[skviknaraj]

Originally Posted by NTab

Which Cardo?

I will be buying my first intercom, so there is no reference point for me. Going through various reviews and videos, I am strongly convinced that Cardo is the way to go. The confusion lies in the model.
.

Hello NTab,

Long time Cardo user here. Been using the Cardo Freecom 4 model for about 3-4 years. I got it from the USA through a friend working there.

I believe the sound profiles will not matter much. Unless you have a perfectly sealed helmet that has zero wind noise. The JBL speakers must be bigger than the standard ones, so can expect better sound.

But is it worth the extra 5k, I would say not ,as the my current setup is more than adequate to attend calls or for navigating while on the bike.

If you plan on connecting to more riders/pillion, then Freecom 2X is the better option.

[NTab]

Originally Posted by skviknaraj

I believe the sound profiles will not matter much. Unless you have a perfectly sealed helmet that has zero wind noise. The JBL speakers must be bigger than the standard ones, so can expect better sound.

But is it worth the extra 5k, I would say not ,as the my current setup is more than adequate to attend calls or for navigating while on the bike.

If you plan on connecting to more riders/pillion, then Freecom 2X is the better option.

Thank you for the suggestion. I am glad I made the right choice.

As time was running short(I needed them before 30/11), I finally ordered Spirit HD today from LABS. I would like to thanks Dhaval from LABS, and folks from BigBadBikes who guided me through all this and gave honest opinion. Spirit HD was unavailable few days back, but Dhaval told me that few pieces will arrive on monday; assured me that he will keep one aside for me. He did, informed me that the product is back in stock, and I finally ordered it.

Let’s hope everything reaches on time

[ashishk29]

Got a pair of Bluarmor C30 headsets for myself and my usual riding buddy.

Pretty solid packaging overall:


The bluetooth unit looks more bulky than it actually is. Even though it's physically quite big, it's fairly light-weight:


Again, very impressed with the packaging. I like how there's a QR code to link to installation video right underneath the bluetooth receiver unit. They also provided the requisite allen key to install the clamp bracket.


Installed:


USB type C charging port under a rubber seal, a JBL branded connector cable with a clamp to hold it in place.


I've only had it a couple of days now, and the experience has been pretty good.
Sound quality: 7/10.
Intercom: I am yet to test it in depth, but preliminary tests 9/10.

The most unique feature that this one supports is music+intercom interweaving. You can keep the intercom mode on, and play music. It will automatically lower the audio level when someone on the intercom mesh is speaking, and resume the volume levels back to normal after they're done speaking. It works very seamlessly, and through the app you can customise how low you want the volume to drop when intercom audio is incoming.

I had some trouble connecting over intercom the second time I tried, and I ended up factory resetting the device. After which, it connected right away.

Some USPs over the competition:
- Mesh intercom up to 20 units.
- Music + Intercom mode.
- Claimed 16hr battery life.

[ashishk29]

Review on the Bluarmor C30 after a ~1100km ride:

1. Sound quality:

This has been a strong point for the C30. The audio quality is pretty good, with even decent amounts of bass being generated. The sound can get a bit treble-heavy at speeds, since the bass gets dissipated by wind-noise. But it remains very clearly audible throughout.

My riding buddy didn't have as good an experience given that he was riding a naked bike with no wind protection up front, and was using 3M earplugs. So I can hardly blame the headset system for not having measured up.

Rating: Solid 8/10.
================================================== =======
2. Intercom

Intercom audio quality was excellent, and the mic system did a great job of ensuring no wind or breathing noises get captured. I could clearly hear my buddy even when both of us were doing pretty high speeds.

Intercom range realistically is about 500m-600m for best quality. Beyond that it gets a bit choppy. We rarely have completely flat stretches of 1km roads, so I'm not sure where I'd get to test the claimed 1.1km LoS range.

In ghat areas, you can have a gap of maximum 2 turns between the two peers until the signal just dies. But short of that, it works very well even in ghat sections. Excellent experience there.

The intercom overlay works very good in general. Honestly the fact that the headset can do an overlay itself puts it above most other competitors. The overlay works perfectly. Handsfree, you can just speak up any time, and the headset automatically lowers music volume and lets intercom audio through. You can adjust the music level through their app.

However, at speeds my buddy reported some false triggers of the overlay even when I wasn't actively speaking. I communicated this feedback to Bluarmor, and they promised they will look into it, potentially giving an option to tune the senstivity.

I liked how prompt they were. I just pinged the Bluarmor business account on whatsapp, and they proceeded to create a group chat with who I presume to be a developer, and the developer then proceed to talk to me.

Rating: 9/10.
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3. Battery life

Easily the strongest point of the headset. I did an 1100km trip, and charged it only once throughout.

I did the ~480km, 10hr return journey on just about 50% of the battery, and reached home with 50% still remaining. This was with music and intercom on throughout. I would say that they over-delivered in that department. The claimed battery is 16hrs. But if it can do 10hrs in just 50%, I'm certain its actual battery life would be even stronger.

Rating: 10/10. Easy.
================================================== =======
4. Build quality

This is probably the only part I was dissatisfied with. The buttons look pretty worn even with just one long ride on them. I communicated this to Bluarmor, and they said they'll replace my buttons within warranty if t wears down even further. I recommended them to use better quality material for the buttons in the future. The rest of the body is well built.

Rating: 6/10.

================================================== =======
Overall rating: 8/10. Totally worth the money.

[boniver]

Originally Posted by ashishk29

Review on the Bluarmor C30 after a ~1100km ride

How is the intercom holding up now after about 6 months? I'm planning to get one soon for myself and I'm confused between a Parani A10 and this. My only concern with the C30 is, my riding buddies all use the Parani, and I want to know how seamlessly does the C30 connect with them and how good is the quality of the connection? Have you had a chance to test this out?

Because if it doesn't work flawlessly with Paranis, I might as well get the A10 even with half the battery life because communicating with the group is the main reason I'm purchasing an intercom. I currently have an ASG Bluetooth system that works perfectly for phone calls and music.

Thanks in advance.

[ashishk29]

Originally Posted by boniver

How is the intercom holding up now after about 6 months? I'm planning to get one soon for myself and I'm confused between a Parani A10 and this. My only concern with the C30 is, my riding buddies all use the Parani, and I want to know how seamlessly does the C30 connect with them and how good is the quality of the connection? Have you had a chance to test this out?

Because if it doesn't work flawlessly with Paranis, I might as well get the A10 even with half the battery life because communicating with the group is the main reason I'm purchasing an intercom. I currently have an ASG Bluetooth system that works perfectly for phone calls and music.

Thanks in advance.

AFAIK Parani can only pair with Parani units. So for your use case, I'd say go ahead with Parani.

[Biker Ram]

Purchased a Bluarmor C30 recently. It's an overkill for my use case, which is:

• I don't listen to music while riding. I just need the call quality to be good.
• I wear EarPeace earplugs to cut down windnoise. So any kind of in ear bluetooth buds are not an option.
• Primary use case is to receive calls. And to make outgoing calls if needed.
• I don't ride with pillion so bluetooh intercom is not of much use.
• Mesh is good to have but I don't really need this either.

After spending some time browsing the net and talking to a few riders who use some cheaper versions of intercoms I came to the conclusion that I should be spending at least about 6k for a decent unit. If I'm spending 6k for something very basic, I might as well spend 11k for the C30 that has got so rave reviews all over. That's how I decided to buy the C30. Used it on a couple of test rides within city and one outstation ride. Some observations:

• Call quality is very good. Made a phone call to another rider who was a few kms ahead of me, both of us riding at around 100kmph. Clarity was impressive.
• Auto answer feature for incoming calls is very useful. When a call comes in you hear a short beep to indicate a call is coming and then it picks up the call automatically. There are a couple of options available, either press the button to pick the call, or auto pick the calls only if the caller is in your contact, or all calls etc.
• Connecting to mesh is an easy process. On highways the range is usually between 500 to 600 meters. Mesh intercom works well when the distance between riders is less. As the distance increases the voice becomes choppy and finally gets disconnected. When the riders are back within the range it automatically connects to mesh.
• Depending on the type of gloves you wear, operating the buttons will be either manageable or very difficult. I wear ViaTerra holeshot gloves and it's difficult to feel the buttons. I think it can be managed with lots of practice.
• Had some difficulty with my phone choosing C30 as the default device while auto answering the call. Suspected my Honor watch causing the problems so I unpaired it. Looks OK now but needs more testing.
• Can store 5 numbers in speed dial. To call any of these you will need to press the buttons. There is voice assistance but getting it to work when the phone is locked and placed in the pocket, seems a difficult task. Plus, it can cause lot of issues if the assistant misunderstands your command. Had some unexpected result in one instance and I disabled voice assistant on my phone immediately.
• Battery backup seems more than sufficient for my use case. On a 5 hour ride with minimum phone calls and mesh connectivity it went down from 100% to just 80%.

Need to use it on more rides where a few more riders have the C30 to get better understanding of its capabilities and limitations. Just made my rides a bit more interesting

[The_Medic]

Originally Posted by Biker Ram

After spending some time browsing the net and talking to a few riders who use some cheaper versions of intercoms I came to the conclusion that I should be spending at least about 6k for a decent unit. If I'm spending 6k for something very basic, I might as well spend 11k for the C30 that has got so rave reviews all over. That's how I decided to buy the C30. Used it on a couple of test rides within city and one outstation ride.

In my opinion, it's a good product for that price point with an Achilles heel that's just a deal breaker for me. I would have been okay if it uses micro usb for charging but it uses micro usb for connecting the mic+ speaker wires to the headset unit. Amongst all the electronic devices I have owned between 2010 and 2018 (including phones and action cameras), the only thing that failed in then was the micro usb slot. Except for the Sena smh 10 where the only thing that failed (saree 3 years of almost daily use) was the wire jutting out of the helmet almost directly downwards. And this bluarmor device combines the critical failure points of micro usb with the wire jutting out directly downwards. It's guaranteed to be the critical failure point of this device.

[DivyanshuDiv]

Apologies folks, but need some expert suggestions.
I need a Bluetooth device for my helmet that fits on the following parameters.

1. Must be good for listening music.
2. Should have a good backup
3. Will be used for communicating with other riders (future)
4. Need to be used with my action camera for audio.
5. And shouldn't be expensive.

I did some research but I'm now highly confused

[DivyanshuDiv]

So, finally, I bought a Bluarmor C30 system and it serves the purpose.
It sounds great with a pair of JBL speakers, backup is also good, mesh needs to be tested, and it wasn't that expensive.

Will post my experience after few days.

[WhiskeyTangoFox]

A sales rep from Royal Enfield E-City posted this on his WA status.



No news on pricing yet, but by the looks of it, it's a rebadged Bluarmor c30. I'm not sure if they're doing two variants like they did with TVS' version of the C30. However, I don't see why someone would pick the rebadged versions, as the price is pretty much the same as the original, apart from the occasional discounts that the dealer/seller may provide, as is the case with the TVS intercoms.

[bharathdonti]

Blurarmor C30 Bluetooth Intercom

So, I got myself the Blurarmor C30 Bluetooth gadget. Most of my riding buddies use Sena, but I went for Blurarmor. Why? Because we don't ride together much, maybe just once a year. Plus, I take a lot of solo trips from my town to Hyderabad, and the C30 seemed like a good deal for what it offers at its price.

Recently, I took a trip covering more than 300 kilometres with the Blurarmor C30.



Audio Quality Assessment:

While I cannot directly compare it to Sena or Cardo, given my lack of experience with these brands, I found the C30's music quality to be noteworthy. It may not cater to bass enthusiasts, but the sound is impressively loud and crisp. You can even listen to podcasts without a problem.

Phone Call Performance:

I could easily chat on the phone at 110 km/h, and the person on the other end had no idea I was riding. It's that clear!

Impressive Battery Life:

With my total ride which lasted for 4 hours and 30 minutes, the C30's battery still had 80% left. Throughout the journey, I listened to music about 90% of the time, with only around 30 minutes spent on calls.

Giving Mesh Connectivity a Miss:

I haven't had the chance to test out the mesh connectivity feature yet. It's uncertain when I'll get around to trying it out.

Bluetooth Connection Challenges:

Despite the positive experiences, I encountered issues with Bluetooth connectivity to the app. The Bluetooth connection dropped sometimes. The customer support suggests to clear the app cache and storage, a solution I am yet to test.

Adjusting to Physical Controls:

I'm still getting used to the buttons on the C30. Hopefully, I'll get the hang of it with more use.

[shabih]

Any users for the Cardo Spirit HD here? I use Sena 20s Evo and was looking for 2nd helmet kit. I stumbled upon the Cardo Spirit HD and was wondering if it is worth investing a tad bit more to get a backup device rather than a second kit. Also getting it will mean having the best of both sides. I primarily use helmet comms for calls, music and navigation. Since I already have a multi-rider setup with the Sena, I dont mind another slightly limited device as a backup. My priority though is good-quality speakers to enjoy music and good quality microphone for distortion-free calls (So my boss thinks I am working while I am doing what I love the most )

[ExOblivione]

Originally Posted by shabih

Any users for the Cardo Spirit HD here?... My priority though is good-quality speakers to enjoy music and good quality microphone for distortion-free calls (So my boss thinks I am working while I am doing what I love the most )

I have been using a Spirit HD for nearly 2 years now (since May 2022), so any questions you have, ask away. My usage too is mainly music/podcasts while touring, and taking calls.

Personally I am really happy with it. So happy that I have had two other friends get it.

The music quality is good, more than enough for the noisy environment bike riding is. One of the aforementioned friends, before buying the Spirit HD, tried others (Parani etc.), and disliked their audio quality immensely, but liked the Cardo's sound. He is also good classical singer, so his opinion might hold more weight.

Call quality is excellent too. Even during spirited riding (pun intended), the other party can't even tell you are on a bike. Anyone I inform of this while talking to them is taken aback.

It has a few features that I absolutely need.

Waterproofing - Cardo waterproofing is highly regarded, and I have ridden in heavy downpour with it without worries.

Adaptive volume - as your speed and wind noise increases, the unit increases its volume to compensate, coming down as the speeds decrease. I don't have to keep fiddling with the volume, either having my ears blasted or not being able to hear.

For group rides, we have taken to joining a Discord call. Network connectivity has become so good that it's rare to find places where you don't have it. Maybe in really remote areas in the upper reaches of the Himalayas that might be an issue, but haven't come across that yet (haven't gone to Leh yet with the Cardo).

[shabih]

Originally Posted by ExOblivione

Personally I am really happy with it. So happy that I have had two other friends get it.

I think that makes a strong case for itself and seems from your personal experience and the reviews I read online that it can be an alternate rather than a backup to my Sena. Good, thank you for your help, I will share my feedback shortly once I have picked it up. Another question, did you pick it up from India or got it from outside? I see it on FCMoto for 9k but additional duties and delivery charges will bring it to roundabout the same price as what it is available locally for which is 14k.