FM Radio does not work
I have a Nolan N104 and a Scalarider G9 and where I live they both pick up FM radio perfectly fine The Noland is a little better than the G9 but they both work on at least 4 stations. The 20S however gives me nothing. Even getting much closer to the transmitter I get very little and have to turn my head just to get a very slight signal. The speaker cable goes up over the top of my helmet and I even tried with the little side aerial up but no dice.
The FM radio on the 20S is not only extremely poor but is in fact useless to me and is one of the reasons I purchased it. Not the main reason but an important one.
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Can somebody from Sena offer an official statement about this. I think it's pretty clear by now that the radio does not function as it should. What is being done about it? What are the causes? Can it be fixed with a firmware, any ETA, ... Communication about this issue from Sena is important!
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I received a reply from Sena that I thought I would share... "Sorry for the long wait time, the 20S FM is an issue we are currently investigating, I am sorry to tell you I don't have much information at this time. You have done everything I would suggested but as you can see there is no usable set up. I do not have a time frame to give you, and how long it takes can vary. I am not a software or hardware engineer so I can't/won't begin to speculate the nature of the issue and how to and how long to solve it. I can understand that this is displeasing to hear however, I hope you can appreciate our honesty at the very least." As mentioned above, what I have done is update to version 1.1.1, reset units, route right speaker wire over inner top of helmet. Little to no improvement. 0 -
Just a confirmation. After lots of "the guy on the phone asking other folks for information"... He confirmed that the antenna for FM is the speaker wire AND that if you remove the speaks to use ear buds, the ear bud wires take over the FM antenna function. I really can't believe that all Sena's testing didn't find this FM reception flaw. They seem to be using the early adopter community to do their beta testing. I confirmed that Sena's two year replacement warranty covers the FM function. Sena WILL NOT issue refunds if you bought your unit from a dealer so they're hanging the dealers out to dry too. BAD PR for an up an coming company.
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For those of you that are having an issue with the FM receiver on the Sena 20S then you can send our Technical Support department an email at support@sena.com or call them at 1-866-300-1235 or (408) 300-9797 for warranty service.
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Sena:
I just received a replacement unit for a speaker issue. Can you elaborate on what was done to correct the FM issue and let me know where in the serial number train this happened so that I can determine if I should keep the replacement unit or request new units for the FM fix?
Thank you
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Sena,
I second Harnold's request. I received a replacement unit for another hardware issue and now have 1 unit from the original dual pack I bought and 1 replacement unit. Please elaborate on whether your production changed hardware wise to judge whether to replace the units.
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FYI, Sena support just told me that there isn't any change, but that some units have the FM issue and others do not so they'll replace the unit if you wish. They said they'd test the unit before shipping it out also, but they have none in stock until September sometime.
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same issues with FM Reception. In Australia Sydney. Even in the open on the motorway between western subburbs and the city where the friggin towers are, shitty fm reception. Scala G9, perfect reception, even at home where the reception on the scala does start to fade very very slightly, the sena is completely dead. SENA GET YOUR ACT TOGETHER AND FIX THIS SHIT. OTHERWISE YOU WILL LOSE MANY CUSTOMERS.
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same issues with FM Reception. In Australia Sydney. Even in the open on the motorway between western subburbs and the city where the friggin towers are, shitty fm reception. Scala G9, perfect reception, even at home where the reception on the scala does start to fade very very slightly, the sena is completely dead. SENA GET YOUR ACT TOGETHER AND FIX THIS SHIT. OTHERWISE YOU WILL LOSE MANY CUSTOMERS.
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I am cautiously optimistic...Sena has told me they will replace the 20s dual set I bought, with a new tested and fully functioning unit sometime next month. Hoping this all works out in the end. 0 -
Hi
From Paris
I could exchange my pair of unit because of no FM reception. With the new box, good news, I could catch some radio stations around home.
I will test tomorrow riding but there is a big difference with the first one, it was probably a hardware problem. Have a nice road !
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Well I put a request in about the FM radio and after a week have not heard anything. Have been advising all my mates not to purchase one if they are expecting a radio in the thing to actually work.
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Well it seems like Sena are not standing by their product after all. Finally got a reply and they asked for proof of purchase. I provided this and then they tell me that they can't replace mine and that they can only replace those in USA. Told me to go back to the shop where I purchased it from. If I do that not doubt I will get one with exactly the same problem.
Pathetic support and total lack of commitment to fix this issue.
I am ready to throw it in the bin and purchase a Scala Rider GX9 which I know will work as advertised.
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John, are you from the EU. If so there is a 2 year warranty period that everybody needs to respect.
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John, I've returned my unit and received a refund. I'm in the UK - Retailer contacted Sena and original stance because I'd used the unit was 'we'll have to return to Sena to test and if they say faulty you'll get a refund'. I stated that there was enough evidence here on the forums that it was a design issue and that bench testing is not enough. I also sent them copies of the posts here from Sena and my support ticket confirming an issue exists and offering to replace units (including mine by the way).
Apparently Sena came back and said yes so retailer refunded. If that had not worked I could then have forced the issue under the Sale Of Goods Act - the overwhelming evidence here is that the goods are not of merchantable quality and more importantly do not perform the function for which they were purchased. The confirmation of issues and offer to exchange units by Sena is sufficient to insist on refund.
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Although I do not have a new problem I wanted to add my Sena 20S to the list of FM radio problems. I live in the Netherlands near Amsterdam an my FM reception is also poor at best. I tested the system at home after purchase and it was OK. I thought that once I was outside it would be better, but unfortunaly it was worse.
I guess its ok (not great) when I am stationary, but once I move the amount of static becomes unbearable. This is the case at 50km/h but only gets worse with increasing speed. Plus the signal/maximum volume is not sufficient to hear the auable radio at 120 km/h even if you could ignore the massive amout of static. I do use hear plugs with a filter, however in constrast all the instructions of my GPS (TomTom rider) are very clear and easy to hear at 50% (GPS setting, 20S maximum volume).
I only recently purchased this unit but am regretting missing this forum to find the issue.
This forum is part of the Sena Technologies Help Desk and this toic is the bigest/ most replied topic. Considering this I find it extremly dissapointing that Sena has not posed one meaningful reply on this issue.
The best salesmen are satisfied customers and that does not bode well for the 20S.
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I recently purchased a 20S. I live in the Netherlands near Amsterdam and also have big problems with the FM radio.
I listen to radio on my mobile often which uses the headphone wire to pick up the FM signal. That works great, but the same cannot be said of the 20S FM radio.
After purchase I tested the radio at home. The reception was ok, however I was inside and expected it to get better outside. It did not.
The radio is still ok when stationary, however once you move (usually something you do on a motorcycle) the static starts to increase. At 50km/h the reception is extremely annoying, at 120 km/h unbearable. At 120km/h the strength of the signal/maximum volume is not strong enough to the hear the radio even if you could tune out the static.
I must point out that I use earplugs with filter, however the GPS instructions are clear at 120 km/h. This even when the GPS is at 50% volume and the 20S at maximum.
I also that the next firmware should remove frequency announcement when returning audio after using another audio function - we know what station we're on, we've not changed it, just give us the sound back asap.
As part of the customer support I find it extremely disappointing that Sena has failed to supply a meaningful official statement in this forum.
The product is still good but not if you want to listen to radio.
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Was saddened to see FM radio doesnt work well. This would be a handy feature when travelling as a lot of places broadcast travel information on FM Radio.
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I upgraded the firmware on my unit to 1.1.1 and then did a reset. Then the radio couldn't find any stations. I found that I had to go into the FM radios settings via the android app and change the region to Worldwide to fix the issue. 0 -
Well I had to send my unit back to Australia to get it fixed. Arrived back today (really fast turn around) with a note in it saying unit replaced and tested. Does not say what they tested.
Tried it out and guess what? No radio still. Just static.
I did find a fix however and that was to purchase a Cardo G9x. The radio works 100% in that and I can pick up 3 stations here at home with it. The Sena 20S still gets nothing. So guess I will be sticking with the G9x. Shame really because the Sena certainly has the better speakers on them. Will most likely get rid of the 20S but will let the buyer know the radio function is US. Should really send the unit back and get a refund but too much hassle in the end.
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Did you set the FM radio to your country zone? Mine didn't work either until I did this. 0 -
It should not matter about the country zone as a frequency is a frequency. If you can tune to it you should be able to receive it. However there is no New Zealand country zone there so it is set for world wide. The G9x does not need a country zone. All that does is limit the frequencies you can tune to and makes scanning faster.
The Sena simply does not work for what ever reason. They should at least tell us that reason.
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You are right for NZ you select Worldwide. Before I did this mine would not find a single radio station in NZ. Just got static and not a hint of anything else. Once I selected Worldwide it worked perfectly in Auckland. 0 -
So after doing the 1.2 update.
My radio now works for 5 to 10 min then fuzz out. Even after pressing the phone button, which should flip to the next pre set channel it does not. Only thing I can do is turn or radio then turn it back on.... it will work fine then repeat its self.0 -
Well its a strange one alright. I updated to 1.2 last night and tried again this morning. Changed it over to Europe as a zone and of the 3 stations the other headsets pick up the 20S will pick up just one and barley enough to hear that it is a signal but it is working. Their signal amplification software must be pretty bad compared to the others as the aerial lengths are about the same.
Guess I can't ask for a refund after all as it does now work just very poorly.
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With version V1.1.1 - the radio is basically useless... lucky to get 1 or 2 stations that will work... and I am located near Philadelphia that is loaded with stations....
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Johnv'
You certainly can ask for a refund. While I also saw SOME improvement with the 1.2 update, it is still VERY poor reception, and I live in New York City home of some of the most powerfull FM stations. If they don"t get the FM reception corrected after the next 1 or 2 updates I am going to request a refund. Sad because I believe aside from this issue it is a quality piece of hardware.
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Received my warranty replacement 20s dual pack today...no cost... shipped right to my door.....so far FM works well. Seems like they have found a fix. Very happy with the customer care and, fingers crossed, the new units. Will put some miles on and update forum in a few weeks. 0 -
@Gone2Mountains, what serial number ?? 1407XXX ?
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@Kiwi Brian.... 1408xxxxx 0
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