So I was reading the reviews on the chatterbox and they're absolutely horrible. Was thinking about the Trac-Com, but for $125 + $160 for headsets that seems a bit steep. Any other comms you instructors would recommend?

 

Just use a chatter box. They are cheap. Just make sure to let your student know to not pull it out by the cord, just pull the helmet off and let it fall out. The wires are super tiny/fragile. In the 3/4 years I've been using them, Ive only had one headset break. Was a lazy old bastard who wouldn't listen when I told him to stop pulling on the cord.

 

I zip tied the wire to the mic boom so even if they pull on the wire, it won't pull out of the earpiece.

 

Ive broken 2 chatterboxes. In both cases i 4X4ed the thing and broke the circut board inside it. It takes so little to damage the unit. I wapped my current one in lots of duct tape for impact padding.

 

cheap and works

 

yea mine pulled out now with zipties no worries, it is a piece of chinese shit but it works

 

Wow...no kidding. Ive thrown more away on less...might have to give it a shot.

 

The Chatterboxes are crap for their price point. Zip tie the wires to the boom and they're at least halfway resistant to coming apart when pulling on the wire. Thinking back on it, I'd say about 80-90% of my students still pull the mic out by the wire at some point in the weekend after telling them not to. It's just the natural place to pull it out, and hours after the "don't pull the wire" speech, it's buried under me talking them around the track a few dozen times.

My mics and the box itself are on their last legs. I have to apply pressure just right on the box to keep it working.

That cheap Chinese jobber actually looks interesting.

 

I'm still on my original two mics for my Chatterbox. Probably 15 events instructed thus far. Only issue I had was one earpiece foam came off so I superglued it back on. I also zip tied the cord to the mic. I don't even bother to tell the student what to do when pulling it out.

 

I've gone through three chatterboxes. The main unit itself is crap. The inputs wear out or you get lots of audio feedback. The student headsets suck also.