2.)
Will XM satellite receivers work with the Mix-It2?
Yes! This is a very popular use for the Mix-It2.
Due to design limitations of satellite radio receivers, the output
from these devices is not great enough to hear on a motorcycle.
Indeed, people using them at home find they have to turn up the
volume on their stereos much higher than they normally have to
for other components such as CD, MP3 and DVD players. Many satellite
radio receivers do not have volume controls built in! They do
offer limited volume settings via a menu, but even the maximum
output level is not sufficient for motorocycle use. Even though
the satellite radio receivers are line-output devices, they work
great with the Mix-It2.
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3.) What
devices work with the Mix-It2?
The Mix-It2 has been used with numerous devices,
really too many to list. The most popular items, and those I have
used personally include: Apple iPod, Lyra MP3 player, Personal
Music Jukebox, iRiver CD player, Sony cassette walkman, Sangean
AM/FM radio, Valentine 1 radar detector, Escort Passport radar
detector, Garmin StreetPilot III, Garmin 2610/2620 GPS, etc.
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4.) What
devices will work NOT with the Mix-It2?
Certain FM radios don't work with the Mix-It2
when the Mix-It2 is operating off of bike power due to interference
by the oscillator in the DC converter of the Mix-It2. I have not
found a way to shield this though the problem has only been reported
twice, so I presume FM radios are not a common device used with
the Mix-It2. Helmet speakers, unless they are rated at 16 ohms
or higher, typically will not work with the Mix-It2. Other products
require an isolation cable for use with earlier Garmin GPS units
(those that do not have MP3 playback nor satellite radio capability),
Escort/Bell/Cobra radar detectors but the Mix-It2 does not since
it has isolation built into two jacks - all that is required is
a mono patch cord. 4G LTE phones are known to cause "static
bursts" when in close proximity to the Mix-It2 (and most
other electronics, including computer speakers). An easy solution
is to just move the two devices apart, 12" is usually enough
to eliminate the static noise.
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5.) How is the Mix-It2
powered?
The Mix-It2 operates of a standard 9 volt battery,
for approximately 24 hours of continuous use. It can also be plugged
into bike power using the included power cord. The external power
jack of the Mix-It2 is noise filtered and does not require an
external power filter. The power jack can accept a voltage input
of 9v to 18v without the need for a voltage converter! To hard
wire the Mix-It2 into your bike, connect the black wire to a fused
+12 volt source, and the black wire with white trace to ground,
and you're done!
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6.) Does the Mix-It2 require
a noise filter when running off bike power?
No. The Mix-It2 has noise filtering built in,
so it does not require an external filter.
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7.) Why do Escort/Bell/Cobra
detectors require a different cable than the Valentine One?
The Valentine One audio break-out box has a headphone
jack that is a stereo output and uses a 3.5mm stereo jack. Other
detectors are monaural output and thus require a mono cable. Most
others (notably Escort, Bell, and Cobra) also have ungrounded
outputs and require isolation. Other products sell isolation cables
at ridiculous prices, while the Mix-It2 has the isolation built
into two mono inputs.
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8.) Why do the Garmin
GPS units require a special cable?
Earlier Garmin GPS units (mono ouputs, typically
those without MP3 or satellite radio capability) use an ungrounded
amplifier output. Other products require a special isolation cable,
the Mix-It2 does not. The GPS just needs the proper cable to plug
into an isolated input on the Mix-It2 (either a PC-GPS2 for 2610/2620
models). Later models (28xx, Zumo, Nuvi, etc) with stereo jacks
can be plugged into a stereo input on the Mix-It2.
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9.) What
kinds of earphones or speakers do you recommend?
I have tried numerous types of helmet speakers
and earbuds and have found three that are worth considering: "The
Plug" by Koss, Etymotic ER-6's and custom made earphones.
The Plug is a nice, inexpensive earphone
with excellent sound and decent isolation from environmental noise.
Some riders complain about it's bulk, however, and that their
helmet cushions push against it's body and into their ears causing
pain after some time. I used these for about a year before being
told about the Etymotic earphones..
Etymotic earphones are more expensive, have excellent frequency
response, and superior comfort. They began with the ER6's, which
are now discontinued, and currently offer the ER6i's. These and
Shure E3C's were the first commercially available insert earphones
and provide excellent music reproduction in addition to excellent
noise isolation comparable to foam earplugs. They are definitely
worth the expense. The newer ER6i earphones offer the same features
as the ER6, but offer greater (28dB) noise reduction and were
designed to have greater bass reponse (though in my trials the
sound overall just seems a little louder). There are now dozens
of earphones in this category, the key is finding something comfortable
that eliminates environmental noise. For me, its been the ER6.
More recently, Etymotic began to offer the HF5's which have dual
speaker drivers in them compared to the single driver of the ER6
line. The dual speakers provide better bass/trebel separation
and are, again, a leap ahead of anything else I've tried. The
HF5 is my current earphone of choice though I still keep a pair
of ER6's around.
Custom earphones are THE Rolls Royce of
earphones for riders. They require an impression be made of your
ear by a hearing professsional which is then sent in to be made
into custom earphones. They are the most expensive solution, running
typically $160 plus audiologist fees, but are certain to be THE
solution for comfort, sound quality, and durability. For those
with sensitive ear canals, oddly shaped, or small ear canals,
this may be the ONLY solution.
Helmet speakers: I've tried three kinds
of helmet speakers and have always been disappointed with the
sound quality from them. I do not recommend them. I know riders
who swear by them, but if you want the highest quality audio from
your music sources, like I do, then earphones are the only option
to consider. Even good helmet speakers will require the use of
earplugs, which diminishes the frequency response of the audio.
In addition, using earplugs will require additional amplification
to the speakers, which typically results in distortion.
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10.) What are the issues
using a Passport 8500 and X50 with the Mix-It2?
None, the Mix-It2 offers two isolation mono inputs and all that
is needed is a mono patch cord from the Escort detector to the
Mix-It2.
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11.) Can I use my Garmin
276C with the Mix-It2?
Yes! Garmin now makes a motorcycle kit for the 276C which provides
power and a 2.5mm female headphone jack. The PC-GPS2 cable is
all that is needed to use it with the Mix-It2. The cable that
comes with the Garmin 276C can also be used by connecting the
Audio + wire to the tip and ring connection of a standard 3.5mm
stereo plug, available from Radio Shack. To the Audio - wire,
connect a non-polarized .1uF capacitor (a tantalum capacitor works
great) and then solder the other lead of the capacitor to the
shield of the 3.5mm plug. That's it!
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12.) How do the ER-6i
earphones compare to the ER-6 earphones?
The ER6 earphones are no longer available as of summer 2009.
The ER6i's have been upgraded with a new tip that I have found
much more comfortable than the previous tip design.
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13.) What is a priority
over-ride?
A priority over-ride is a special circuit associated with one
of the inputs of a mixer which, when a signal on that input is
present, mutes the other inputs giving this signal "priority".
In some systems, the other signals are completely muted, some
simply reduce the volume making the priority signal more prominent.
Here is how it works: let's say you have a MP3 player, talking
GPS and radar detector plugged into a priority mixer. The radar
detector is plugged into the prioritized input. Normally, you
would be listening to music, your GPS might announce directions
once in a while, but when the detector produces an alert signal,
the music and GPS are muted so you only hear the radar signal.
When the radar signal stops, the music and GPS function again.
Many customers requested the feature, so it was added to the Mix-It2.
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14.) What is a noise
gate and why doesn't the Mix-It2 have one?
A noise gate is another special circuit that really acts as a
filter. When an audio input contains a constant low level noise
like a buzz, hum, or whatever, it can grow irritating to listen
to. A noise gate mutes a noisy input at a preset threshhold level
- just above the normal noise. When the incoming signal exceeds
the threshhold, the gate opens and allows the signal AND noise
to pass through. As an example, lets say you were playing a cassette
tape and didn't like the background hiss. With a noise gate, during
quiet passages or blank spots between songs, the noise gate would
be "closed" and not allow sound to pass to your earphones.
When a new song begins, the gate "opens" and allows
the music and noise through. It's a cheap way of curing a noise
problem without having to tackle why there is a noise problem!
The Mix-It2 does not use noise gates simply because it does NOT
have noise problems with the inputs! The amplifier itself produces
some white noise, but that is the nature of amplifcation and cannot
be eliminated without a more expensive amp design and added bulk.
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15.) Is the belt clip
removeable?
The beltclip is a separate piece ultrasonically welded to the
main body of the Mix-It2. As such, it is not removeable. Should
the beltclip interfere with installing the Mix-It2 in your particular
setup, it can be permanently removed fairly easily. First, lift
up on the end of the clip and break it off. The main body of the
clip will remain intact. With a pair of needlenose pliers, grip
either end of the clip and lift up and towards the center to break
it off. Usually the whole body will come off. If not, repeat the
process on the other side of the clip. If both sides are now broken
off but the main portion remains, use the needlenose to grip it
and give it a twist. This should break it free. When the clip
is removed, there will be slight marks left on the case where
the two parts were welded together, but they are minimal.
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16.) Can I use a Garmin
Zumo with the Mix-It2?
Yes! The Garmin Zumo and the 28xx series GPS units finally use
standard 3.5mm stereo headphone jacks and have a standard line-out
signal level which can be used with earphones, or to connect the
Garmin unit to another device, such as the Mix-It2. When using
the satellite radio or MP3 feature of these GPS units (those so
equipped) the GPS will prioritize the GPS prompts over the music
for you. So how do you use them with the Mix-It2? There are three
scenarios:
Scenario 1: You want to hear only the GPS voice prompts and over-ride
anything else plugged into the Mix-It2. This is easy, and only
requires plugging the the GPS into the isolated mono input with
either a mono or stereo cable. Since the GPS output is a mono
signal and its jack is stereo, either a mono or stereo cord will
work just fine. The Mix-It2 mono inputs are also stereo jacks,
but wired for mono.
Scenario 2: You want to hear your GPS voice prompts and listen
to music. The only option for this configuration is to plug the
GPS into a stereo input on the Mix-It2. You cannot have the GPS
plugged into the mono priority input because the music (which
is stereo) will sound terrible plugged into the Mix-It2 mono input.
Scenario 3: You want to use the GPS with or without music, but
want another device to override it (a radar detector for example).
In this case, you would plug the GPS input a stereo input on the
Mix-It2 using a stereo cord, then plug the device you want as
priority into the mono priority input.
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17.) Will Bluetooth(tm)
be an added feature to the Mix-It2?
I don't feel Bluetooth has really matured to offer
what people expect from it. It suffers from poor sound quality
(as far as music is concerned), incompatibility issues between
various headsets and mics, and battery life could be longer. Most
Bluetooth options require helmet speaker use, and if you refer
to FAQ #9, you'll know I'm not a fan of speakers. I continue to
monitor discussions and advancements in Bluetooth technology and
one day, it may become a viable option.
18.) Will I hear mono
signals in only one ear or both?
Most people think of a single speaker or earphone
when they think of "monaural" sounds, but it chiefly
refers to a single (mono) signal source, even if that single signal
is presented to two speakers as in a stereo setup. A stereo signal
provides two different signals to the left and right channels.
The Mix-It2 presents the mono signal to both ears.