Nady Pmc-2 Motorcycle Intercom
NADY PMC-2 MOTORCYCLE INTERCOM
EVALUATION
OPENING LINES OF IN-FLIGHT COMMUNICATION
RIDERS AND THEIR PASSENGERS TEND to get pretty close—on a motorcycle, that is. Not that they have a lot of choice in the matter. But even the cramped confines of some middle-weight sportbikes can’t bring them close enough to hear each other clearly at speed. They could be jammed so tightly together that crowbars and ice water wouldn't separate them, but for verbal communication they might as well be on different planets.
The PMC-2 Motorcycle Intercom from Nady Systems Inc. (1145 65th St., Oakland. CA 94608-1 175; [415] 652-7632), can bring that silent-partner act to a screeching halt. It’s a hard-wire system, with full-duplex operation that allows simultaneous two-way conversation, just like talking on a telephone. A thumbwheel on top of the ABS plastic case controls the intercom’s volume, and because the Nady lets you hear your own voice, you can adjust your personal volume accordingly.
As with some other communicators, it takes a touring bike, or a motorcycle with a sizable fairing, to properly showcase the Nady’s capabilities. There, with the rider and passenger tucked away in the fairing’s still-air pocket, the PMC-2 transmits words, voices and inflections with a fidelity and clarity ATT should envy. And the intercom lets them speak in normal conversational tones, even if they’re savaging the Double Nickel.
Wind noise begins to intrude, though, at about 55 mph on bikes with more abbreviated fairings, or with no fairing at all. The open headset-mikes pick up the noise, which reduces audio quality. Uni-directional mikes covered with foam socks try to give the wind the slip, but they’re not always successful. The passenger, for example, falls prey to turbulence coming off the rider's helmet, which in turn gives the passenger’s voice a distinct warble.
A pair of headsets comes with each intercom, and Nady offers a choice of styles: the MC, which uses an inear speaker along with a separate microphone that attaches with Velcro to the chin bar of a full-face helmet; and the MO, a single-piece unit with a flexible boom between the mike and speaker, for use in fullor openface helmets. Each headset has its own virtues and vices, too. The MCs are lighter and less susceptible to wind noise, but the in-ear speakers must fit snugly to stay put. The MOs, on the other hand, offer one-piece simplicity, but the foam-padded speakers are too bulky for comfort in a tight-fitting helmet.
Still, with either style of headset, Nady’s intercom (available from your dealer for $59.95, including batteries and belt clip) should be well-nigh irresistible to motorcyclists who don’t subscribe to the notion that silence is golden. The PMC-2 spans the yawning communications gap between pilot and pillion partner, easily and unobtrusively. And that’s important when there’s a long ride in front of you, and a passenger behind.
