By Kornkob
Published: March 2005
Somewhere in Northern Illinois
The wind blows across the field, running up against the tree line to twist leaves and bend branches. Figures dart among the shadows, surging forward with the gusts of wind.
Eyes follow the movement from beneath a bush. Slowly, a hand moves up to key a radio. “Echo6 this is Uniform4. I have enemy unit, strength 6, maneuvering on the south side of LZ. Over.”
In the shade of the garage being used as a staging area and command center, a tall man stands over a desk staring down at a map of the area. His radio barks: “ Echo6, this is *static* enemy *wind blowing across mic*south *static* over.”
The tall man keys his own mic as beads of sweat jump out on his forehead. “Last Calling station, this is Echo6. Say again, last. Over.” Even before he finishes, the commander knows he’ll never get the message in time.
Radio Communications
Airsoft skirmishes are generally held in areas that are about perfect for FRS radio use. The Family Radio Service radios, with a range of 1-2 miles, is a perfectly competent communication solution for tactical airsoft activities. The economical radio units are generally sturdy and are often water resistant.
While these radios are fairly widely used as a basis for tactical communications, various factors often have a negative impact on their effectiveness. One of those factors is poor quality microphones and headphone units. All too often a player will spend several hundred on an airsoft gun, a couple hundred more on a sidearm and push the total over a hundred with uniforms, boots and tactical gear. By the time a radio comes up often times the player is looking to save a buck and will buy an inexpensive radio and an even cheaper mic/earphone unit.
Frequently that cheap headset or earbud ends up causing communication problems as the poor quality of the mic and speakers distort the messages sent and received over the radio. Now it’s perfectly understandable to try and save a buck or 2 on things—after all there are SO many cool toys out there associated with this hobby and a guy only has so much money.
At the same time, radio communications can be so critical, especially in large scale games, that skimping too much will result in useless or, worse, misleading communications between elements. Perhaps the worse tactical choice that is routinely made is to use a radio without any aural accessories, allowing each transmission to be projected out the radio’s built in speaker. This makes stealth near impossible and, if someone transmits at the wrong time, can give away critical intelligence to the enemy.
In my own search for a good radio solution I’ve acquired many different radio accessories in an attempt to improve the clarity of communications in a tactical environment.
The Earbud
The least expensive option for keeping one’s radio traffic to yourself. Essentially it’s just a tiny speaker designed to be wedged into the curve of the ear, allowing it to project sound into the ear canal. MSRP at a little more than $12 and easily found online or on sale for less than $10, this is a really cheap way to quiet a radio.
This device has some severe limitations, however. With no microphone on the device, it requires the operator to use the mic on the radio itself in order to transmit. This significantly limits your choices in mounting your radio to your gear.
Additionally, when transmitting it requires some significant commitment to the radio in order to position one’s mouth over the radio for clear transmission of a quiet speaking voice.
One other rather troublesome issue is that the earbud, by design, fills the ear. While this seal is by no means perfect, it is significant in a tactical environment. Blocking the ear canal makes it more difficult to detect and track the location of sounds.
The final problem with earbuds is that they have little holding them into position. Vigorous activity, not at all uncommon in a tactical environment, can easily dislodge the device. However, this particular problem is easily solved with the application of a small piece of 90mph or gaffers tape just below the ear, holding the bud in position.
All that being said, the earbud is an inexpensive option that is infinitely preferable to a radio without some sort of tactically sound headset option.
The Earbud with PTT button
Motorola also produces a slightly more advanced version of the earbud. Listing at around $18 it’s not that hard to find in the $10-12 range. Adding to the same earbud a small mic with Push to Talk button solves one of the problems of the straight earbud, namely the requirement that one uses the mic on the radio body.
The mic is not of the greatest quality, although it will pick up and transmit a normal speaking voice rather readily. The mic is buried inside a small plastic housing with 3 small holes allowing sound in to the mic. This pinhole nature of the mic placement does leave it more susceptible to wind blowing across it, degrading the already rather tinny voice quality.
The size and placement of the PTT button can be problematic. It is a fairly tiny button. In a tactical environment where many players are wearing gloves this tiny button can be very hard to find. Additionally it’s proximity to the mic is such that it is easy to accidentally cover the mic when pushing the button.
This device has the same placement problems as the standard earbud, with retention and the blocking of the ear canal still problematic. There are some small holes in the back of the earpiece of this model, a small attempt to let ambient sound into the ear.
The Earbud with PTT is certainly a step up from the standard earbud, although there are still some signifcant issues with this device. Another economy optins but still not tactcally the best.
Earpiece Boom Mic
A jump forward is the earpiece with boom mic. Clipping to one ear and projecting a mic out near the mouth, this unit provides some significant advantage over the earbud styles.
The mic’s placement near the mouth allows for convenient low volume speech. The voice quality is quite good with solid high and low tones. However the lack of a PTT button makes activating the mic challenging with some kinds of radio pouches, since it requires the use of the button on the radio body to key up.
Some also might find the earpiece uncomfortable or less than secure. It clips on using pressure from below the ear to hold it in place. With the plastic casing of the mic out at the end of a long boom, a pendulum effect can develop when running. People who sweat excessively r have small ears might find that the earpiece shifts or slides off under the most vigorous activity, although in low to moderate movement there should be little problem. A small square of gaffers tape or 9mph tape can hold the mic in place quite easily. Even so the pressure on the ear can get to be a bit much for some after several hours.
The fact that the Boom mic does not put anything in the ear canal directly allows one to wear it in such a way as to minimize the impact it has on the operator’s ability to hear and place ambient sounds. The flat, 1 inch speaker delivers excellent sound quality and is somewhat adjustable. With a little tweaking of volume and position one can set the speaker a half inch or more away from the ear, allowing sounds form the surrounding environment to get to the ear canal readily.
The boom mic is mounted inside a housing that is then surrounded by a small foam pill. These contrive to limit the affect of wind blowing or the operator breathing on the mic and do so with reasonable effectiveness.
Sturdy and providing reasonable sound clarity in transmissions in or out, the Earpiece Boom Mic is a decent low end option.
Throat Mic
Of course the throat mic comes into this at some point. This author has tried several budget options for throat mics. The Isaus NT Sniper has passed through my hands. In addition to that unit, the Radio Shack model has been used as has the new guy on the scene: the Firefox. Running from $120 to $35, these units have differing build quality but all seem to have relatively the same mic and speaker quality.
All of these throat mics have their own good and bad features. However they also have the same point of failure.
The upside they all share is obvious: coolness factor. There’s nothing like a throat mic to complete that ‘special operations’ look to your uniform.
Now, while having gear that looks slick is a big part of the airsoft scene, it’s also important that it works. Unfortunately all 3 of these throat mics have had trouble with picking up voices uniformly. In some instances they’ve worked like a champ in other’s it has not at all. Placement of the mic pick ups is very important and, unfortunately, sweat and vigorous activity contrive to move the unit around pretty reliably.
All in all, these units all looked great but once in the tactical environment they all fail to allow for consistent, clear communications as the mics move around.
Speaker Microphone and Earphone combo
At a recent game in Illinios I heard 2 people on the radio who were consistently clear on the air. They had the clear tube running up their neck like you see on spec ops and secret service types. Their Mic was a small handset unit with a large PTT button. It looked like the radio setup seen on soldiers in modern day conflicts around the world. During the course of the day I went and spoke to them about their radio setup.
They were using a consumer level Speaker Mic from Radio Shack. This required some disassembly and rewiring to shut down the external speaker when used with the professional grade earpieces they picked up. Altogether they were talking about over $140 dollars and a bit of soldering to make it work properly.
Now, I wanted to find something that was going to give me the same performance and functionality without the added work and uncertainty of having to make custom modifications. Enter the Google search. A short time later I had found myself some pretty similar items for a bit less.
Speaker Mic
The Pryme Speaker Microphone unit is primarily designed to be used as a lapel mic, much like many urban patrol officers use. It provides both a solid, clear speaker and a nicely sized, good quality microphone. A sturdy cord attaches to a plastic body that strong and without any play. Attempting the crush the mic in a fist produces no give at all—not even a squeak. The only possible weakness is the clip on the back, which seems to be made of slightly less sturdy plastic and may be prone to damage over time. However, at $25 it’s damn fine quality.
The transmit key on the mic has a minor flaw—it is capable of being locked into the ‘ON’ position. According to the instructions this is to allow Voice Activation to be used. Now, anyone who has been on a radio with someone who has VOX turned on knows full well that, in a tactical environment, VOX sucks. Every time the operator shouts to a buddy, swears to themselves or even breaths moderately hard, they transmit, stepping all over everyone else. Obviously having a VOX capable mic is of limited use and, in fact, it’s probably best if it can be disabled. A strategically placed piece of tape, does, in fact, help in that endeavor, if you’re of a mind to make sure you don’t lock your mic in the ‘ON’ position.
However, the button is large and has a solid feel when keyed. Fitting neatly in even my medium sized palm with heavy gloves on, it is easy to find the key. As long as the operator is speaking in the direction of the mic unit, it will pick up the sound with little loss of fidelity. The grill does a pretty good job of eliminating light wind noise, where many mics will transmit the slightest breeze across the mic so loudly you’d swear it was a raging tempest.
This Speaker Mic has it’s own volume control that adjusts the sound that is produced when used as a speaker as well as a microphone. Using the unit in this way when you are in a ‘safe zone’ or acting as Range Safety or Observer/Controller would be fairly handy. Moving the mic up to the lapel, much like patrol officers do, and turning the volume down allows you to keep in contact without having to wear an earpiece or other gear. Obviously, this device alone is not really all that tactical, seeing as the sounds are not isolated to the ear alone, when used as a speaker as well as a microphone. Knowing this the designers added a 3.5mm earphone jack to the unit, allowing one to add an earphone for privacy or tactical situations.
OTTO Earphone
Digging around, I also turned up a nice professional earphone for less than $50. With completely interchangeable parts and a solid, quality finish, the Otto Earphone provides excellent sound in a compact, professional package. The parts, if they become lost or damaged are readily available from radio accessory shops across the nation. This earphone produces a crisp, clear sound to the ear that is nearly identical to the sound produced by the radio’s built in speaker unit.
The one flaw with this item is the stock earplug. The earplug that comes with the unit by default completely blocks the ear canal. This makes bi-aural hearing of anything but he loudest sounds near impossible. In a tactical environment, being able to tell where sound is coming from is key to situational awareness and assessment.
Ear Insert
This too is an easily solved problem. The same site also sold $15 Open ear Inserts to replace the silicone plug with an ergonomically shaped earpiece. While this earpiece aids in directing the radio sounds to the eardrum, it is also designed to allow the operator full range of hearing in that ear, by channeling ambient sound in as well. Exchanging the earpiece had no impact on the fidelity of the radio transmissions, while significantly increasing the ability to hear the sounds in the surrounding environment.
Probably most important, is fit of such a thing. The ergonomics of this thing are such that you need some sort of feeling as to how big your ears are compared to the rest of the world so that you can pick the right size. This is more of a judgment call than anything. My solution? I asked a couple friends if I had big ears or little ears. I got a lot of ‘just regular ears’ so I picked medium. Large, medium and small are the only sizes and getting a good fit will be the difference between it fitting comfortably all day and all night and the earpiece falling out every few minutes.
It’s also notable that the ear insert will only work in the ear it is designed for: right or left. You need to figure out in advance which ear you’ll be wearing it in. It’s probably best to use the radio earphone in the ear opposite your AEG. While an AEG isn’t all that loud when compared to a firearm, it does produce a fair amount of sound which could mask a quiet inbound transmission. Given that transmission’s potential for being tactically important, it’s be a good idea to move your earphone away from potential vibrations and sounds --- like an AEG.
So for less than $90 shipped, I acquired an accessory rig that transmits and receives voice communications with a minimum of interference, distortion and fuss. Durable and attractive, the setup provides me with a fair amount of flexibility in placement and stands up to the rigors of tactical use.
The one thing that might be a good addition, depending on one’s loadout and actual use of the mic is a retractor of some kind. Whether it be a cheap ID Badge holder or a more professional mic retractor or even the K.I.S.S. solution of a loop of shock cord, being able to grab the mic and pull it closer to your mouth to accommodate quieter transmissions or unusual body position with a minimum of fuss is quite handy.
There are a couple changes I want to make to the Speaker Mic. The Speaker Mic comes apart easily and cleanly with the removal of just 3 screws. I intend to get some black plastic primer and some OD flat spray paint and change the color of the handheld unit to OD so that it better matches my gear as well as the images I’ve seen of this style of radio handset being used in real world tactical environments. Also, having looked over the transmit button I’ve figured out that by breaking off one small tab of plastic inside the unit, I will be able to completely remove any chance of the mic being stuck in the ‘ON’ position.
Closure
Now I realize that there are people out there who swear by their boom mic or their Jabra ear plug. I even know of a couple people who have told me that they don’t think radios have any appreciable impact on the game at all (including one who was saying this just after his team got its clock cleaned by a flanking maneuver that would have never come off without some solid radio comms). Of course there’s the ever present discussion out there about which radio to buy and which features to look for. Frequently the last thing that is said is ‘and get some sort of headset’.
I had hoped to share some of my experiences in searching for ‘some sort of headset’. While I was doing that I wanted to share my opinion that the choice of your radio accessories is as important as your choice of radios, perhaps even more important. Let’s face it, if you’ve got a the best FRS radio out there that has the longest range and the clearest transmission quality, it doesn’t mean damn-all if you bought some bargain basement earbud that falls off and a microphone that transmits every sound like it was coming from the bottom of a garbage can filled with a bunch of crumpled newspaper and a ferret on crack.
A radio and a good tactical listening and transmission solution should be among the first things one buys. Getting a good communications setup between yourself and your teammates makes a world of difference. In my opinion, long before someone starts looking for a MICH helmet, ghillie suit or a sidearm, they should be looking to pick up a good quality radio and finding a solid set of tactical accessories for it. No other equipment has the potential to spy enemies over a ridgeline or find your buddy who disappeared into the brush 20 minutes ago. It might not be decisive in every firefight but it can mean the difference between stumbling across the enemy in a gaggle and the surgical lancing of a pocket of resistance.
Special Thanks: Ghostbear (Group W) and Bob Kranker for helping me find what I'd been looking for for years. -Kornkob
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