Scala Rider Q2 motorcycle intercom test

[nightfox1883]

Great video guys!!! You helped me decide what device I'm getting me and my wife.

[rugged04270]

its really hard to watch you ride on this, i always get nervous when you pull out into traffic, since i cant see both ways...

[svengalie]

nice one

[Geek2pointoh]

At the end of the video the Chatterbox is mentioned and gets a "thumbs down." I'm just curious as to why?

[rtardbox]

if you don't test to failure your test is a failure... good video, but it's not really a test until you find the limits

which, on mine, is about 400 yards (1200 feet)... not 500 as adverted (1,500 feet)

the g4 i hear is much, much farther but no 1 mile (5,280 feet) but i hear it's about 4,000 feet which rocks... with the g4 antenna UP.

i'd sell my q2 and get the g4 if the damn thing was rubberized and water-proof(ish) like the q2 is! envoro-design FAIL on the g4 :(

[roninsoul]

just got a set , but in pmr radios, pretty cheap, and pretty usefull on other functions

[echo1er]

good review

[OogleManiac]

Do you like the boom mike compared to more flat wired mikes?

[minorpayne23]

HAHAH 'Tracy is retarded...they are 139$" poor tracy

[Vulcan750L]

How is the audio quality for the music? High fidelity?  And can it be played loud enough to almost hurt your ears, if you wanted it to?

[bristp01]

lol great video guys.

[tioelthon]

Very helpful! Great vid! Thanks

[sshaw37]

Great review chaps. Just what I need.

[tentoto]

Fantastic job thanks

[tentoto]

Thank you gentleman...Swell job  im sold..

[mrchoppaboy]

lol listen closely and you can hear the sneeze..or mabey just cause im wearin skullcandy idk lol but i loled at that sneeze

[cygnusffl]

Thanks for the review.

[billmaa]

@cygnusffl You are quite welcome

[dirt4dinner]

Terrific job on the review! I just ordered a multi set for my wife and I, and my buddy is grabbing a single unit. Thanks for make the decision easy!

[billmaa]

@dirt4dinner Sorry I didn't see this comment until now, I appreciate it..

[ThaBR33D]

I'm just getting into your channel.. Do you have any more of these dual vlogs? It seems like an awesome idea.

[billmaa]

@ThaBR33D It was kinda fun, this is only one I have.. I do have a idea to

duel vlog while on the phone with another vlogger..:)

[pizzaonaninja]

what bike are you riding here? not the usual cbr.

[billmaa]

@pizzaonaninja Its my ZX-12R :)

[Gyrene45]

I want something to use while riding in combination with my iPhone 3G and this looks to be a logical choice. One question, does voice dialing work with the iPhone 3G or only with 3GS?

[billmaa]

@Gyrene45 Unfortunately the voice command is a 3GS only function

[ding0925]

You guys make me really miss my bike....

[billmaa]

@ding0925 Sorry to hear that my good man.....I couldn't give mine up for the world..I appreciate the comment

Billy

[TheHappyThought]

Thanks so much for the review guys. We have been trying to figure out what system to get that doesn't involve 50ft of wires to talk to each other and this system seemed pretty awesome. I personally don't want to answer my phone when I am riding but thats also a cool feature for people that do.  Great Video!

[billmaa]

@TheHappyThought It's a pretty good set up Happy, I think on the highway, helmet noise can be a bit much..but other than that, they are golden..Thanks for the comment..

Billy

[sekhmet1098]

Good stuff. You already answered my question to someone else about if it works for three sets at the same time. Tracy kinda answered the question about if it will mute the sound to others hooked in if you're listening to music or get a call. Let me know how that works... I'm sure if I ever ride with you guys again, the last thing you want to hear is my mom calling to nag me about something or other.

[rebelyell91]

First True dual-vlog indeed. :D That was amazing stuff :)

I Realllly want to do this with Zmagic or my father :D

Greatt video once again billy.

[billmaa]

@rebelyell91 The whole reason Tracy made the trip up was to hang out and make this video..Haha, that's the sign of a good friend =) The dual vlog was for demo purposes only because I only had one of the ear phones hooked up to me..the other was on the camera..but I was excited that it worked pretty well for the video...Thanks Reb,

Billy

[zx6roy]

I think having clear communication makes riding safer. I remember a couple of years ago, I went to bike week in daytona and 2 guys in front of us got their signals crossed and one guy turned right and the other tried to go straight, and they both wrecked.

[greasemonkey88]

Heck ya! NAPA. I work at one in St. Louis area NAPA

[johnfash]

good review mate!

[skizzler982]

that is way awesome!!! Vlogging to the next level excited to see future videos with you using the scala.

[ridewithme2010]

iv used these and had those speakers near my ear cut them to bloody buggery

[justamar]

in front of the mic? or the lens? hahaha, cool stuff man, now you gotta get an iPhone Mount and run a charger as well hahah

[billmaa]

@justamar Lol, the lens is less than a quarter of a inch from the mike...when I first saw the speaker in the shot, I was kind bothered, but then I realized that it illustrated my test set up perfectly =)

[downshift83]

freekn sweet dood=)

[billmaa]

@downshift83 Thanks bro, they are pretty cool

[Bobmosisjones18]

Is it removable?

[billmaa]

@Bobmosisjones18 Yes, it takes about 3 minutes with an allen wrench

[billmaa]

@VVoodstockRider Yes, I actually called Conniption89 on the way to meet up..and she could hear me fine..

[StraightArrow1000]

excellent review billy

[billmaa]

@StraightArrow1000 Thank you

[bikerboomer]

how is it for battery life?  any idea?

[billmaa]

@bikerboomer 8 hours on a full charge..mine went five before I turned it off..so I'm sure it's good for 8

[frankyfong36]

@ billmaa....ah, you're right. It would be the "future" then.

[dav8388]

Those are cool. That is something my cousin and I need when we go riding.

[billmaa]

@dav8388 There ya go =)

[KTMsmurf]

Nice test Guys!

The Cardo Scala is really popular here in Sweden and people seem to always talk good about them :)

For "out of the city" motorbiking with friends they should be great! You can talk over those long distances and all :))

Nice one!!

Keep the great work up both of you :)

[billmaa]

@KTMsmurf Thanks KTM, I think they will be pretty helpful

[simysimy9]

If the scala runs over the cellphone then why would it be different how far away you are from each other?

[billmaa]

@simysimy9 It doesn' exactly run over the cell phone..it can connect over the cell phone and I could talk to him on the other side of the country..but just with normal use it uses an FM transmitter and receiver.. which has a range of about 1000 feet

[ktmjw]

lol cool video

[billmaa]

@ktmjw Thanks

[hughes111]

Your setup seems to work awesome! It's cool being able to hear tracy too

[hughes111]

We went cheap, i mean CHEAP and used wireless walki-talkies with headsets. Worked a treat!

[billmaa]

@hughes111 Lol, Nick..you have to make a video about that =)

[199Xray]

Thats badass!

[billmaa]

@199Xray We thought it was pretty sweet

[frankyfong36]

Cool demo man. Those things sound awesome. I which I had a battle buddy to ride with all the time, I would so get a set of those. I'll just have to wait until my son is older so we could Scala ride together. (Although I might dampen his style)

[frankyfong36]

@frankyfong36 (wish) not (which) ----damn it I'm a retard.

[billmaa]

@frankyfong36 By the time he is older, that comm system will be built into is fuel celled powered bike =)

[danmoto73]

the scala is really good, i have one on both my road lid and mx lid, the intercoms have been ideal for offroading with sven, i use the phone now and again when i'm on the vfr and people i've been talking to haven't even realised i'm on my bike

be careful of bending the boom on the mic as i've had to replace one because of damaging the cables within :(

sound on the mp3 is ok, you can also add a car fm adapter to the iphone which negates the need for the mp3 cable if you wish to

nice review :)

[billmaa]

@danmoto73 Does that mean, if I ever make it to the UK you can whisper sweet nothings in my ear?...looking at plane tickets now! =P Seriously, thanks for the heads up with the boom..

[svengalie]

The new scalas are MUCH better (yet come with a bigger pricetag)

they'll do well over a mile.

[billmaa]

@svengalie I've heard they are..I think they look more high tech too.. I can only imagine a few situations were that kinda distance would be necessary

[RC62]

Good demo Billy. After seeing your vid on what you got for Christmas I bought a set of these. My Nolan is setup for a proprietary intercom but the darn thing would cost about $500-$600 bucks to setup on two helmets. The Scala was a much less expensive solution. I have found it works great over a fairly long distance. Only negative is the speakers are a bit too tinny sounding for listening to music. Still a great biker to biker solution.

[billmaa]

@RC62 Haha, I agree they don't have much bass you wanna listen to your music, but I don't care if Tracy sounds tinny...because he does anyway =)

[roninsoul]

i love this kind of real tests instead of the PR crap they always bombard us with

[billmaa]

@roninsoul Haha, Thanks Ronin

[MBW006x]

good review man.....it gave a pretty good idea how it sounds inside the helmet well done :-P

[billmaa]

@MBW006x Thank you, I appreciate it

[theSMYRNAcowboy]

Great review Billy. I got the (Cheaper model ) one that just has the Blue tooth. I should have waited. :(

[billmaa]

@theSMYRNAcowboy Thanks Dave, I was pretty excited they actually worked..

[woodenchairs]

Not quite sure why you dont like the chatterboxs. Ive got one and it works fine. I dont think any of these comm systems have good stereo headphones so im using a splitter to use my own earphones but otherwise it seems to work fine. Im using the FRS system and i am mounting mine off the helmet. If you think theres something better with scala id like 2 know because i would switch if there is.

[billmaa]

@woodenchairs Im not sure how yours works at all.. Tracy can vouch that they are just horrible pieces of crap.. We paid $400 bucks for the set..they would pick up drive thru headsets, police scanners, Nokia push to talks.. Even the electro-magnetic radiation coming from the bikes alternator would bleed-over..bu I still couldn't talk to Trace when he was 3 feet away.. We came off and threw them both in the trash

[woodenchairs]

@billmaa Hmm, that's interesting. Ill have to ride around with it and see. If it does all that then id switch for sure. Ive only done the walk around test so far. Mine only cost $127 for a single unit so if it turns out to be that crappy id def convert to scala. Im kinda curious about the earphone quality tho for my mp3. Lemmie know how it is when u try it. Thanks.

[billmaa]

@woodenchairs This was a few years ago, chatterbox might have improved their product.. But iron butt and adventure rider forums still make fun of them..and my personal experience keeps me from thinking they are anything more than just silly toys. As far as my MP3 experience.. They will crank up the sound loud enough to hear on the highway..but that combined with the wind noise caused my just my helmet wears me out after a few hours

[frankyfong36]

@billmaa Next time, instead of the trash, just throw them in a box and ship them to California! =) All postage paid by you of course.

[RainesPhotography]

Very nice review Billy!  The newer iPod touch's can stream music through Bluetooth. So i would definitley use that compared to the connection wire.

[billmaa]

@RainesPhotography That would definately be cool

[matth1138]

"Completely 'hands free!'...with nothing except a press..." LMAO!

My Parrot does most of the things the Scala does, but it has a handlebar remote control to let you keep your hands on the bars!

[billmaa]

@matth1138 If you can't lift your non- throttle hand for half a second, then you belong on a trike :)

[BBoyXy]

very good equip those mics, worth each penny no? :P

[billmaa]

@BBoyXy Definately

[navythomas8]

Hmmmm I'm looking at the Scala Q-4. Where did you buy the Q-2??

[billmaa]

@navythomas8 Tracy bought them at the cycle world international motorcycle show.. But I've seen them on Amazon

[TheWestRyders]

great! we were thinking of getting them too. cheers

[M3anMachin3]

Finally a Scala review from 2 REAL riders. If you're impressed, so am I!. You know if it works with more than 2 sets?

[billmaa]

@M3anMachin3 Yes, it does..but I believe three is the limit...Thanks for the comment MM

[britex3186]

I have the Scala q2 and find it works well with the phone, FM reception is shaky (no real antenna) Bike to bike works really well.

[billmaa]

@britex3186 I was too excited to read the owners manual on how to use the FM..haha, I can't really stand the radio anyways..so it wasn't quite a selling point..

[billmaa]

@VE6AMT I'm not sure were Tracy got the $250 a piece...they can be had for $280 for the set, but still not super cheap

[motochron]

That's very cool, thanks for the review.

[billmaa]

@motochron Thanks Chris

[bfmv580]

Yeah scalas are proven to be the best intercom on the market. Great review guys :-)

[billmaa]

@bfmv580 Thanks my friend

[Skazzious]

A brilliant bit of kit right there... I brought a double kit like you have there last year and sold one of them to my house mate at the time... now I only have one as he has moved out but works a treat... we rode over the country and they lasted for around 8 to 12 hours which was far longer than I expected. Did you find that sometimes the mic doesnt pick up your voice very well when you use voice activation based on how the mic is angled to your mouth :/

[billmaa]

@Skazzious We thought they worked great..the battery easily lasted for 8 hours..

[RedanWhiteRebel]

Nice review Billy. I have had the Scala for about two years and am still very happy with it. The battery charge lasts a min of 8 hours although I don't use it for rider to rider comms.If connected to GPS the directions override the music and phone calls overide all else. I found it better to weave the mic into place through the cushioning of the helmet so you don't see the boom but just the mic at your cheek. Good to hear you guys talking while vlogging.

[billmaa]

@RedanWhiteRebel Good tip about the mic RWR..thanks

[RedanWhiteRebel]

@billmaa No prob ..it keeps it nice and tidy and looks like a permanent fixture. I have to agree with britax the only criticism I would give is the fm radio is not great.

[e30Birdy]

i need one!! thank god i got a 3gs with voice control

[azezin0]

and what about at high speed? i also have an HJC HQ1 and it´s too much noisy at 140kmh and over (85mph). Do you hear him clearly?

[billmaa]

@azezin0 The windnoise is an issue at speeds over 80, I can hear him, but the windnoise in my own helmet can be loud....but at that point comm is simply to pass critical information and not to chat out of boredom..Haha

[btlegend]

i had dreamt of a dual vlog with me and my wife on two bikes (scooters)in one vlog thank you for discovering the device that can make this happen, kudos my friend.

[billmaa]

@btlegend You are quite welcome, I think you'll enjoy it

[p0kerp1aya]

WOW....too cool! As Will Smith once said "I have got to get me on of dee's!!"

One question though. If your listening to music with this, isn't that a safety issue? or is it not that big of a deal?

[billmaa]

@p0kerp1aya That's up for debate, and I've heard the argument for years..the safety man in me says you shouldn't listen to music...definitely if your inexperienced...but I do listen to music, on the highway only..

[p0kerp1aya]

@billmaa Check.....no mp3's while riding. Maybe I'll do the highway only thing after I have a few riding seasons under my belt. Till then I'll just listen to the voices in my head. :D lol

[8cuttlefish8]

That was so awesome, i had no idea they would work so well. I hope scala rider pays you guys for this! :D

[billmaa]

@8cuttlefish8 Haha, that would be sweeeet!

[RMurray8874]

How does the device attach to the helmet? Do you have to drill any holes?

[johnnylongsock]

@RMurray8874 The unit is in two parts. The 'dock' which includes the mic. The 'unit' which is the oval shaped thing with the buttons. The dock has a clamp which you tighten with an allen key. It fits between the helmet outer (plastic) and inner (between outer and 'foam' protection). Sound complicated but it's actually really easy to fit securely.

[houltmac]

If I had a Trace to ride with I'd get a pair for sure.

[johnnylongsock]

@houltmac the G4 is a lot better. Q2 had issues with dropping BT especially to an iPhone. G4 is about £240 per unit thought. Not for a set

[billmaa]

@houltmac Haha, I had so choice..he just showed up my house with them..=)

[johnnylongsock]

I know this may have been asked a hundred times so maybe the community can answer this for me. If you're using the ContourHD how are you managing to record your voice?

Great product test btw :D 5*

[billmaa]

@johnnylongsock I have a Contour Johnny, but still have not vlogged with it...and the reason is that I've not found a good way to record voice audio yet..I'm still experimenting with various voice recorders..and even gave my Iphone a go...This footage was shot with my Creative Vado HD, which I absolutely despise hahah.. Thanks for commenting..

[NONo443]

Nice review. I am sold, probably will pick one up when (or more truthfully, if) I get a bluetooth enabled phone.

[johnnylongsock]

@NONo443 I'm quite impressed that you've managed not to have a bluetooth phone in the first place :D Well Done :D

[billmaa]

@NONo443 Thank you...good luck on your phone search

[MrBKBiker]

I have the Scala Rider Q2 Multiset and thinking of getting the G4 Multiset. I have mine bluetooth to my Droid and Zumo GPS. I really like the Q2, but on occassions the headset will make a beeb every minute or so, you every have this happen? Strange, just something in setup I guess.

[johnnylongsock]

@MrBKBiker Battery?

[MrBKBiker]

@johnnylongsock  Nope, right off charger after full charge. Doesn't always do this, but has happen twice on rides. Something to do with pairing to Bluetooth and Zumo, sure something simple, but being simple myself, just makes it more of a

issue! LOL

[johnnylongsock]

@MrBKBiker I've heard issues with the Q2 connecting to BT2 devices. The iPhone suffers a lot. The Scala G4 apparently fixes all that but it's £250, which is about $450 i think.

[billmaa]

@MrBKBiker Battery would  be my guess too...

[cdwolf]

Terrific review guys! I've been weighing the Q2 against Chatbox for my son & I when we ride. TYVM!

[billmaa]

@cdwolf I wouldn't even consider the chatterbox Phred, Tracy and I had them a few years ago..and they were so prone to interference that I couldn't hear Tracy worth damn, but I could pick up some kids headset who was working at a drive thru two blocks away..I'm honestly surprised they still make Chatterboxes..

[tdad71302]

great review guys.

[billmaa]

@tdad71302 Thank you

[apricotsnms516]

nice worked awesome! love love the dumb good for nothin' comment LOL would be awesome for off roading just in case there was a hazard that only the lead could see

[billmaa]

@apricotsnms516 Haha, that's Tracy for ya...

[VituMV]

i'm pretty sure you can get a diff mic connected to the thing... if you really intend to use it often, it'd probably be a good idea to get one of those mics that are basically a dot on a wire, and install it somewhere inside the helmet around the cheek area... i imagine you would get less wind on the mic and a "cleaner" look on your face.... but thats only if you're not happy with what you got right now... btw nice watching you ride again, congrats

[johnnylongsock]

@VituMV As someone who's tried many-a-mic, I think the OEM mic is leagues above the rest. You can have a conversation at 60mph with no wind noise. In fact, most of the time people can't tell you're on a bike.

[billmaa]

@VituMV You could if you wanted to break the box open and solder a new set up...This was set up on my HJC, I now have it on my Arai and its not in the way at all...

[BusasaurusRex]

I'm not retarded! I'm just..challenged! LOL

[e30Birdy]

@BusasaurusRex lfmao you are the best, but where are they 139? i need only one prolly for my phone

[billmaa]

@e30Birdy Amazon and Ebay have them for about that...=)

[e30Birdy]

@billmaa i will have to look cause here in germany the preis is outrageous

[wjjeep4x4]

can you listen to music and interact with the other rider at the same time?

[BusasaurusRex]

The system prioritizes the inputs. You can listen to music and it will mute it temporarily when you are talking to someone or taking a phone call as I understand it. We didn't test that specifically yet.

[wjjeep4x4]

@BusasaurusRex Great, thanks!

[Itsreload]

Yes! 130 each. Now I'm thinking. What am I going to do with just one. Can you plug the mic into something else to record? That would be cool. I need a mic.

[johnnylongsock]

@Itsreload Unfortunately you can't just unplug the mic and stick it in somewhere else. You need to be comfortable handling a soldering iron :D

[billmaa]

@Itsreload It's all hard wired in..it would be sweet tho..I need to find a separate audio set up for my contour as well..still on the hunt..

[davidhowellca]

"after the pt cruiser you think?"

already rolling...."yup"

Hah!

Man...I would love to have this with the one I usually ride with. Sounds good for the Scala!

[billmaa]

@davidhowellca I'm pretty impressed with it, Thanks David

[speedemon103]

"Tracy is retarded there 139" lol that was funny as crap just because thats just like somthing id say about one of my freinds

thoes are some awsome little things though...1st dual Vlog ever for sure haha

[billmaa]

@speedemon103 I dog him out daily, it's just how we are...Haha..thanks for commenting

[Iroquois14]

WAY too much money. Otherwise good stuff.

[billmaa]

@Iroquois14 The last time tracy and I were in comm range was when you where with us..lol

[HasJuice]

I'm sold by 1:42.

Great video!!

[billmaa]

@HasJuice Thank you