Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[igofar]

Folks...
My old faithful 2730 crapped out and I am now looking for a replacement motorcycle GPS.
It will be mounted to the dash of my '07 using the OEM bracket from th newer models.

I think XM is something I MAY be interested in. (Unless I can buy a thingamajig that allows the GPS audio prompts to interrupt the stock head unit.)

I use my GPS for long distance touring and was very happy with the way the 2730 operated. I have the rear aux port installed and will require audio outputs from the new unit as well.

I am looking for real world stories from people that actually use their GPS units and want to know their likes/dislikes about each one.

Time to praise or rash your units fellas!!

I notice a few used GPS on the board right now and have no problems saving a buck if I can.

[bissjim]

The Harley Road Tech 660 or 665. The 665 has XM, Weather Radar and Traffic. If you want the GPS to interupt the head unit for Turn Prompts ONLY then you will also need the Harley Navigation Interface Module (NIM).

Note that the NIM will only interrupt the head unit for a turn prompt only so if you want to listen to XM, MP3 or hear the alerts for traffic and weather you will need to use the Auxiliary Input on the radio. Having said that if you are already listening via the Aux input to the XM, MP3 via the GPS then the NIM is redundant since the turn prompt will come thru the Aux input anyway.

If you want the NIM then you have to buy the Harley Road Tech 660 or 665 as the Garmin Zumo 660 or 665 will not work with the NIM. The Harley unit has a 2 year warranty and the Garmin Zumo has a 1 year warranty. I have used the Zumo 550, 660, 665 and the Road Tech 660 and 665 and they are all good units. I like the 665 because of the weather radar and traffic.

Add the H-D Bomm and you can make and take phone calls while riding.

Jim

[LovemyCVOgirl]

The Harley Road Tech 660 or 665. The 665 has XM, Weather Radar and Traffic. If you want the GPS to interupt the head unit for Turn Prompts ONLY then you will also need the Harley Navigation Interface Module (NIM).

Note that the NIM will only interrupt the head unit for a turn prompt only so if you want to listen to XM, MP3 or hear the alerts for traffic and weather you will need to use the Auxiliary Input on the radio. Having said that if you are already listening via the Aux input to the XM, MP3 via the GPS then the NIM is redundant since the turn prompt will come thru the Aux input anyway.

If you want the NIM then you have to buy the Harley Road Tech 660 or 665 as the Garmin Zumo 660 or 665 will not work with the NIM. The Harley unit has a 2 year warranty and the Garmin Zumo has a 1 year warranty. I have used the Zumo 550, 660, 665 and the Road Tech 660 and 665 and they are all good units. I like the 665 because of the weather radar and traffic.

Add the H-D Bomm and you can make and take phone calls while riding.

Jim

I have the Harley Road Tech 660 and I am very happy.  The screen is easy to see and the control buttons work easily with gloves on.  My friend had the 665 with XM and had problems getting a signal without interruptions when she was heading in the direction that the signal was transmitted over her shoulder.  It seems like reception for the XM was very sensitive to being blocked depending on the direction she was headed.  She switched to running the XM through her radio and the problem corrected itself.  She had the 665 mounted on her handlebar so my advice is if you go with the XM, IMO.... Mount it on your dash.

[bissjim]

Mounting the 665 on the fairing or handlebars will not effect the XM reception. The XM part of the 665 is a hockey puck size part that most people mount on top of the radio inside the cowling. If you are heading North or you ride in the mountains then the signal may not reach the XM puck. This would hold true for the weather radar and traffic alerts as both these signals are received by the XM puck. The XM puck is actually the XM radio and antenna all in one.

Jim

[JCZ]

Mounting the 665 on the fairing or handlebars will not effect the XM reception. The XM part of the 665 is a hockey puck size part that most people mount on top of the radio inside the cowling. If you are heading North or you ride in the mountains then the signal may not reach the XM puck. This would hold true for the weather radar and traffic alerts as both these signals are received by the XM puck. The XM puck is actually the XM radio and antenna all in one.
Jim

I have my antenna (the puck) mounted on the stereo head unit, up under the front fairing.....minimal problems with reception.  But the few times that I have experienced it is when I'm headed north.  Interestingly, my wife has hers in the same location and she gets reception even when I'm not getting reception.  The same goes for when we're riding in the mountains.  But that's when I just switch over to one of the CDs.....I mean that's what the CD is for.

As fas as the XM antenna (puck) being the radio.....I learned that one the hard way.  Jim (hd-dude) set the GPS/XM up on both of our bikes (along with a ton of other work).  But when I went to use the XM in my dually 4x4 up in the snow, I thought it was just a matter of buying another XM antenna since I already had service for the radio/gps. 

I'm on the phone with XM for at least half an hour.  They kept asking me for my radio ID number.....go to channel #1 and read the radio ID number to me.  I did that, way to many times to count.  Finally, I gave up and thought I'd somehow ruined my GPS/XM or was it the new antenna.  Soon I learned that the radio ID on a Garmin 2730 Street Pilot is actually the XM antenna number that they were wanting.  That would have required a whole new XM subscription.

Andy has beat them......he and Jim have devised an antenna mount that's quickly transferrable from one bike to the other.  So he has one subscription for all five (or is it six now?) of his bikes!  

He's crossed over, too.  Not worried so much about the look good....more concerned with comfort and function.

[igofar]

Note that the NIM will only interrupt the head unit for a turn prompt only so if you want to listen to XM, MP3 or hear the alerts for traffic and weather you will need to use the Auxiliary Input on the radio. Having said that if you are already listening via the Aux input to the XM, MP3 via the GPS then the NIM is redundant since the turn prompt will come thru the Aux input anyway.

Jim, I was hoping you would reply.
I've been away for a couple years and I am just now playing catch up.
So the NIM only interrupts with prompts? That would be when I am listening to the HK in FM, CD XM correct?
And it only works with the HD units.

What about if I wanted to listen to music through my GPS(XM or MP3) AND have a radar detector interrupt?
Is there a gadget for that?

As for the phone calls, I just need to see who and when people are calling, no communications needed.

Last question of all. Does everybody like the dash mount? I liked having the unit next to my right hand on the bars but that dash set up sure looks fancy!!

Brad in Ft Mac

[bissjim]

Jim, I was hoping you would reply.
I've been away for a couple years and I am just now playing catch up.
So the NIM only interrupts with prompts? That would be when I am listening to the HK in FM, CD XM correct?
And it only works with the HD units.

That is corect the NIM only interrupts an HK funtion such as FM, AM, CD, etc..

What about if I wanted to listen to music through my GPS(XM or MP3) AND have a radar detector interrupt?
Is there a gadget for that?

Not that I know of.

Jim