Ok, here's some feedback on the Sena units but understand ours have very little time in the field so I cannot speak of toughness or longevity.
Audio clarity is exceptional and max volume is loud enough to cause ear damage. These are very light weight and self-contained units. For comparison the more expensive Ear Techs that Brendon is getting are wired to a belt unit. I have used many different head sets, though not the Ear Techs, but any of them with wires drove me nuts.
These are not ear protection, so are worn with ear plugs. The combination of which offers very good to excellent ear protection while allowing full clarity in communications.
Did I mention these are full duplex? If you haven't used a duplex system, you really need to. It is the way to communicate when things get tense. Communications can be achieved in a high noise environment so while making felling cuts or rigging corrections in grounds operations can be addressed instantly.
Battery life, on a day-to-day basis, is not a problem. They state a 10 hour talk time with a 7 day standby time and they use lithium polymer batteries.
The intercom works once the units are paired by just the touch of a button. And will stay on until the button is touched again. So they are not voice activated. Though they do have that option.
I can confirm the reduced from advertised range in our units, SPH10, to 200 yards. This is a big enough discrepancy from their 980 yards that I am going to challenge the company on it and see if it can be resolved. With that said, 200 yards, for our use, is generally adequate. More would be better, though. Certainly enough range for crane work.
Field reports from other units, like the SMH10s, are coming in with the advertised range actually working in field use. One thing not to overlook on these is that they are blue tooth. Which means you can have your cell phone in your pocket and, with your voice, make a call connecting you to anyone anywhere. That cannot be done with other communication units that have been discussed. It is something I will probably never use but is tremendous in its potential.
It is hard to see in this picture but the Kask helmet's hard plastic harness comes down low behind the head and the Sena's behind-the-head brace is under and above the tension dial on the hardhat. This setup holds the unit very securely in place but you want to not crank that wheel down and hold them too tightly against your head or you will have ear pain. Adjusted correctly they are very comfortable.
Dave
