Schuberth C5 and SC2 Comms - what I wish I had known

[sidd]

Generally the reviews of the Schuberth C5 and its built-in Sena SC2 comms are excellent. I think the Helmet is fine. I have come from a Shoei GT-Air and this has similar features but with a useful flip top. About the same wind noise, but on long journeys I wear ear plugs so it doesn't make much difference. You still have to wear them. I haven't tested the ventilation much but I am expecting it to be far better.

With the Shoei, I had an Interphone F3MC with the custom speakers for the GT-Air, so they fit perfectly. The unit is about 10 years old and it has worked well.

My research was mostly talking to a couple of friends who had a C5 with SC2 and a Neotec II with similar built in, and trying on the helmet in a shop. The Schuberth is more advanced and has USB-C, while the Neotec has an imminent replacement coming out. Both freinds said their helmets and comms were excellent.

Having gone for the C5 + SC2 Comms this is what I wish I had known.

1. With earplugs and volume on maximum you can't hear intelligible satnav instructions above about 50 mph.
2. The built-in speakers are postioned mid-jaw instead of where humans have their ears. (this explains point 1)
3. The main SC2 unit and the controls are entirely separate and must be turned on and off separately, which can be quite fiddly.
4. The remote unit has a non-rechargeable battery which is supposed to last around 18m.

Since i listen to music and satnav from my phone through the Triumph system ond then onto the headset, unless I am using the mesh intercom (which I'm almost always not), it is probably going to be easiest to use the remote to put volume to max, and leave the remote off. But the remote is VERY fiddly. You have to turn it on to find out if it is on, and then turn it off by holding down 2 buttons for a few seconds. The Sena instruction manual is comically bad, and does not explain any of this properly. I'm still unclear on the pros and cons of turning the remote off vs leaving it on.

I haven't yet explored things like voice commands because this is simply unusable.

Overall, it is clear that speakers can probably never be positioned near to my ears and can therefore never be used with earplugs. So I think for all the sleek design, this is junk.

I don't know what I would have done differently, as I don't know whether the Neotec II or III is any better. But I am currently regretting splurging a lot on something which is so inferior to my c. 10-year old comms setup. I may try to explore using the Sena 10R Stereo Earbud Adapter and some noice cancelling or custom earbuds, but that is still fiddly compared with having the choice to wear earplugs or not.

[Guitarman]

I have bought the C5 last September and have covered about 8K miles since then with the comms on and still have the original remote battery installed. The controls can be a bit fiddly until you get to grips with them but once you have them sussed it's straight forward. As for communication etc I don't have any issues and wear bespoke ear plugs. I did have an issue with some water finding its way into the visor during heavy rain but some vaseline on the upper seal sorted that out. The comms is dependent on the latest software upgrade 

[Chippy4467]

We have had a pair of Neotec II 's with the SENA comms since 2018.  Works very well imho although very occasionally Bluetooth will drop out or play up (mostly happened near military installations in Wiltshire)
We bought the helmets and then bought the SENA units separately because I got a better priced deal.
What I wished I'd known/done BEFORE buying was to try comms with my moulded earplugs in - plenty of db's and speakers reasonably well located but space around speakers is a bit tight making it less comfortable with the speakers in and wearing earplugs (which I'm not about to give up).

Lesson is fairly obvious but if you use ear plugs then do try a new lid with them in.....................

[sidd]

Interesting and good to hear!

Originally Posted by Guitarman

As for communication etc I don't have any issues and wear bespoke ear plugs.

I also have custom attenuation ear plugs so I'd be fascinated to find out how your setup differs from mine. I did update the firmware immediately from 2.0 to the latest 2.0.3. I've just checked the settings and tried out some more. The default is that Smart Volume Control is disabled, and I have just tried it on all settings, but couldn't detect any difference. Maybe that is because volume is on full already.  Another gripe about the instructions is that when it has sensitivity settings of low, med and high, there is no indication whether any of the settings have higher volume than others, or they just trigger at different speeds.

I had the audio equaliser on bass boost because that sounded better when I was first trying it out (yeah, without earplugs). Turning that off sounds a bit clearer now.

Over 70 I can still hear that directions are being given so I know to look at the screen, and that is something. Maybe I would upgrade my rating from "junk" to "very quiet but I can still just use it".

Do you turn the remote on and off each ride or just leave it to go to sleep? I'd be perfectly happy to replace the battery once a year if that was the outcome of this.

[sidd]

Originally Posted by Chippy4467

What I wished I'd known/done BEFORE buying was to try comms with my moulded earplugs in - plenty of db's and speakers reasonably well located but space around speakers is a bit tight making it less comfortable with the speakers in and wearing earplugs (which I'm not about to give up).

Lesson is fairly obvious but if you use ear plugs then do try a new lid with them in.....................

Testing helmets is super hard. I tried my friend's C5 with SC2 but it was way too big. In the shop they had one my size but not my colour and the comms would have to be installed separately. No way would I have been able to drive it in different conditions to evaluate it.

My custom ear plugs do not protrude outside my ears, so I'm prety sure I wouldn't have that problem.

[Guitarman]

Originally Posted by sidd

Interesting and good to hear!

Do you turn the remote on and off each ride or just leave it to go to sleep? I'd be perfectly happy to replace the battery once a year if that was the outcome of this.

I leave the remote on when riding as I communicate with my co-riders when on tour (which is quite a lot) good for passing on information depending who is leading. I do not listen to any music as I find it a distraction....but that's me. As I said the controls are a bit fiddly at first but once you have the knack it's straight forward IMO 

[Chippy4467]

My custom ear plugs do not protrude outside my ears, so I'm prety sure I wouldn't have that problem.

  Neither do mine and I had replacement set made especially thin but I guess they "hold" the form of my ears and that makes a difference
New helmets are always a minefield imho

[tdragger]

I bought the E2 (basically the C5 with a different chin bar) and the SC2 comm.  Whew, paid a $hitload of money for it.  I like the fit and the comms have been ok so far but honestly haven't used them much.

The one and big complaint about the E2 is that damn lateral piece to the chin strap that makes the chin strap choke me.  I have a Neanderthal neck so this may not be a common problem.  I'm tempted to cut the straps but I'm sure that will void the warranty.  I don't believe that it will compromise safety that much but something is going to have to give.

[NiK]

Originally Posted by tdragger

The one and big complaint about the E2 is that damn lateral piece to the chin strap that makes the chin strap choke me.

I assume you're referring to the anti-rolloff system?
If so, then cutting it would definitely be a bad idea!
That said I had the same feeling as you when I started to use the helmet. I resorted to adjust the strap at the longest and it did the trick for me.

[tdragger]

Originally Posted by NiK

I assume you're referring to the anti-rolloff system?
If so, then cutting it would definitely be a bad idea!
That said I had the same feeling as you when I started to use the helmet. I resorted to adjust the strap at the longest and it did the trick for me.

I did the same thing.  The main chin strap is actually loose now with the lateral straps (anti-rolloff) being the limiting factor.

I get the function of the lateral straps but none of my other helmets have that feature and they have worked just fine, both D-ring and the slider type.  I know it's a trade off but I don't want to give up on a $900 helmet and just have it sit on the shelf.