Headset cord on Mark II

[Wizard765]

Hi there:

 

I have an 84 VR and have installed a CB etc out of a 92. The 5 pin cord that goes from the radio the where the driver plugs his headset in has a plug sticking out the side of it half way down. Can someone tell me what is suppose to plug into that? Could it be a filter of some sort?

 

Wayne

[Condor]

It might be a place to plug in the rear passenger cord. I have a passenger plug on the '83, but haven't any idea as to where it connects into the intercom??? This maybe the place???

[Gearhead]

Wayne,

 

The plug you refer to is not a DIN, right? Is it a small, electrical (rather than audio) looking plug? It's the place that the rider's headset attenuation knob (on the LH handlebar control pod) plugs in. You don't really need it. I've unplugged mine before when chasing headset noise, and when it's unplugged it acts like the knob is turned to max volume (no attenuation). If you have the pod, it should have in its harness the matching plug.

 

Jeremy

[Wizard765]

Thanks Gearhead.

 

I suppose there is one for the rear as well then.. I am chasing noise and trying to figure this out. Did you solve your noise issue? I have heard there is a noise filter in these somewhere and I don't have a clue where they go.

 

Wayne

[muffinman]

The noise filter is located on the inner fairing just forward of the radio and intercom boxes Inside the fairing. the passenger wiring for the control box is part of the main wiring harness.You can cut the wires out of the harness and use them it is somewhat of a pain but I did it on my 83 so mini could control her headset as needed and it has worked out fine for us.

Jeff

[Gearhead]

Yeah, what Muffin said.

 

Wayne, did you get the rider and passenger control boxes as well? For the rider, it's mounted on the LH bar in a little box. The passenger's is on the LH side of the trunk; the passenger's remote controls, individual headset attenuator and headset plug-in are all in the same place. If you don't have the boxes or don't want to mount them, don't worry, you don't really need them. As I said before, with the attenuation knobs unplugged it just goes to max headset volume, still controlled by the master volume of course. Both boxes have buttons for channel changine, mute, and a couple other things, but those controls are available on the main radio (except for mute). Pass. PTT (for CB only) is also in this box, but the rider's is on the signal switch pod. Normally, the pass. remote box plugs into the DIN cable from the amp, underneath the pass. seat, and the headset plugs into the box. If you don't have the box, the headset can plug directly into the cable.

 

The noise filter assy is actually dual noise filters. There are 5 wires - two hot in, two hot out, one to ground. The radio and CB both get main power only when the key is on, but get battery power all the time to maintain their memory settings. Both power sources go thru the filter assy. The schematic helped me make sense of it.

 

I have improved, but not solved, my noise problem. I have some alternator noise and some ignition noise, and it is not always the same which I don't understand. I've checked and cleaned all my connections and added equipment grounds, which didn't really help. Optimizing the relationship between the headset attenuation knobs and the master volume can help, although the optimal setting changes depending on which noise source is dominant at the time. The thing that helped the noise was this: I ran an additional 12 gage ground wire from the voltage regulator right to the battery neg in an effort to improve charging voltage. It did - I now get ~14.5V. It also reduced the headset noise quite a bit - bonus! I still need to check the spark plug wire connections on both ends (trim a little from the wire as recommended here), replace the plugs, and I'm going to try lining the inner fairing underneath the radio with foil. Finally, I'm told that the capacitors in the noise filter can dry out and be ineffective. That functionality can be added back by buying appropriate caps from Radio Shack and wiring them in between the hot from the filter and ground. Problem is, I dunno what "appropriate" caps are.

 

This equipment all shows up in schematic form in the 86+ service manual available here online. It's on the very last page. There's more detail in the electrical chapter.

 

Jeremy

[Wizard765]

Thanks for the accurate review Gearhead:

 

I DID get all the controls. Rear and Front. BUT the 84 wiring harness is missing places to plug this stuff in so I didn't use it. Also the 84 bag has not got enough room to mount the rear control. I got a waterproof PTT button meant for the rear of a 1500 wing and it works perfect for the passenger as it has a velcro strap to attach it to the grab bar. I took another one and after dissassembling it I was able to glue it to the back of my left hand controls so it is where it would be in a stock situation.

 

Noise:

 

I have some noise almost all the time. If I'm not riding in a group I can route the CB and radio to the speakers. When I do that the intercom is dead silent and we can talk and hear perfectly. If I'm riding solo and want to use the CB it also works fine if I turn on the mute then turn up the CB.

Problem comes in when I want to use both the CB and the intercom (which is most of the time). Seems to be static on the line all the time. My wife unplugs after awhile because it bothers her so much. I have no filter but just won one on eBay so will attempt to wire that into the system and see if it helps.

 

Again thanks for the input

 

Wayne

[Gearhead]

Let me know how the noise filter works for you. Do you mean a factory one? Some people say that they are too old, that the caps go bad. If you want to try aftermarket filters, you need two.

 

My noise, like yours, is dependent on exactly what's turned on and what levels are set where.

 

Hey GeorgeS, did you ever try new caps on yours?

 

Jeremy