I don't listen to a lot of music on the bike, but I can tell you you can have a phone conversation easily so I am guessing music would be easier to hear than 1 person talking.
Hey man, the G4 has noise reduction technology on the microphone and wind volume control which will work fine in a faullface helmet. Users with lid helmets and half face helmets are usually the ones with win in the microphone problems. Whether you go with the G4 (probably the best option) or not, always place the microphone close to your lips and the more inside the helmet the better. You have to give the microphone the best chance to work to its potential. Just wrote a review on the blog of the G4 if you´re interested to know more.
I thought his question was about being able to hear music not talk on the mic. My point was that if you can hear someone well enough to have a conversation I dont think music will be a problem.
Yes, I was only asking about music. The point about the phone and talking might be moot. It is conceivable that noise reduction only works when the mic is on for phone/intercome useage...... None of the reviews have really come out and said, every device used you can hear under highway conditions....
I ride with earplugs in, and typically run the volume on the lowest or 2nd to lowest setting. When I start moving, the volume increases (forget which setting I selected. You can hear music clearly.
The earbud mod, and a pair of ER6i headphones... fixed all of my volume not loud enough problems..... volume can get to loud now!
+1 I have my iPhone 4 paired to my G4 and last Saturday I was listening to the XM app while on a street ride. I wear foam ear plugs also and had the volume turned down a few clicks. When a call came in, the XM faded out and back in after the call was over. I haven't had a desire to listen to music while riding either, especially if I'm going along at a good clip, but after "testing" it, it sure was nice on the way home while taking it easy. When I first got it, I paired the G4 to my Zumo 550 and the 550 to the iPhone. Dialing through the phone book uploaded on the 550 was hit and miss, mostly miss. The 550 also didn't show incoming calls that I missed either. I took the 550 out of the loop and now voice dialing via the G4 worked flawlessly. I had just updated both the iPhone 4 and the Zumo 550 so I don't know which upgrade caused the problem. Before I got the G4 and upgraded the iPhone and 550, they worked well together. I couldn't answer a call but I could see it come up on the gps screen. I updated the G4 right after I bought it too. I haven't tested the intercom function yet. I split a G4 Powerset pair with a buddy for a trip to Colorado this summer. He just seized his motor last Friday so it might be a while before I can.
Has anyone used the "Click to Connect" feature available in the new software? I haven't seen anything on how to actually do it.
I haven't used it, but they did release a new version of the user manual that gives instructions: http://www.cardosystems.com/user_files/Manuals/scala_G4/scalarider_G4_manual_english.pdf Essentially, just double-tap the A button to request a click-to-link call. Tap A or speak up to answer, after you hear a call tone.
Does anybody here know if it is possible to link up the Schubert SRCS and the X-Lite N-COM X-Series (it would be integrated on an X-lite 551)? ... If not does anyone know how to connect two different brands of helmet coms?
What kind of range were you getting? I'm interested in the real-world range of the Q4's under ADV conditions. A way to test it that I've used with other radios is to have one person stay still, but with their bike running to keep the electrical interferences and etc. normal, then have the other person ride away from you down the trails/road through the tree cover and etc. Have them watch their odometer and call out to you every tenth of a mile. When the signal starts getting too weak or scratchy to be acceptable, there you go. That's your maximum range. As an example of the above, with Motorola EM1000R family radios (and Motocomm helmet wiring rigs) we got an honest 1.0 mile of range through winding Kentucky dirt roads with very dense tree cover and decent elevation changes. Wondering what the actual max range under decent cover is for a Q4 to see how they'd compare. Thanks!
As others have noted, installing the software in Win7 requires that you right-click the setup.exe program you download from Cardo and select the Run As Administrator option. However, I had the same problem you did getting the PC to recognize the G4 once the software was installed. Turns out you need to push ONLY the Mobile (center) button to turn on the unit, then it'll see it just fine. Pushing both the Mobile and Volume Up buttons together must be for an older version or something. Once I got pissed off enough to start trying other button combinations than what the instructions said I discovered that using the Mobile button only to turn it on let the PC find the Q4 just fine.
I just bought a G4 right before embarking on a long road trip so I am learning to set it up on the fly. So far I love this unit, easy pairing, good crisp intercom and music. I do have a volume issue with my Zumo 660 though. The sound and volume of the Zumo's media player is just as I would have expected it, but the volume for the navigation instructions and the phone (relayed through the Zumo) is significantly lower than the music (I'd say only 25% of what the media player puts out). I have checked all my settings (master volume and navigation / media are all at 100%) and have cranked the volume on my G4 all the way up (Zumo seems to hand over volume control to the G4) but no dice. Firmware on both Zumo and G4 are up to date. Anyone know what's up with this and/or can recommend a solution? Thanks in advance.
I can hear everything fine except the phone. I turn the volume all the way up but it is still too quiet. With my iPhone 4 and Parrot in the car I have to adjust the volume using the Parrot each time I answer a call. I turn the volume knob and see the Bluetooth volume on the phone's display go up. With the G4 nothing happens and it is way too quiet to hear whoever called me. My volume is fine for whomever is on the other end so it is just my ability to hear. Has anyone else experienced this and/or found a fix for it?
I have the Cardo G4 Powerset and just used it on a week's holiday trip on my 250cc motorscooter. So the sets the max speed conditions during which I used it just around 100kmp/h. I did develop a Love and Hate relationship with the Cardo System. Once it actually works, it does a great job . But you will often get VERY annoyed before it DOES...... And I think this system is WAY to expensive to be this user unfriendly. It is simply priced way to high. I simply can not understand WHAT EXACTLY is so difficult in designing a system that is a pleasure to work with when one is on the move? When I am driving, I should be paying attention to the road, and not fiddling around with one hand on the side of my helmet, looking like an idiot and driving around with just one hand on the steering wheel..... I do not want to be bothered by faulty designed equipment, but just want to enjoy the drive and expect this pricy device to do what it promises to do. And it does not. The main problem is the immense number of times you need to fiddle around at your helmet device. Any intercom should work immediately when one starts to speak. How difficult can it be? Several times this week only driving around 80 kmp/h I had to shout like an imbecile to start up ANY kind of communication, even to the point the passenger on the back could easily understand me WITHOUT any "Power Set"..... I came very close to a point I really began to feel the urge to stop the scooter, rip the crap of the helmet and throw it as far away as humanly possible.... Only to relax again and enjoy when it "suddenly" started to work and conversation was cristal-clear and a real joy.... My experience is, the closer the mike is to your mouth, the better it works. So if you have any DUCT tape, tape it right on and you will have little problems I expect . Of course, that is a total failure of technology as I see it. And especially for that kind of money. And yes, I have been trying to do almost anything one can think of to change things. I have the latest software, I drive full face integral helmets, not even a jet helm and it still is a pain in the ass to get the VOX function working. Like the OP has said when he started this thread: the VOX function is a non existing function when you look at a function as something that should be reliable and durable. I have not seen it happening with the G4 Cardo set yet. I think there should also be a remote control unit for handling the units functions besides the fiddling around on the helmet thingy. Something with a nice small display that disposes of the guessing of what you are exactly doing. Maybe something working on bluetooth as well so it can connect with the main helmet unit. I think it would be a tremendous plus if you could actually SEE what you are doing and I would be willing to pay some extra money for it. The built in radio function is also a real pain. You can preset the stations on the pc, but that does not bring anything if you are traveling outside the normal radius for instance on holiday. You would have no means of searching for any other stations whilst on the bike. Here too, the option of the remote control display could come in handy.
I found it easier to reach up and hit the A or B button than to rely on the VOX..I havent tried it since the firmware update though. You can search for radio stations using the volume up and down buttons.
I found it to be virtually impossible to remember all the possible handling options and button-magic... sometimes you need to click once, sometimes you need to hold the button x-seconds....so in the end, you end up just pushing buttons until you hear something happening. For me, the operation of the device just is not "automatic" or "intuïtive" enough. Remember, you are supposed to drive and have your attention on the road..... It delivers a lot of doubt and second guessing during operation. What should I do? Must I click A or B? Do I have B here or is this A? Why can't this all be dealt with automatically just based on a pre-set userlist of priorities: when 1 delivers sound, 2 to 5 shut down. When 2 delivers sound, it does not overthrow the sound of 1, but it does overtrhow the sound of 3 till 5 and so forth and so on. When 1 shuts down, 2 comes up (if delivering sound) and so on. The user could choose what gets 1 priority, 2 or further so. Ready you are. No button pushing? I also found the voice support system which you can set to help telling you what is going on not really any help at all. I almost never heard it say anything at all although it is set to "enabled". I have already trouble finding the A or B button (which one do I have?) during the ride wearing gloves and not being able to look at what you are doing. As said, it often was a matter of pushing "a" button and waiting what happened. Most of the time, the connection with the passenger popped up in the end, but there were several times I needed to reset the system by turning it off and on again. VOX most of the time did not work, and my setting was preset to HIGH for Vox responsiveness. The device also takes quite some time to switch between priorities. It takes way to long to switch to intercom when the system finally thinks someone just said something. And vice versa it takes way too much time to switch back to music again thereafter. Of course, it could be me as the good old stupid user, but I still think this device has a long way to go to reach the stadium of perfection. The sound quality is great as it is. The volume is great as well. No complaints there. The real weaknesses of this system (as I see it) are the really insufficient user friendlyness of the system and the failing vox functionality, even when set on "high" and operated within a full face closed integral helmet with lower speeds. And that says it all. I would definitely NOT buy this product again at this price with the experience I have now, and would likely switch to something else like the SENA SMH10 device which seems a lot simpler to handle?
I've been a bit frustrated at times with mine as well, it does take some patience to get it working at times. Far more than it should. I just emailed management about the possibility of a smartphone app. If everyone here did the same they might at least give it some consideration. <table><tbody><tr><tr> <td> Email Addresses Technical Support: support@cardosystems.com Business Development: bizdev@cardosystems.com Sales: sales@cardosystems.com Press: press@cardosystems.com Management: mgmt@cardosystems.com </td></tr></tr></tbody></table>