Helmets

D

Delta

Member
For any of you who ride with partners, either ebike riders or regular bike riders, I just purchased a Sena R1 helmet. I have recently started riding with a friend and realized how difficult it was to communicate unless you were next to each other, so I started looking for devices that could be used for that purpose. The walkie-talkie headset devices looked useless. And then I found the Sena R1, and they work great. Four riders can be tied together, the sound is amazing, and once you learn how to operate the helmet you will, I believe, be very happy you bought it. The cost right now (Dec. 4, 2019) is $99.00 on Amazon, regular $129.00. You of course will either have to buy two and loan one to your riding buddy or convince him or her to buy their own. Reviews say the sound of music (yes it has FM radio) is tinny, I say it sure is not home or car sound quality, but it is not bad or unlistenable. It can also pair with your cell phone and you can make voice actuated calls and accept incoming calls. When using the intercom the sound and lack of outside noise is excellent. The helmet is also very comfortable. I and my friend have only used them twice now and we think they are great.
 
Delta said:
For any of you who ride with partners, either ebike riders or regular bike riders, I just purchased a Sena R1 helmet. I have recently started riding with a friend and realized how difficult it was to communicate unless you were next to each other, so I started looking for devices that could be used for that purpose. The walkie-talkie headset devices looked useless. And then I found the Sena R1, and they work great. Four riders can be tied together, the sound is amazing, and once you learn how to operate the helmet you will, I believe, be very happy you bought it. The cost right now (Dec. 4, 2019) is $99.00 on Amazon, regular $129.00. You of course will either have to buy two and loan one to your riding buddy or convince him or her to buy their own. Reviews say the sound of music (yes it has FM radio) is tinny, I say it sure is not home or car sound quality, but it is not bad or unlistenable. It can also pair with your cell phone and you can make voice actuated calls and accept incoming calls. When using the intercom the sound and lack of outside noise is excellent. The helmet is also very comfortable. I and my friend have only used them twice now and we think they are great.
Click to expand...
Can you still hear the traffic around you?
 
Yes. The speakers are incorporated into the helmet and are above your ears. Your ears are completely uncovered by the helmet.
 
I agree the Sena helmets are an excellent product. I have three and they're worth every penny. The only down side is they lack visors. I ordered these and attached them with Velcro:

Amazon.com : BELL Super Replacement Bicycle Helmet Visor (Black) : Sports & Outdoors

Amazon.com : BELL Super Replacement Bicycle Helmet Visor (Black) : Sports & Outdoors
www.amazon.com

42376
 
I do a lot of early morning and late evening riding when the sun angle is low. For me, the Sena visors aren't large enough to provide the necessary shading. For midday riding, the Sena's work fine.
 
My Giro Venti helmet is a medium and my large size Sena fits fine. Likewise, my wife's Giro is a small and the Sena medium fits her well. I would definitely order a size larger than you normally use. The Sena also has quite a bit of adjustment to fine tune the fit.
 
My other helmet is a large so I ordered large for the Sena helmet. It fits well and is very comfortable and has a wide adjustment range. You would probably do fine with a large.
 
BTW, SENA is an excellent product. The design is good, voice clarity is good, the batteries last, they're a solid product, whichever model you choose.
We had the original SMH-5's, short range but fine for two-up or riding nearby. Their later and longer range units helped with group rides, and much more $$.

Consider that you could easily fit a very basic model like the one we had to a regular bike helmet. I sold the used set for $75. They were $180 new.
As mentioned, I have no interest in a com with the wife on the bicycles. 😇
 
Borwneye, did you ever use your SENA to listen to music? If so, was the sound quality decent? Also, could you hear the music at higher speeds?
 
Deacon Blues said:
Borwneye, did you ever use your SENA to listen to music? If so, was the sound quality decent? Also, could you hear the music at higher speeds?
Click to expand...

I never liked an external speaker for music - they're just too small and too far from your eardrum. Perhaps their later and better models would work better, but I went back to in-ear earbuds. Way better sound quality, good bass.
IMO they're fine for comm, or phone, but not for music. I know some users do get by with them for music.

Today I hang a BT speaker off my handlebar, stream SiriusXM to it from my smartphone. A bike is so quiet the sound is great. Come to think of it, the Sena speakers might work better on a bicycle. On a motorbike the Sena was completely drowned out over 70mph.

 
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