My 50S is 3 weeks old running on firmware 1.03. Shortly after upgrading to 1.03, the voice recognition stopped working. Also, when I answer calls, the callers can no longer hear me. I am using the detachable boom microphone in a modular helmet. Strangely enough, the audio pass through still seems to work, so I don't think it is the microphone or the mount. Any ideas?
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25 comments
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Martin Stone I've also noticed the voice recognition is a bit hit and miss... I've not used my headset for long enough yet to build a pattern or even be sure it's not just the way I'm trying to use it.
Also call handling when used in conjunction with my Garmin 595LM is also not 100% reliable with calls not being presented to screen and/or no audio when answered, but that cojuld be down to the GPS.
Time will tell no doubt, but you could try rolling back the firmware and seeing if it helps?
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Ron I have the same issue. The strange thing is that I can use Hey Google perfectly....but I can not use Hey Sena at all. I have tried many many times with zero results, I tried it on version 1.0.2 and 1,0.3....same results.
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Ron After a whole lot of testing, I stumbled on the fact that my microphone was too close to my mouth for the voice commands. I use an HJC modular helmet and the mic needed to be put up against the chin bar at a distance a bir more than 1" from my mouth for the commands to go through. I would be curious to know if anyone else finds this to work for them.
Ron
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Jeffrey Morrison I think you may be onto something with mic distance. Today I realized that OK Google was still working (sometimes, but I had to yell). Hey Sena didn't work until I took the helmet off and issued commands from a distance. I also tried calling on the phone, but no matter what, the other party could barely hear me.
I then noticed that the pairing name on my phone still reflected the 1.0.1 firmware in the name, which it's no longer correct, as i updated to 1.0.3. So I forgot the Sena pairing from both of my phones (Google Pixel 3 & iPhone 7) and my Garmin GPS, and re-paired. Things seem to be working better.
I think that the rule of thumb may be to re-pair all the bluetooth devices after a firmware update, and then move the mic so it is not directly in front of your mouth. May have something top dip with the automatic gain control...
I'll know more after my 350 mile ride tomorrow...
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Ken Kimari On iphone make sure to check that Hey Siri is turned on under settings - Siri and Search. as well as Allow Siri when Locked
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Jeffrey Morrison Ok, It appears that there is a firmware problem....
Re-pairing the Bluetooth has made the phones more usable, I can now hold a conversation thru both the Pixel 3 and iPhone 7. I am streaming music (though not as loudly as it was before the re-pair). Voice commands are working with the Pixel ("OK Google")
The remaining issue: Voice commands to the Sena. It simply will not work using the wired boom Mic when the modular helmet is closed. However, standing in a parking lot, I discovered that if I open the helmet I can get the Sena to respond most of the time if I use just the right volume / annunciation. Seems like they really need too tweak to Vox settings for the headset, and make it tunable via the App! I am back home so I will contact tech support....
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Jeffrey Morrison Re-installed the original boom mic. Did (another) hard reset. Now the mic works with the phones. but cannot get any response from the "Hey Sena" command with the new mic. OK Google still works. Now playing "stump the technician" with Sena Support - moving on-wards & upwards to Tier 2.
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Dude In my case voice commands, Hey Google (connection always drops) and Hey Sena (nearly always drops) immediately the Bluetooth connection. It reconnects in about 5 to 10 seconds but loses the command action. Run firmware 1.0.3, have done hard resets, setup new bluetooth connects to no avail.
Just replaced the standard boom mic with the closed helmet mic. Did anyone else noticed the bluetooth connection drops the moment you either say Hey Sena or Hey Google?
Cheers!
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Dude Short update! Today I used the small mic intended for fully closed helmets (integrale). This setup is in essence worse because the connection still drops but in addition, without any input, the message "Intercom not available" is repeated continuously. There is a fair amount of wind noise with speeds plus 70 km/h. Perhaps the system gets too much noise input which causes that message to be pushed to the user. I tried a range of of voice commands of which I can get 4 to work, Music on and off, and volume up or down. Apparently these keep the bluetooth connection going, quite remarkable.
I use several music apps which unfortunately you can't set as a default in the app or Device Manager.
It's a petty the voice commands work so poorly in my case and can only be bypassed using the button combo's.
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Phyllis Briles Voice commands have never worked for me. Had this unit for about a month. Wish I had never traded "up" from my 20s. Very disappointing so far.
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Dude Disappointed as well. I expected a better product than Sena's previous releases. Essentially I can only turn music on / off and alter the volume via voice commands. Occasionally I can open mesh but that's it. Google voice commands doesn't play nice either. I wonder if other brands got this working, specially with lot's of wind noise.
Prior to the 50s purchase I looked at Sena's main competitor. I will pick one up in a few weeks. Since I have the same issues while not moving so noise cancellation algorithms might not be the main cause.
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Ian Hargreaves Same issue here.. brand new 50S. Installed latest firmware 1.03.
Hey Google - works well.
Hey Sena - nothing.
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Jeffrey Morrison Got an email from Tech support:
Hello Jeffrey,
Thank you for contacting Sena Tech Support.
This may be an issue on how you are saying the word "Sena"
Try pronouncing more like "Hey Seenah". I also tested different mic placements and it did get an improvement.
Please if this helps improve the issue.
Sincerely,
Pablo Motta
Systems Administrator, Sena Technologies, Inc.
Saying " Hey Seeena" gets a beep, but no command is ever recognized. Total fail....
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Ken Kimari Just asking, but are you just saying "hey Sena" then waiting for a response or are you saying "hey Sena, play music" for example? You have to indicate a command after saying "hey Sena". List of commands are on page 47 of the manual.
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Ian Hargreaves "Try pronouncing more like "Hey Seenah".
This worked!
I think the Sena 50S voice recognition might be prejudice against us Brits and it's expecting a US voice.
Here are some commands to try...
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Jeffrey Morrison Have tried pausing / not pausing. Have tried different volume levels when speaking - whispering thru yelling. Have tried all 3 microphones. I have verified that the fin points away from my mouth. I have tried with my modular helmet open & closed. Have tried using microphones at different distances, including holding the mic several inches from my mouth. Saying "Hey Seeena" vs "Hey Sena" (Long e vs short e.) Long "E" would cause a beep more often, but still no command recognition. "OK Google" and phone calls work pretty consistently, so the microphone is working..
I believe the fundamental problem is that there is a firmware problem with: a) an incorrect gain setting for recognizing "Hey Sena" commands, and b) an overly limited training set for the speaker independent voice recognition templates.
Franlky, I'm out of ideas and patience. If Sena can offer a fix, or at least and ETA to providing one, I will wait it out. Now in discussions with Sena about returning the headset and getting my 20S back. (I turned it in for the rebate.)
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Chris They need to make the voice commands
hey siri
ok google
hello sena.
this way they are distinct.
And always give us the option to revert to a previous firmware. The 1.03 is a mess.
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Bill Eickmann Mine too. 50 R with 1.03 Intercom works great. No voice commands.
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William Eash Yes, I have the exact same issue 50S with 1.0.3.
Using the small wired mic and it is placed at the lowest part of my helmet near my chin. Phone calls are clear, but Hey Sena does not work.
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Chris I got my new 50s. I did not update it from 1.0 Voice commands to sena keep pinging siri. Come on sena, lets get going on this! Its a major feature of your product and works well on your competitors product.
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Chris Update... Use 1.03 version is ok
Must say hey seeenah . Not sena .All features working. You must say the magic words Exactly as in page 48 of manual.
Practice! And mic needs an inch away from mouth. Mine on chinbar below mouth in a c3pro.
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Jeff Beaulieu Have you tried to record your voice with the voice recorder on your phone to see if your voice is clear , loud enough and doesn’t include breathing noises to give the speech recognition engine too much trouble? Often basic speech recognition is severely affected by microphone placements. In my case having the arrow microphone close to my mouth results in a lot of my breathIng getting caught or the wind in my voice getting caught.
Setting the arrow microphone away from my mouth but still aiming at my mouth from an angle results in the clearest recordings for voice recognition based on tests done with my iphone voice recorder.
Also the speech recognition in Sena devices simply can’t be compared to what makes speech recognition on phones work so for it to work your voice REALLY need to be loud and clear.
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Jeffrey Morrison I'm not sure this is relevant. I have no interest in doing dictation from my motorcycle. The problem is with Sena's technology.
In a full-face helmet, there are not a lot of choices on where to put the microphone. Besides, it is not on me (as the customer) to figure out why Sena's technology doesn't work. They sold this to be used in a motorcycle helmet. it should work out of the box.
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Jeffrey Morrison Sena sent me a replacement 50S (5 weeks after I returned my original unit). I am sorry to report that the voice recognition with the new unit is even worse than the original. I cannot even get the new unit to recognize "Hey Google". and cannot get even an occasional response for "Hey Sena". Voice recognition is completely dead on arrival. (I have gone thru the procedure for switching out the new mount & microphones even though the unit still works as microphone with my phone.)
I wish I still had my 20S!!
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Jeff Beaulieu Hi,
I agree with you Jeffrey. Sena’s speech recognition is not dictation but the fundamental still apply.
Mind you my suggestions are based on experience and intimate knowledge of how speech recognition works... Speech Recognition basically is done either through cloud and / or locally with static grammars and / or somewhat of A.I. My guess is that Sena’s devices implement speech recognition through a standalone solution with static grammars. Basically the worst combo for speech recognition especially in the context of motorcycle riding.
Considering the aforementioned limitations from a user perspective the way to go is to make life as easy as possible for the device speech recognition engine. And the way to tell if you do so is to actually have a listening at yourself while using the device in normal / expected usage conditions (environmental noise, voice tone, pitch etc). The clearer your voice = the better the recognition scores / threshold for positive recognition. Microphone placement is crucial (no matter if you wear a full face or open face). Best way to confirm is to do like I suggested ... Record yourself and compare with the different placements until you find the optimal position that works for you.
Anyway all in all you are free to give my suggestion a try or not. I am just sharing some pointers to help others with Sena’s shortcomings.
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