Wireless headset/microphone for climber/belayer communication

Marc801 wrote: Which can indeed be done with hand signals. Or in a different language. Or a variety of other ways.

True 'nuff, but the OP is saying he refuses to be clear and the hand signals aren't working well (obvious enough but how does one use hand signals to say TAKE before the hang?).

All that stuff is well and good but the basic rule is communicate clearly with verbal commands. Use other methods ONLY when you can't communicate by yelling. Safety is in simplicity and consistency.

It doesn't sound like there is any legitimate reason to do otherwise in the OP's post.

You don't have to be an AMGA trained guide to see all sorts of dangerous belaying behavior resulting from folks being ignorant of/bending/deliberately breaking the basic rules that do work to keep us all safe.

I don't think I need to rehash the LONG list of people that have been dropped and killed or seriously hurt due to communication mixups, either at a belay transition or while climbing.

Seems like there is never a shortage of seriously self righteous climbers giving advice. What if your partner had or is developing a hearing problem? What if there is a lot of noise where you are climbing natural like a river or wind or  man made noise? We did a climb the other day a Smith Rock where a giant rock trench digger started up on the other side of the river. It was really LOUD. What if the other climber is out of sight and the amount of rope drag precludes clear rope signals? Sometimes the terrain can make voice commands difficult to hear even when you have good hearing and clear loud voices. If you maxed out a 70 meter rope that is a long way away to be communicating out of sight in the event you had some out of the ordinary problem. An intercom system would allow you to talk calmly to work through some problem. There might be a geek/kook factor so it may not look cool if you are a real climber.  Funny how in some situations and sports it is way uncool not to have the latest technology or app and visa versa. Gotta have the Go Pro video cam live streamed to your facebook page but intercom headsets? way uncool. Whatever.

It does appear that there are bluetooth units out there now with impressive range and will start an intercom conversation with VOX or the tap of a button plus you can listen to music that you can interrupt. So that would be a solution to the Boom Box at the crag problem in other threads.  They are kind of expensive like close to $400 a pair but if it saved your life that would be cheap insurance. Anyone have experience with the latest ones? Ones that are not too bulky?

Update ....So I sprung for the Sena Expand Boom ones which the rep said had the latest bluetooth technology. I tested them on two different days in two different locations and on bluetooth intercom they started having static at the end of a typical 50 meter pitch. The worst part is that if there was any rock that blocked a direct line of sight from the headsets the intercom was blocked and this is a situation where you might need them. Were talking just a couple of feet of rock that cut the line of sight.  I tested them around the corner of a house and the same result. The rep was talking about how they would work going around several semi trucks so I thought they might work. Hopefully I can return them. 

Tom Ponte wrote:

Anyone have experience with the latest ones? Ones that are not too bulky?

Probably not the latest ones, I adapted a pair of U-clear snow board communicators to fit our helmets.  It allowed us to carry on a private conversation without bothering the neighbors, but it has it's draw backs.  

I have hearing deficit, 60+ years of age, machines, race cars, guns, rock n roll.  All have played a part in my hearing loss.  My partner is a stronger climber than I am, but inexperienced.  She would climb herself into a pickle she didn't know how to get out of.  With clear communication it's just a teaching moment, without it, well, it got stressful.  So I made the communicator.  Now we could chat up a storm while she lead the climbs, talking about route strategy, placement, our neighboring climbers choice of lycra pants, etc.  All without bothering our neighbors.  We did run into two situations that we had to fall back on "no sound" communication, basically, expected climbing sequence and tugs. Out of sight and windy conditions.  Normal climbing with experienced climbers is fairly straight forward, leader leads, sets anchor, up's rope, belays; follower belays, waits for up rope, gets on belay, climbs.  This doesn't not require verbal communication.  It's a normal sequence that gets repeated over and over.  It's only when things go sideways that it is uber nice to be able to talk to each other.  

So Bluetooth.  I got interested in it when it came out for motorcycle helmets, good line of sight range, doesn't require single channel, in other words you don't have to say over and wait for the other person to talk, you just talk, separate transmit and receive channels so you can talk and hear at the same time.  Down side is it's pretty line of sight, and it's sensitive to wind noise.  If the lead climbs out of sight for more than about 10 feet the link is lost and must be re-established before you can communicate again, bit of a pain but not horrible.  Depending on the system you get winds above 25mph cancel out the systems ability to compensate.  Yes, winds on a crag will exceed this, by a lot. So the bluetooth system would drop sometimes.  it was really great for pitches that stayed within sight.  The new systems are probably better, mine was 2015 era. 

Experience and problems with bluetooth connection led us to carrying cheap 2 way radios. Very small and light weight.  They annoyed the neighbors because everyone can hear them. They beep if bumped against the rock.  The upside was they remained clear when out of sight, and they remained clear when in windy conditions.  Long meandering multi-pitches on windy mountains, they are great, clear verbal communication.  Even with the "over" thing going on you can have a long discussion about what to do about stuck ropes, loose rock, stuck gear, kind of brings the teamwork back into play. 

I respect strong experienced climbers right to disagree with using this technology, it's just extra weight for them.  But for those of us that are testing our abilities beyond our experience these devices come in handy and help alleviate stress.  

I started climbing with my brother many years ago. He was a soft talker at the time. Numerous time I asked him to speak louder, to have one command shouted then revert back to soft talk.

One day I had enough. As he was leading a hard route for us at the time, in his usual voice he gave a command. I could see him and I knew that muffled sound was a call to 'take'. This has to stop, I thought. So I yelled out 'OFF BELAY!' He wasn't, I could see him perfectly and he was struggling. Well lo and behold, he shouts back 'NO NO TAKE!' He grabs the rope to self belay and stares at me in disbelief. He could see that he was on belay and responded with a few expletives. I respond back 'Now I can hear you clearly'. Never had a problem hearing him again.

Have your boyfriend climb with his cell.  If you have signal, you two could be on a call for the pitch using cheap Bluetooth earphones/mic. 

Contact to motorcyclists. They have awesome helmet compatible mesh network devices. We use 'em in arboristics (like awesome) and rock climbing (pretty OK).

upd. Do not expect any of those Sena or whatever devices could survive whole day off climbing. 3 to 4 hours online is more or less adequate expectation.

Y’all realize you’re responding to a six year old thread?

Thanks Marc!  

Why not just, talk louder... or god forbid, shout?

Rope tug system. Seriously, there’s no need for walkies. Ever. Okay, Maybe if you’re trapped in the death zone and talking to base camp. 

AfterShokz Trekz Titanium, they are great for running and climbing. They are bone conducting headphones so you can still hear things going on around you. 

They just take a little to get used to.