Shuberth C3 Pro Sizing

[bmwdavid]

 

I am going to purchase two Shuberth C3 Pro helmets with the BMW communications and had a few questions for anyone who has this setup. I wear a older X800 shoei full face helmet and a size large fits well. Is the C3 Pro true to size large or is XL closer to large? Trying on a hemet for 20 minutes at the dealer doesn't always work. The bmw communications also is a different model when you go with a size XL complicating it more.

Next question is how good are the speakers in the bmw communications for music especially? Are they as good or better than the latest from Sena or Cardo? For this kind of money I would hope this helmet and communications would be outstanding.

 

If anyone has purchased a setup that fully integrates with the new RT I would like to hear about it. I am only going with this setup because from what I understand it is the only system that fully works with the new BMW,jog dial and rider to passenger.

 

Does anyone own a Shuberth C3 Pro? Hope I am not making a mistake spending all this money on helmets that no one buys.

[Over]

Why not get BMW Evo 6?

 

I've had bad experiences with Schuberth support, and my 2year old C3 with. A very rubbish Bluetooth is languishing back in its box.

 

I have BMW and I am reasonably happy with speakers, not as good as in ear buds with speakers, but on the whole I'd buy again.

[johnktor]

I wear a Arai xl and went to a Shuberth C3 Pro xl with the BMW communications. The dealer installed the communicator in my helmet at the time of purchased and set it up with my R1200rtlc. Everything has worked flawlessly. I did attempt to use a different product with the Arai but things did not work out well. The BMW communicator speakers lack bass. I found it interesting when listening to oldies, channel 5 or 6 on XM things are tinny. When I listen to the Symphony channel the music sounds much better. (why I do not know) The phone and GPS sound just find. I will consider making this system work with ear buds. When I am on the phone everyone has stated I come across very clear and hear conversations well. I do adjust the bike screen for dead air when on the phone. For work I must be able to be in phone contacted when traveling in my car, now I use the bike. I would do this again even though the speakers leave something to be desired. Love the helmet and have found it to be very comfortable. The Arai was lighter but not quite, but close to just as quiet. The sun shield works great. Air movement is very good. I have only once been in the rain and all worked well. The visor stays in place in different up positions unless the wind off the bike hits direct, then down it goes. The Arai does not compete in that area, the shield dropped much easier. If you join me I hope your as happy as I am. The only complaint I would have with this set up is the speakers that are tinny on some stations.

[bmwdavid]

They do not sell the bmw evo6 in the states. Looks like Shuberth is the only thing that will accept the bmw communications and the only communications that works flawlessly with the bike.

[bmwdavid]

I was hoping to hear that the sound from the bmw communications in the shuberth was going to be great. I am very disappointed to hear that the sound is not that good. I mainly want the system for listening to music in the helmet and wanted to be able to control the volume and stations/tracks from the handlebar. Not sure what to think now.

[CoarsegoldKid]

My wife and I each have a C3. The Pro version may be updated. Sizing in the store was weird. I've worn large helmets since the first full coverage hit the market. But there is more to it than that. Shape is all important.

So the sales person at the BMW dealer checks the fit and agrees, get the large. He did the same for the wife's C3 in the Womens model. Get the small he said, and even though I thought she should have a medium she went for the small. Helmets do break-in. They get larger. Within 2 months we had to swap out the interiors of each helmet. I needed medium interiors she needed medium interiors. The Shuberth rep stepped up to do us right. I wasn't the most popular person in the eyes of the career salesperson. He's gone now.

 

C3 are nice modular helmets until you want it for features not associated with head protection. It's not a quiet helmet either. Speakers placed in the helmet will be very disappointing.

 

The C3 helmet has a defined place in the styrofoam to place the speakers. A shallow place to be sure. The problem is no matter where you place the speaker on the styrofoam it will not align with your ear canal. So placed the speaker will put pressure on the ear felt through the soft foam unless you dig out the correct amount of styrofoam. Worth mention is that the backing for the soft foam is a heavy fiber board which IMHO will resist/ not facilitate sound travel. Yes the fiber board has small holes which align with the speaker defined placement. However they nor the speakers are aligned to the ear canal. Another 800 dollars thrown to become a beta tester for yet another German company. Your mileage may vary.

 

[Edgar]

If you can solder small wires, it's not that difficult to to remove the speakers and add a pigtale that has a 3.5 mm female plug. Now you can use most types of ear buds, and hear everything better. The SRC has 32 u speakers, and most ear buds are 16 u, so you lose some bass. I was very happy I took the speakers off.

[bmwdavid]

Joe, from what I am reading it sounds like you are saying they are sized larger than normal and you had to go with the medium interiors. Also sounds like the helmet is noisy and speaker pocket is not located in a good spot. And speaker quality also is not the best. Hard to spend $2200 for two helmets and be disappointed.

[mneblett]

I have a C3Pro (previously had two C3s and a C1) with the BMW Communicator headset. I had a large in the previous Schuberths. Turns out I needed a medium to have a proper fit (determined with the help of a Schuberth rep). The helmet seemed too tight at first, but has broken in to the perfect amount of "snugness." What I'm suggesting is the large may be the "right" choice if you wear an XL.

 

On the Communicator, the speakers are not the absolute best on the market, but I'm quite satisfied with them -- enough that I haven't bothered grafting in replacements. Otherwise, it's the only game in town for complete integration with a BMW.

 

My biggest beef with the system is there is no automatic VOX switching -- either it is in music mode or intercom mode, and you have to press a button to switch. A gaping hole in the system design.

[Tri750]

Wear the helmets in the store as long as you need to. Take a book, magazine, tablet and sit there.

 

Make sure the comm system has the latest software. The early ones had poor volume and sound. The upgrade, which involved the dealer ordering an archaic cable from BMW, and loading an update made a big difference.

 

Don't blame Cardo, they built exactly what BMW specified. The complexity of the headset install is comical. I did all the headset installs for years at the dealership and this was a true gem. You had to laugh or you would cry.

 

Speaker placement is important and there is an oval approx 2x3 to put the speaker into. Generally speaking, better results are with mounting the speaker as far down and forward as possible in the speaker indent oval.

 

If you have bad hearing from age, music, guns, etc, this won't fix that so don't expect any headset to fix your hearing. Also, it's a motorcycle so you won't get living room sound quality.

These may seem like blunt or obvious comments, but I sold bike helmets and intercoms for 20 years and have seen a lot. Us men won't admit we have hearing loss and will blame the intercom. Watching the wife's reaction tells the story. Normally, she's been bugging him about it for a long time.

 

I own Autocom, Scala G4, Sena 10 and I would say the music is as good as the the G4, almost as good as the Autocom.

Sound quality is very subjective so make up your own mind.

Same with sizing, take your time.

The C3Pro in general terms runs maybe a bit big. The women's Pro has a smaller lighter shell with room for a ponytail. Some big boned women fit better in a smaller men's version.

 

[bmwdavid]

I was willing to try and see how the system sounded and fit but now I am even more disappointed to hear that you need to push a button to talk. Does Sena and Cardo have automatic vox? I assume automatic Vox means the music cuts out when you speak? Assumed that would be standard.

[lvmyks]

David,

I turned my VOX off. Either wife or myself would sing and the other person would (hey be quite) your ruining the song. Reaching up and hitting the jog wheel was no problem. Something to think about. As one other said, it is not your living room sound. We enjoy music, phone and chat...

[DiggerJim]

My wife and I each have a C3. The Pro version may be updated.

It is. You can even get the Pro padding as an option now for the C3. I usually take an XL helmet in other mfg's. According to the Schuberth sizing I should have been an XL there too. Tried it on & it was a bit too loose (using the "can I pull it up, move it around" snugness method). The Schuberth guy (bought it at Americade) agreed I'm an L for the C3 Pro. My head does too after spending a couple of weeks breaking it in - wearing it around the house every night for a couple of hours. That way I could return it if it didn't settle in. All is good with it now.

[bmwdavid]

Ron

Sorry to be so out of touch with the technology. What communications do you have? Are you saying you have something different than the BMW communication with the Vox capability but turned it off? Since I never had sound in a helmet I don't know if the Vox capability is something I need but thought it would be nice to not have to push a button to talk.

[Tri750]

Sound/intercom in helmet, no matter what brand can be very helpful.

My wife and I rode together for 15 years without. We then took an Edelweiss tour of NZ and the Autocom rep loaned me a system to use portable.

We also wired in a then new tech MP3 player.

It was/is amazing ! She was our navigator with the maps and kept us on track.

We also had background music when we chose.

At first of course, you'll be like two kids with new walkie talkies at Xmas. Constantly using them. After a bit, it becomes a useful tool. Just using it as needed.

Time has passed and the Scala is what I use solo, when we ride together, we still have our Autocom that we payed the rep for on return.

(Along with buying an RT)

[semimojo]

I bought two Shuberth C3 Pro helmets with the BMW communications devices when I bought my RT.

 

Sizing: I found the sizing of the helmet to be small/tight for the indicated size. The salesperson thought the large would fit me best, but when I put it on, I felt like my head was being crushed by a Boa constrictor. It was difficult for me to put the helmet on or take it off. I went with the XL, which still felt very tight in the store. After about 500 miles, it loosened up enough to feel comfortable when wearing it, but it is still a struggle to put it on. It stays put and moves naturally with my head though, so I can't complain.

 

BMW comm unit sound: Voice communications are excellent. The Navigator and phone communications are excellent. Music comes through rather thin and lifeless. Consequently, I don't bother with music when I ride, as the quality of the sound just annoys me.

 

[bmwdavid]

I am going to have to ask the dealer if I could listen to a system before purchasing. I'm almost thinking if only giving up controlling the volume from the bike is the only issue I may live without it to go with the new Sena.

Does anyone know for sure what doesn't work with the newest Sena and the new RT? Is it only volume from the bike or is it control of the Sirius stations, tracks from mp3 when plugged into the bike? The entire jog wheel?