Radio or Bluetooth communication for groups

[GothamMike]

I 'd like to use US family radios to communicate with a group. They are inexpensive and have headphone attachments and In ear capabilities to wear under a helmet. 

I know some people have used Helmet Bluetooth with an intercom feature. 

When you are riding around town with friends, it is really hard to ensure everyone is rolling in the same direction. 

Midland Radios have Voice Activated (VOX) and Push to talk (PTT) uses (it is either/or) I don't think VOX would work well in a windy environment, or with open faced helmets.

What are you all using? What have you done to your helmet to get it to work?

I'd like to suggest using Channel 4-0 (Channel 4 subschannel 0) for EUC riders 

I saw a group ride in Asia and Radios were used to keep the group together, very effective.

Let me know what you think.

MODS - This subject could warrant its own topic. 

[sbb]

2 hours ago, GothamMike said:

Midland Radios have Voice Activated (VOX) and Push to talk (PTT) uses (it is either/or) I don't think VOX would work well in a windy environment, or with open faced helmets.

Wind can be mitigated the same way the video makers do it, so that's something to consider.

The bigger problem with an FM transmitter using VOX is the people who can't shut up and DOS legit traffic on the channel.

[GothamMike]

1 hour ago, sbb said:

Wind can be mitigated the same way the video makers do it, so that's something to consider.

The bigger problem with an FM transmitter using VOX is the people who can't shut up and DOS legit traffic on the channel.

All the "Dude!" "Whoa!" and #%$%! would be heard by all. PTT is the way to go. 

[Planemo]

We've used the UK PMR (public band) radios before, nice little units, cheap too from China. Paired with in-helmet mic's (using sponge covers for wind noise reduction) and MC earpieces (velcroed to helmet). Worked really well but in the end we just gave up as the group got smaller and so we resorted to nearby shouting lol. Was just another thing to keep charged and another wire to think about (into helmet). Did look at the bluetooth route too but it was considerably more expensive for a decent setup.

Deffo use PTT only though, VOX can be a pain as has been mentioned.

[sbb]

On 6/20/2023 at 4:30 PM, GothamMike said:

All the "Dude!" "Whoa!" and #%$%! would be heard by all.

Absolutely. And more, the nature of FM means a typical nearby receiver will only track exactly one transmitter at a time, typically the hottest signal.  All that herping and derping preempts anyone nearby from hearing legit traffic from the other end of the group, since those signals will be weaker.

More fancy transceivers (UClear / Sena / mesh / etc) won't have that issue, which is why they have such appeal; multiple people can talk and all the streams will be mixed by the firmware. Those are more truly a network than just some standalone transmitters.

Still, we used FRS when snowmobiling for years, and it worked great as PTT. At least until the mic foam would get soggy and freeze. Then it just became gross, lol.