Integrated audio
Discussion
I know there'll be a raft of purists out there, you know the type... head down, ar53 up, decking the tank badges, scrubbing the chicken strips and generally having a whale of a time - and that's fine, nothing does it like a bike.
But some of us take it a bit easier, bimble if you will, and on occasion we like to partake of some aural embellishment, even if just to relieve the tedium of the long motorway bits in between each patch of twisties. In fact, most of the posse on our recent Euro-thrash were to be found singing along with various degrees of tunelessness into their helmets whenever a red light stopped play. The hassle started when the gloves had to come off, to unzip the jacket, to extract the 'Pod, to press pause and shout 'Eh?' at the would-be communicatee.
Too much farting on for me
My MP3 player (a Creative Zen Micro) is stashed on the bike and piped to my Autocom. So if anyone needs to tell me I'm going the wrong way or whatever, I can just unplug my lid cable and rap with the dude.
But even that's not good enough! I'm on a Pan European for god's sake; I have cruise control, electric windows and heated footrests, I should have - nay demand! - a means of interfacing with my music in a 21st century fashion.
So I came up with this:
There's a small circuit board which replicates the original Zen wired remote; I used a project box to conceal the workings on the back of the glovebox door, including the flimsy ribbon cable that exits the rear of the keypad:
Works a treat; nirvana is just a button-press away, even with gloves on! Well perhaps not THE Nirvana, but you get the idea...
But some of us take it a bit easier, bimble if you will, and on occasion we like to partake of some aural embellishment, even if just to relieve the tedium of the long motorway bits in between each patch of twisties. In fact, most of the posse on our recent Euro-thrash were to be found singing along with various degrees of tunelessness into their helmets whenever a red light stopped play. The hassle started when the gloves had to come off, to unzip the jacket, to extract the 'Pod, to press pause and shout 'Eh?' at the would-be communicatee.
Too much farting on for me
My MP3 player (a Creative Zen Micro) is stashed on the bike and piped to my Autocom. So if anyone needs to tell me I'm going the wrong way or whatever, I can just unplug my lid cable and rap with the dude.But even that's not good enough! I'm on a Pan European for god's sake; I have cruise control, electric windows and heated footrests, I should have - nay demand! - a means of interfacing with my music in a 21st century fashion.
So I came up with this:
There's a small circuit board which replicates the original Zen wired remote; I used a project box to conceal the workings on the back of the glovebox door, including the flimsy ribbon cable that exits the rear of the keypad:
Works a treat; nirvana is just a button-press away, even with gloves on! Well perhaps not THE Nirvana, but you get the idea...
Bob: the keypad is an off-the-shelf item, you can install your own logos for the buttons. The simple bit of electronics is lashed-up on Veroboard and hidden in the black box 
- the wiring has a plug/socket so that removal of the fairing isn’t impaired.
Chilli: I’d like to think so; Zen Micros are as cheap as chips now so you could easily afford to leave one permanently on the bike. Even 4Gb gives you a lot of music! However many MP3 players don’t have a remote facility so it wouldn’t be feasible to do as a ‘universal fit’ device. Some of the later Creatives (eg the Vision M) use the same remote control so I presume they’d work just as well (still trying to score one from Ebay to prove this).
Robstvr: the Autocom does have a volume-reduction facility on it already so it turns the music down while you talk. Not on/off, but thanks for the idea
Sprinter: cheers!
Ruttager: It should cope with rain, the membrane is waterproof and I filled the slot behind with silicone… and I do like ‘stuff’ to look as though it’s meant to be there, not an easy task on most bikes.
2seas: aye no problem! Er, what’s wrong with it?
Jp: yes, Bluetooth is the way forward for a total comms system with phone and the like… I have Bluetooth phone through the Autocom but the Autocom itself still requires the rider and passenger to plug in. The biggest issue with most bikes is, of course, finding space for the hardware – even the ST only has so many cubbyholes. I try to only saw holes in bits that won’t be too expensive to replace if I get it wrong
Hooli: sod off
- the wiring has a plug/socket so that removal of the fairing isn’t impaired.Chilli: I’d like to think so; Zen Micros are as cheap as chips now so you could easily afford to leave one permanently on the bike. Even 4Gb gives you a lot of music! However many MP3 players don’t have a remote facility so it wouldn’t be feasible to do as a ‘universal fit’ device. Some of the later Creatives (eg the Vision M) use the same remote control so I presume they’d work just as well (still trying to score one from Ebay to prove this).
Robstvr: the Autocom does have a volume-reduction facility on it already so it turns the music down while you talk. Not on/off, but thanks for the idea
Sprinter: cheers!
Ruttager: It should cope with rain, the membrane is waterproof and I filled the slot behind with silicone… and I do like ‘stuff’ to look as though it’s meant to be there, not an easy task on most bikes.
2seas: aye no problem! Er, what’s wrong with it?
Jp: yes, Bluetooth is the way forward for a total comms system with phone and the like… I have Bluetooth phone through the Autocom but the Autocom itself still requires the rider and passenger to plug in. The biggest issue with most bikes is, of course, finding space for the hardware – even the ST only has so many cubbyholes. I try to only saw holes in bits that won’t be too expensive to replace if I get it wrong
Hooli: sod off
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