I have used my old Cardo Scalarider ones with the WHIM they work fine. Of course you can not set the options for the head sets with the boom screen and the don't have the protocols for the full stereo sound that HD branded S20's do . But they work. I have pair one of them for Granddaughters helmet and use them at the same time as the S20 when she is in the sidecar. Worked as it should. I have sense got her her own S20's . Of course the old cardo's have 4 hour battery life as the S20's are last 10-12 hours.

 

While it is easy to be angry with Harley for essentially forcing us to get the HD branded 20s EVO headset for full functionality, at least where I live, with the discount I’m being offered, I can get the HD units for less than I can find the Sena 20s EVO anywhere else. I am far more chafed at the cost of the WHIM add-on that really should have been standard in the supposedly kickass BOOM radios in the first place. That being said, this fool is still going ahead with it and hoping to get years of benefit as payback.

 

Stereo is part of the digital instruction. In a sense, stereo is not sent to a receiver, it is resolved. In pseudo code (for instructional purposes only) a block of data is sent to the receiver with the instruction of "send this data to the right speaker". The more instruction (LE) I can send on a wave form, the more enhanced sound the receiver can produce.

I cannot prove that HD is "blocking" certain features from other brands. It would not be a wise marketing decision. I am not ready to look for ghost under my bed until I see some definitive proof.
I own a small (but very lucrative) company that develops software of every sort. Our motto is "we will write any program as long as it doesn't involve sex with old ladies or bear-traps. Those are our two bugaboos."

I do have a phone programmer (native code FireMonkey). When his workload lightens, I might ask him to sniff the stream. If it is hashed (or any portion), I will be suspicious that you are right since a non-20evo would be able to process the hashed portion of the stream. But I cannot imagine a vendor putting themselves in

Can you provide some (non-anecdotal) documentation?

 

First, the WHIM doesn't "block" anything. It simply deactivates its own A2DP and AptX implementation when paired with a non-Harley-Davidson Bluetooth headset.

Second, do you mean did I record the telephone conversation I had with second level tech support at the company that manufactures the WHIM, when they told me that their R&D did verify that the WHIM, at Harley-Davidsons's direction, disables the A2DP protocol once the WHIM determines that the Bluetooth headset is pairing with a non-Harley-Davidson headset?

No.

You'll just have to assume I'm making it all up.

I did, however, get a follow up email to my question regarding "high definition audio": Do all three Harley-Davidson BOOM Audio headsets (not just the 20S EVO) support the AptX Codec, which is necessary for high def audio:

"Agent 13, Oct 11, 12:29 PM PDT:
Hi Clay,

The !Boom 20s and !BOOM SPH10 does not appear to support aptX codec even though it updated to the latest firm ware. Thank you for bringing this up.

We do advised to Suggest feature request to our forum site.
https://support.sena.com/hc/en-us

I'll also forward this to our research and development team.
Sincerely Yours,

MJ
SENA Technologies"


To recap:

According to SENA Technologies, when you pair a WHIM, the WHIM determines whether or not it is pairing with Harley-Davidson branded Bluetooth headsets:

BOOM Audio 20S EVO: stereo and high def audio.
BOOM Audio 10S or SPH-10: stereo, "standard" audio.
Non-BOOM full stereo headset: WHIM defaults to monaural sound.
Non-BOOM headset with high def audio: WHIM defaults to "standard" audio.

 

The HD head set is also water resistant the SENA branded one is not

 

Finally figured it out and went to the other side...I have posted on the Sena 20s EVO and WHIM posts quite a few times without any real solutions. It was frustrating trying to get the Sena to work properly the way it was meant to be by HD. I have dealt with noise from the microphone pick-up and the WHIM not recognizing commands via the handlebar button along with various other annoyances. Also, it seems that no others in the HOG group I ride with had Sena's to even talk with was also a contributing factor for the switch over. The BT Headset of choice seemed to be the Cardo Packtalk Bold. I jumped ship and bit the bullet and purchased one. A few observations...How easy it was to pair up with others in a group setting using the rock solid DMC mode of the Cardo Packtalk. No static, hissing etc. in this mode whatsoever. The distance we achieved was exceptional! Going to a 3/4 helmet was another option I went with. Although I was still able to utilize my Bell Pitboss half helmet with still terrific results. No wind noise or problems using this helmet. I did give up some functionality by going this route though. I no longer can hear my GPS commands for a route through the headset. I just turn up the volume of the radio so I can hear them if I really needed turn by turn instructions. I cannot see who is calling via the Boom GTS screen. Other than that I don't miss the Sena at all. It has been a challenge to try and pair the Cardo Packtalk to the WHIM and have given up doing so for now. Maybe some day Cardo will figure that part out. I did try numerous configurations without having any real good success. So, there you have it. My observations and opinions. Everybody will have options when it comes to bike communications including not having any at all. Just my choice to go this way and am very satisfied with the outcome.

 

I'm looking at the Cardo Freecom 4 and would also like to be able to integrate it with the boom head unit.

Found this post and may give it a shot until Cardo hopefully offers something better.Look at post # 45

https://www.hdforums.com/forum/gener...cations-5.html

 

How difficult was the install with the Pitboss? Do you listen to music with the Cardo? how is the sound quality?

I use the Pitboss as well and don't want to switch to a 3/4 or FF.

Thanks!

 

Easy install of the Cardo Packtalk Bold to the Bell Pitboss helmet,although I use the "neck curtain" with built in speaker pouches. If you choose not to use the neck curtain you will have to adapt with either a patch of velcro in the ear opening to span the helmet strap area or buy speaker pouches that slide into the helmet shell and lining. The sound quality is great with the new JBL speakers Cardo now offers. I have a mount for both helmet and will just switch over the electronic unit between the two when I want.

 

Ok, Thanks.

Did you use their half helmet kit or is it even necessary?