Philadelphia Area Airsoft

This is my review for the Swimmer Style Headset with Peltor PTT (push to talk). Please, Add your comments!

http://www.ebairsoft.com/swimmer-style- ... -2548.html



I ordered this from EBairsoft.com which is based in China. I picked it up after hearing numerous complaints about how my throat mic sometimes eliminates use of the radio because all it would pick up was me breathing. Not good on a massive field like Ghettoblaster or Willingboro. The price was reasonable, and I had positive business with EBA (EBAirsoft) before, so I thought why not? This item can be ordered to fit several different brand radios and configurations, so if you don't have motorola talkabouts, you should still check it out.

The order took about a month to come in. When it came in, it was wrapped in brown paper packaging and it was taped up very well. My name was typed clearly on a piece of paper. It didn't look like it was taken apart by any customs people which only makes me curious as to why it took so long to come through.

After examing the packaging, I tore into it and found that the actual product was wrapped up very professionally. The box to the headset folded into itself and everything was in Engrish. The PTT, which was wrapped seperately, was in plastic secured by paper stapled to the top.


I pulled the PTT from it's packaging first. It is made of a fairly dense plastic. The wire leading from it to the radio is quite long. I really had to weave it through my MOLLE webbing to take up the slack. The claw that attaches to your gear and spring mechanism that is attached to the PTT is metal and will suffice for sometime unless it rusts. The Clip on the other hand is made of the same plastic that the rest is made of. The button for the PTT is about the circumference of a nickel. You really have to push it in to make it work. It's made out of Rubber and is pretty deep into the hole wear it sits. Definately reachable with a gloved hand, which in my opinion is very important.



Second, I openend up the Headset. From opening I was very impressed with the packaging. The wire ad mic were in a seperate compartment from the speaker. I pulled the unit out and was taken first by the way it mounts to your head. Now, I have a Dome that closely resembles a small hill, and I was able to make it fit. There is an elastic band that wraps around your head that pulls on a piece of mesh. The length of the Mesh can be adjusted by hook and loop, which really allowed me to put the speaker right over my ear without having the headset in some oddball position. The boom mic is rather long. The actual boom itself is pretty rigid. Meaning that the mic isn't gonna fall down and get in the way of everything. The microphone itself is about the size of a dime, maybe larger.

Box


Oddball Earpiece. Notice that its just round? Is that wierd?


Velcro Adjuster. Notice the elastic band around it.


Picture of My head with the thing on. It's not the best photo, but it shows what you need.



After I assembled everything, it didn't work. Disappointed, I let it sit for a few minutes and plotted my next course of action. I re read through the reviews online and realized that maybe my connections weren't totally secured, which was the case. I rechecked the connection between the Mic to the PTT and discovered that you really have to shove it in to make it work. First you hear a click, then a crack, then it works. I was able to pull it out and replace it, and it's still good.


Audio quality is good. Nothing to write home about, but transmissions go through. At the end of an outgoing message, it beeps a few times, which is cool.


All and all, I give it a 4 outta 5. The quality of the build seems more than satisfactory, but the audio quality isn't amazing. For the Price, I'm not complaining. It's something that proves that there is still some solid deals out there, even if they are imported.


Pictared abuve:
Multicam from EBA
Swimmer Headset with PTT from EBA
ESS Goggles
Condor OD Headwrap
Condor Tan Hat
Unknown brand tan Weesatch
CA M16.

How clearly do you come through wearing something over your mouth? One of the main advantages of having a throat mic in the first place is being able to be heard clearly even while wearing a balaclava/shemaugh/what have you.

Thanks me and some friends were thinking of getting these, looks like its a definite now. Appreciate the review.

BumbleCrap wrote:How clearly do you come through wearing something over your mouth? One of the main advantages of having a throat mic in the first place is being able to be heard clearly even while wearing a balaclava/shemaugh/what have you.

You have to speak up to get through even with it off. It's not a shout, but I speak low to begin with. I'll be able to give you a more thorough answer Sunday.

UPDATE: Today (26th of December) we didn't need to whisper. With a fresh set of batteries in the radio, it came through crystal clear to another headset similar to it without having to shout.

So yea. After a few weeks of usage, the pin on the Element PTT broke, completly disabling it. After witnessing a purely horrid experience with a friend, I wasn't about to Order from EBAirsoft anytime soon. Soooooo.....

In it's replacement, I ordered this: http://www.uoarmory.com/Bravo_Push_To_T ... 2-1pin.htm


Long story short, it works. Comes from the same brand who built the Bravo RDW. This little thing has neat little things that are rather interesting. The PTT itself has a plastic shroud around it. The back of the PTT has velco on the back. It comes with a Metal Alligator clip that affixes to the PTT and can be removed without screws. This allows the PTT to velcro to your rig. Pretty convienent considering it is often tough to find a secure location on some rigs. The clip that it comes with is small enough to attach to your MOLLE webbing and is really quite sturdy. The clip is all metal except for the teeth, which is a pretty dense foam.

I am though, disappointed about the length of the cords. The wire connecting to the radio is like a foot long which makes connecting the radio AND PTT AND Headset in a comfortable location, difficult. Still something I haven't fully played with yet.

Pro's:

Quality build materials
User friendly with the velcro
Not horribly expensive at $30.00.
Shipped from UOArmory.com, which is IN PHILADELPHIA.

Con:

Length of the wiring.

That's it.

If that's a 3.5 mm jack, I'd imagine that you could easily find an audio extension cable. Even if it isn't standard 3.5 mm, I know you can get other sizes and types of cables. Cable length is rarely an issue for modular equipment like that.

Really? It's for the Motorola one pin radios. I'd really like to mount this radio in an accessible but out of the way area. Like the small of the back. Running the wire down my back behind the camelback specifically. Again, something I hadn't really researched yet.

The place most radios are used is right about 10:30 on your body for a righty and 1:30 for a south paw, thats probably why the cord so short.

FYI Grayman; that PTT by "Bravo" is Chinese. Probably by the same OEM as your original headset/PTT. Bravo is a rebrand company, like ECHO-1.

I have one of those Bravo Gearboxes, and they have "Made in Taiwan" stamped right on them. The original one was an Element brand.

Really? Interesting. I'm about 95% sure Bravo is a rebrand company.

Nice review Grayman! Definitely gonna look into one!