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Permalink Reply by Perry Hyden on Saturday

Mine is noisy too.  I have a Microaire 760 with built in intercom. Foam muff on the mic. Lots of ambient noise coming through.

My buddy was with me and couldn't use his Lightspeed Zulu because of the noise, had to use an old David Clark. I'm not sure if my radio in bad. I've tried adjusting the setting on the radio, not having much luck.

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Permalink Reply by Bob Simmons on Monday

First, try it without the intercom, to see if that is an issue. Then try a different headset, and see if that changes anything. Don't hook up a second headset when you do this.

What kind of cable do you have going to your antenna? Cheap RG-58 cable can cause lots of noise problems. It should be RG-400 or better. But if the problem is ambient noise only, this likely isn't the cause.

What do you mean by any fuse noise?

If it's only background noise coming through the mic, a foam mic muff would be the first step.

If push comes to shove, there are microphones and intercoms out there designed for high noise environments. I haven't seen anyone post a user experience with them though.

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Permalink Reply by Carl Orton on Monday

Hi, Bob; Thanks for your input. Good thoughts.

Yes, I was going to try it without the intercom next time; only challenge is that I'm still in Phase 1, and I'm using the FAA Additional Pilot Program, hence the need for the intercom. I'm sure we can work out temporary changes just for test purposes. Just wanted to make sure there's nothing obvious that I've overlooked. I have another headset that I know worked well in a noisy environment previously on my Sonex. It's a halo style headset by Quiet Technologies.

I used RG400 throughout any RF emitters.

Fuse noise - sorry - was using slang. I meant general fuselage noise either from engine, slipstream, prop, or oil canning of the fuselage sides.

I have always used a mic muff on any headset I've ever used.

I'm very pleased with comm quality just taxiing around. Only when I go to takeoff power does it get messy.

Thanks again!

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Permalink Reply by Bob Simmons on Monday

If none of that helps, I'd suggest posting this on the homebuiltairplanes.com forum. Far bigger user base over there, so you're more likely to find someone who's experienced this problem.

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Permalink Reply by Dave Geiling on Tuesday

May not be relevant, but I had a similar issue with my MGL V16 radio (has a built-in intercom) where the squelch setting had to be increased significantly to prevent the mike from turning on at engine full power.  My 601 is extremely noisy, straight pipes on a Jabiru 3300, and zero cockpit insulation or padding.

Also I noted on the A200 user instructions the use of a "communication/intercom" switch that had to be switched in order to transmit??

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Permalink Reply by Bob Simmons yesterday

The switch is optional. If voice activation is not used, a switch is required to tell the Icom what you want to do when you key the mic. If voice activated intercom is always used, the switch isn't necessary. Just remember that, without the switch, the radio keys whenever anyone pushes their PTT. But that's pretty much the default for most two place aircraft. Larger aircraft that want more complex functions will typically use an audio panel.

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Permalink Reply by Carl Orton yesterday

Good point, Bob; I didn't install the switch "just because". I'm leaning more and more that the issue is the fligthcom portable intercom and the two mics being open at once when the PTT is pressed....

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