i'm all set now... except that the woman likes me to stay within visual. and i am thinking that if i got some throt mic's or some kinda hands free she would feel alot better. expecially when i take off for 10 min. and get stuck but nothings wrong... she gets really worried. anyone thats married knows what i mean..... any sugestions would be helpfull. and thats also why i am posting here on the po thread..most helpfull people and i'ze die hard polaris. thanks
comunications...?
- Thread starter snow
- Start date
check out collet helmet communicators..they work real good although their range is limited...
E
Ex-Member
ACCOUNT CLOSED
Being an official radio geek, I pack more communications than most people really need on the mountain. Radio lives on the outside of my pack (it's waterproof) with key lock on, spkr/mic clips onto teh shoulder of my pack. Not the greatest audio through the speaker-mic, gets a little tough to copy over the noise of a sled but it's readable. Charge the battery up the night before whether it needs it or not, that'll last for a few days even at 5 watts. Pack an extra antenna.... Cellphone lives in my pack, but stays off... charged main battery plus an extra charged battery for that as well. I usually pack one or two 2-watt commercial VHF radios with me as well, they get a lot better range than FRS does. Those are mostly for the extreme situations where a group would have to split up.
If I were buying a radio.... I'd go with an FRS, they're the most popular nowadays....
The things I'd look for are:
-Good battery life with rechargeables or readily-available replacements (AA/AAAs and pack extras)
-External speaker/mic jack
-Keyguard/keypad lock so you don't change frequencies without knowing it
-Go with a reputable company.... Don't skimp out when it comes to comm... could save your life in an emergency. Motorola would be my brand of choice.
A step up from the cheap stuff but not as geeky as I am... Get a GMRS license through the FCC.... $70-ish, no exam.... get a good radio that'll support repeater shifts (I can't think of any consumer-grade radio that does this though) and program the local repeaters into it. That gets huge distance over a wide area... better chance of contacting someone in the event of an emergency.
If I were buying a radio.... I'd go with an FRS, they're the most popular nowadays....
The things I'd look for are:
-Good battery life with rechargeables or readily-available replacements (AA/AAAs and pack extras)
-External speaker/mic jack
-Keyguard/keypad lock so you don't change frequencies without knowing it
-Go with a reputable company.... Don't skimp out when it comes to comm... could save your life in an emergency. Motorola would be my brand of choice.
A step up from the cheap stuff but not as geeky as I am... Get a GMRS license through the FCC.... $70-ish, no exam.... get a good radio that'll support repeater shifts (I can't think of any consumer-grade radio that does this though) and program the local repeaters into it. That gets huge distance over a wide area... better chance of contacting someone in the event of an emergency.
so heres a question for ya... do you think that any of those chatter boxes or throat mics work worth a hoot. and yah i agree with ya when it comes to com. there been alot of crashes and wrecks that i have rolled upon..thanks for the indepth reply it;s much appericated
E
Ex-Member
ACCOUNT CLOSED
The "Snow-fone" or whatever.... heard mixed opinions on those. Real short range and overpriced but good audio quality is mostly what I've heard. Be aware they're on 900MHz ISM, so they're NOT going to work with the FRS or VHF radios. They might work with an old cordless phone, however.
I haven't used the throat mics.... VS make one that I've heard is decent, but for $300 it better be. It's built for fire rescue/military applications. Fire Fox Technologies makes a throat mic that interfaces to most radios... they're sub-$100, but again... having never been on either end of one I can't say one way or another about quality or readability. Those are available at most big outdoors stores, cabelas/bass pro/etc.
I haven't used the throat mics.... VS make one that I've heard is decent, but for $300 it better be. It's built for fire rescue/military applications. Fire Fox Technologies makes a throat mic that interfaces to most radios... they're sub-$100, but again... having never been on either end of one I can't say one way or another about quality or readability. Those are available at most big outdoors stores, cabelas/bass pro/etc.
There is some "sno-fone" 's on ebay right now. Shade Tree is closing them out for $99 plus shipping. For that price I would give them a try. Others in my group use them and it definetly helps keep the group together. There range is supposedly 2 miles but I think that is stretching it especially in the mountains.
I have a similar set up to Mule but I use the Garmin 530 radio / GPS. Battery life has exceeded 7 days for me, has reasonable range and has an altimeter, GPS and tracking. I bought a external mike like Mule has and I put the mike on the back pack strap. The radio goes inside my pocket on the chest of my Klim Valdez. The Garmin has a vibrate feature that when someone is calling you it vibrates. That way you don't have to worry about hearing when someone is calling you, you feel the vibration. This setup works well for me.
J
John
ACCOUNT CLOSED
We use the Colletts and they are great for line of sight communicating but it only takes a corner and a half average on the (hilly terrain) trail to lose the signal. We carry FRS radios for back-up. Sounds to me like you'll be close enough that the Sno Phone (Collett makes those, I think) and the 5-7 mile FRS would work fine if you don't want to spend too much of the gas money.
I would look at the Garmin 530 setup. I sometimes tend to forget to call my wife and with the peer-to-peer locating feature, she could find me anyway. I would think the throat mics would always be on (for me anyway) I tend to swear a lot to myself when I'm stuck and I think most of the people I ride with would like to keep it to myself.
S
Spector
New member
Same basic setup with the Rino 530Hcx. I got the speaker mic from these guys. www.ixcessory.com
More votes to get a Garmin they are great!
Any of the rino's are 120 or 130 or 530 (which is the best all around with great battery life but much more money) a big plus to communicating in mtn riding conditions. Once you get the hang of them they are invaluable for finding stuck or lost buddies..communicating instructions without risking having people go places they shouldn't go...and also simply finding your way with GPS. We run in huge groups of riders going cross country in steep treed areas and it gets crazy mixed up. Once everyone gets efficient with the garmin rinos there is much less confusion and time spent herding cats.
We make a plan..never leave a riding or play area without a head count...stuck or lost don't get excited unless you haven't heard from the group for 1/2hr. Then check your radio every 1/2hr on the hour until you or they have achieved communication. 530's tell you right where and WHO they are...Simple....no more stress...just key in and you show up on your buddies screens.
When cross country trekking we also send in a probe to the deep dark nasty all of the time...many times the probe requires rescue..he simply radios up/down for how many helpers are required and wether or not the way is passable. Saves having a bottom of the un-get-out-able cluster #8^$ if not everyone in the group drops in or tries climbing up through something horrible that may not be accessable.
We have even had friends ride into areas that we are playing in and find us within a few miles by simply keying the mic. Super cool!
Any of the rino's are 120 or 130 or 530 (which is the best all around with great battery life but much more money) a big plus to communicating in mtn riding conditions. Once you get the hang of them they are invaluable for finding stuck or lost buddies..communicating instructions without risking having people go places they shouldn't go...and also simply finding your way with GPS. We run in huge groups of riders going cross country in steep treed areas and it gets crazy mixed up. Once everyone gets efficient with the garmin rinos there is much less confusion and time spent herding cats.
We make a plan..never leave a riding or play area without a head count...stuck or lost don't get excited unless you haven't heard from the group for 1/2hr. Then check your radio every 1/2hr on the hour until you or they have achieved communication. 530's tell you right where and WHO they are...Simple....no more stress...just key in and you show up on your buddies screens.
When cross country trekking we also send in a probe to the deep dark nasty all of the time...many times the probe requires rescue..he simply radios up/down for how many helpers are required and wether or not the way is passable. Saves having a bottom of the un-get-out-able cluster #8^$ if not everyone in the group drops in or tries climbing up through something horrible that may not be accessable.
We have even had friends ride into areas that we are playing in and find us within a few miles by simply keying the mic. Super cool!
thanks for all the help guys i think that i will look into the garmins with a external ptt and do a little more looking at the chatter box... thanks
I have personally used the fire fox throat mike during a Cross country race Cains Quest and they work well there is small delay whenyou start to speak but you just say the persons name and the delay is used up and now you can relay the message
we had some kinda cobra fmrs radios good for 20 miles I think not sure about that any more .
I would recomend the throat mike if you want to stay in voice contact and mabey the G 530 if you got to see where the other person is ,doesnt the 530 also have radio capabilities and the map portion
Just get some daytime flares lol
we had some kinda cobra fmrs radios good for 20 miles I think not sure about that any more .
I would recomend the throat mike if you want to stay in voice contact and mabey the G 530 if you got to see where the other person is ,doesnt the 530 also have radio capabilities and the map portion
Just get some daytime flares lol
