I lived in Brisbane in the early 70's. quite a number of my riding friends were deaf, So a heap of us hearing riders went to the brisbane deaf institute and learnt sign language so that we could converse with our deaf friends, A month later we could all sign language, fluently, and then we had a secret language only we knew. and we could use this sign language to converse as we rode,
It was top stuff at parties, because you could say what you liked and no one else knew what the group of us were talking about.
If ever you want a scary ride, jump on the back of a bike with some one who has been deaf since birth, they have no fear, and always corner by feel, if it aint scraping, you are not over far enough. AAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRHHHHHHHHHH
My deaf mate. SID, Really scared the crapper out of me, and I dont scare easily on a bike. He could also ride, exceptionally well. 850 Norton.
Brian.

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If ya not boppin, Ya in ya coffin. Rock and roll will soothe your soul.
Mods, 6mm Shim, 12 inch risers, Double bubble Windsceen, Homemade Ventura type packrack, Expandable to 82 litre, Rjays rack bag, Lowered rear end frame by 3 inches. Suspension is still stock, home made Cans, awesome.

DeathWish01

the blackbird was my very first bike... and i find its easier to ride then my other friends dirtbikes.... (except on dirt of course)

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Take Two X's For A Spin And Call Me In The Morning!

Mike Voeller

Uglystick

I have a pair of Bluant headsets. They interface with my Tom Tom rider and also each other.

They work well as rider/pillion intercom units upto about 80 kmh but after that wind noise is a little high..

They dont do MP3's and the like but thats okay I dont need the distraction..

Not to sure about cage drivers elsewhere but in Melbourne they are dumb enough so that i would rather not be distracted...

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Laying in bed and crying "Oh God!" does not
Constitute going to church

drrod

I have a set of Blueant Interphones. They work well for bike to bike up to about 500yds. Great for rider-passenger communication as well. They can be synched with your phone if you want. Downside - little pricey and the battery only lasts about 5 hrs. If you hunt, you can find them for around $100 apiece. We used these when my daughter was learning to ride. I could follow her and give advice/instructions easily.
Rod

CanadianBird

I have Blueant in the car. It works perfectly. I'm still very ambivalent about too many listening and talking options when I'm riding. Perhaps I need to try it but, in truth, I'm on my Bird for a reason and I really don't need to talk or listen to anyone/thing. I'm really fearful that I might get distracted.

marinebiker2007

I love the fact that when I'm riding the only time I talk to anyone is when I stop at a red light or stop sign and I'm sitting next to another motorcycle.

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"It's like your tied onto a tornado and every wild and free thing in the world is right there in the palm of your hand"
Lane Frost R.I.P 1989

jonscott

Some riders can multitask, some riders can't.

My dad and his wife used a com system for a while, she started talking about a bird or a goat or some damned thing that she saw and as soon as she started talking he stopped *riding* *the* *motorcycle* and dumped it on a corner. He was looking for the ****ing bird instead of looking for the pothole.

They haven't used a com system since.

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When you see a car, think of the stupidest thing the driver could do, then get prepared for it to happen.

john23179

they take their hands off the bars to sign while driving...........and everyone else takes their eyes off the road to see the signs,wouldnt ride with that bunch,at least they cant hear the screams of passengers on the back.I have a sign for cagers but it only requires one finger on one hand

MarinXX

I had a pair of chatterboxes about 6 years ago: the GMRS-X1 (pre-bluetooth). I thought they were pretty good at the time, but I couldn't hear anything from them at highway speeds, and they had a lot of wires: I could never get the VOX working right, so I used the PTT button, a wire to my MP3, and a wire to the passenger (when carrying one). After the new system (plenty of details to come), I wouldn't spend the money on another Chatterbox...

Recently, I got the Camos BTS-300 - I couldn't be happier! I've been using it for 6 months or more (a while, anyway!), and it's just great. I stream music from my phone over bluetooth on my commute every day. When a call comes in, it mutes the music and auto-answers the phone.

I got back yesterday from a 2200-mile trip with a friend (San Francisco -> San Diego -> Tucson -> Flagstaff -> Las Vegas -> San Francisco). We each had the Camos unit and could talk on the freeway and hear each other! It auto-prioritizes, so that you don't need to worry about which device will be "active" in the helmet. The intercom overrides the music and the phone overrides everything else.

Sorry for the long post... I'm obviously happy with my Camos.

rockertom

Like anything. There's ups and down to it. I had the X1 for many years. It was ok. But now I have the Scala Rider Q2. I like that better now. But again it has its up and downs. It's all about what you want and how much your going to spend.

mrhemi

I purchased a pair of chatterbox XBi Bluetooth units (no wires) a few months ago. My wife and I ride two up a lot and being able to speak to one another safely (by safely I mean not yelling to be heard through a helmet or tapping me on the shoulder) while riding together. I did not have time to do a lot of research and shopping as we were departing on a trip to New Zealand right away. The XBi's were cost effective, available and made to fit our helmets (HJC). When I received the units I almost gave up on them because the speakers and mike are quite large to fit in a closed face helmet. The night before we left I had one more attempt and was able to fit the gear inside the helmets comfortably. I am glad I did. The XBi's worked beautifully for 5000km of the South Island and made it a most enjoyable trip by being able to talk easily. We use these strictly as intercoms and the battery charge in that mode lasts 8-9 hrs. One entire day was spent in heavy rain and other that developing a slight feedback echo the units held up fine. The chargers are dual voltage so no converter is needed, just an adapter plug for international travel. We have used them for another 4-5000km since returning to Canada with no problems. As value for your dollar goes I think these are fine. As this was a bit of an experiment initially I did not want to spend a huge amount of money if it didn't work out but these have been a pleasant surprise. The noise level is acceptable at 120kph+ with a full face. Note though that these units do not have the range to operate as bike to bike intercoms, rider passenger only. But you do have to be careful when going in to pay for your fuel and chatting up the cute cashier, at that point the range opens up and your wife hears the whole thing! The verdict is good performance for good value when used strictly as intercom. While the other features are there I did not explore there use nor will I.

Mr. Mike.

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You know you are vintage when someone says "Back in the day" and you can dispute their facts.

Cave' Adsum.

Poundstretcher

I prefer riding without the distractions, just like to focus on the ride.