Mat Walters from Bay Motorcycles shares his thoughts on the Sena Phantom Smart Helmet.
I was curious about the Phantom — Sena had produced a helmet with integrated comms, ECE2206 safety ratings, and done so at a ‘reasonable’ price. It’s hard to say that the $1200 retail price tag is a reasonable price for a helmet but given the climbing prices of both helmets AND comms systems, it’s actually a reasonable proposition.
The equivalent Sena (or Cardo) helmet comms systems runs you about $800, so you’re really paying $400 for a helmet with a comms kit stuffed tidily inside of it. How does this stack up against, say, a $600 helmet? Are the comms good? Does Sena’s packaging and ‘acoustic chambers’ in the helmet really stack up? Scouring the internet, I really couldn’t find any good reviews about the helmet. Not much in-depth, not much independent, and VERY few of both.
So, I purchased the Sena Phantom Helmet (with my own money) about a month ago. The first impressions were great. Packaged tidily, pinlock included, and a solid-looking helmet all round.
How do you pair the Sena Phantom helmet with a phone?
I decided to do the sensible thing, and pair it with my phone. The Sena App then informed me that there was a firmware update. ‘Great,’ I thought, ‘Here we go again.’ The update was over-the-air (no cable required) and completed quickly and with no problems.
Okay, Sena, that’s a good sign. I like over-the-air updates, I like them being smooth, and I definitely like when they work first time. The app gave me access to different sound profiles, controls for the front and rear lights, and all the usual comms functionality you’d expect. I’ll call this neutral: it worked, and it should. Anything less than full functionality is a negative for me.
Is the Sena Phantom helmet comfortable?
Putting the helmet on, it was snug and comfortable out of the box — I opted for a Large, and this was a great fit for me. The ear speakers have a raised lip around them, similar to headphones, and I had suspected these might cause some irritation in the long term. So far, a month on, I hadn’t even noticed them. I genuinely forgot they were there.
Users with different shaped ears may find their experience is different, but for the average user, I’d wager this is a non-issue. In Sena’s defence, if these bothered you, I’m certain almost any helmet-based speaker system would.
The double D-ring securing method is absolutely fine by me, though some may find it takes some time to adjust to it. Overall, the fit and finish was excellent. No ‘hotspots’ (pressure points), not too tight, a firm, snug fit with no distractions or irritation. Good job, Sena.
Naturally, the helmet fit comes down to your head shape and sizing, and not every helmet fits every person. I’d recommend trying one on, if you can, to gauge how you fit. It’s a little heavier than my other helmet, but given the weight is well-distributed, I’m considering this fairly neutral, especially given the price.
The venting was nice, with four separately controlled vents available. There’s also a drop-down ‘sun’ visor which is managed by a slider on the top of the helmet. I’d seen someone complain this wasn’t accessible with the main visor lifted, but I’m pleased to report this doesn’t appear to be true. I had no problems raising or lowering the sun visor with the main visor lifted. The main visor is sized well. It’s not quite as open as the LS2 Thunder Carbon, but it’s not noticeably smaller, and didn’t impede my vision.
I’m putting ‘sun’ visor in quotation marks for a very specific reason. The drop-down ‘sun’ visor really won’t help much in the sun. It’s a very, VERY mild tint that is better suited to protecting your eyes when riding with the visor open for airflow than it is suited to helping with sunstrike or bright conditions.
I’ll mark this as a bit of a disappointment, but there are those who would like a drop-down visor for hot weather riding who would NOT like a significant tint (including me), so we’ll call this neutral.
The visor also comes down close to the bridge of your nose, so those with a larger nose may find the nose cut-out contacts their nose. This is a person-by-person issue but personally, wasn’t a problem for me.
How good is the audio quality on the Sena Phantom helmet?
Paired to my phone, Sena app having updated my helmet, I decided to give the music a whirl. For reference, I was previously using an LS2 Thunder Carbon GP Pro with a Cardo Packtalk Edge installed.
And wow. The difference was immediately noticeable against the Cardo. Bass felt full, mids weren’t too peaky, trebles were clear and crisp, and the listening experience was genuinely enjoyable. This comms system is based on the Sena 60S system, their latest and greatest, and it’s easy to see the benefits of the acoustic chambers and a purpose-built helmet when it comes to sound performance.
To be absolutely clear — this is not a high-quality headphone setup. It is not a Hi-fi sound system, and the audiophiles out there need to manage their expectations. The sound quality is good, very good, even, but it is still a speaker system installed into a helmet, not a $600 pair of high-fidelity headphones, so we need to be fair to the Phantom.
So — In fairness? It’s good. I had some annoyances with the Cardo lacking real mid-low feel, everything I listened to felt a bit soulless, a bit too sharp. I was trying to be fair to the Cardo. Having music certainly beats not having music, and the quality wasn’t terrible, but it also wasn’t good. The Cardo was acceptable. Not the Phantom. The Phantom is GOOD.
Is the noise cancellation effective in the Sena Phantom helmet?
Helmet strapped on, playlist loaded up, the mighty VTR1000 started up, I departed.
I was interested to see if anything caught my attention with the Phantom. And much to my surprise, nothing did. Absolutely nothing stood out, which I consider to be a massive positive — I shouldn’t be noticing the helmet, the idea is that it isn’t intrusive.
The helmet wasn’t quite as quiet as my Thunder Carbon in terms of wind noise, but when the Thunder Carbon runs almost the same price as the Phantom without a comms system, I’d expect it to excel against the Phantom. And it’s better, it is. Just… not by a lot.
The venting was easy to manage for me, even with gloves on. The drop-down visor was accessible. The helmet didn’t rattle, or pull, or whistle. It performed as expected and felt like a much more premium helmet than the price tag (considering the $800 helmet comms system inside) would suggest. I was personally really impressed, and I’ll likely take my Phantom out over my Thunder Carbon for most everyday riding sessions.
How are the controls in the Sena Phantom Helmet?
Then, I wanted to pause a song. This is where Sena could take some constructive criticism: the helmet controls. They are located in the middle of the helmet, just behind the visor pivot. And they’re… very same-y. They’re only distinguished by position (top vs bottom) and button height (short vs tall).
The differences are measured in millimetres, and it is HARD sometimes to find which button you’re wanting to press with gloves on. Sena could stand to separate the buttons more or make them more easily distinguishable. Cardo does this well. Most of the buttons have been separated well, and I really like the volume roller that Cardo uses. Sena could really take some notes here.
The Phantom is not as easy to use as Cardo systems and will take longer to become familiar with. You can’t quickly change volume — holding the volume button will skip or replay a song. You need to press that button multiple times to adjust volume, and this is admittedly a little harder than it should be, given the position (and firmness) of the Phantom’s controls.
Pressing the centre button should have paused my song, but it doesn’t. You have to press-and-hold the centre button to pause, but a single click answers phone calls. I feel these controls should be reversed, and this may be something Sena does in a future firmware update. Fingers crossed.
Is the mic and speaker quality good in the Sena Phantom helmet?
Given none of my friends have Sena systems, I opted to call a buddy of mine using the Phantom to find out what the mic and speaker quality was like.
He seemed confused, at first, as to why I was calling. He couldn’t tell I was riding the VTR or using my helmet. No wind noise, even at ~100kmph, and I could hear him clear as day. Good job Sena — this was a resounding success. I never bothered with the voice commands, and won’t. I’m genuinely disinterested in their functionality. I feel this is an individual choice and individual need, so I can’t comment.
I’m yet to pair the Sena and Cardo systems together, but I’ll revisit this write-up when I do for a bit of context and information on the experience, alongside quality feedback. Sena has numerous new technologies at play that I’d like to test, but without a regular riding partner who owns a new Sena system, this is a little hard.
What are the Sena Phantom Helmet’s other features?
I used the Sena Phantom Helmet for a few group rides, and people commented on the helmet’s brake lights. They seem to work, and I’m glad to have them. Anything to help you be seen is fantastic in my eyes, so this is a welcome addition.
At first, the front-facing torch seemed pointless – until I dropped my key, and couldn’t get my phone out of my pocket with gloves on. Aha! I pressed the button, blinded a friend of mine, and found my key. Jolly good.
Overall, not much has changed in the weeks since. It’s still comfortable, the controls still bother me a little, the sound quality is still great, and the battery life has been fantastic. I think I’ve charged it once in the time I’ve had the Phantom.
Is the Sena Phantom helmet worth it?
The Sena Phantom Helmet is a compelling choice for riders in my opinion. Whether you want it for the helmet comms or just for music, the cost of the Phantom vs a comparable helmet comms setup makes it very appealing, and I like that everything works well, sounds good, and feels premium.
Yes, there are better helmets out there, and the consideration of buying one helmet comms system for multiple helmets is something to factor in, but as a complete package to go from nothing to a finished setup, the Phantom’s an easy system to recommend. The audio quality is great, the fit and finish is good, the comfort is good, the overall experience is one that feels polished, well thought out, and accessible.
While this is a relatively short-term review (one month of ownership), I’m satisfied with the purchase and am happy to say the Phantom gets a resounding thumbs-up from me. There’s some things that aren’t quite perfect, there’s some adjustments to be made, and I’m still waiting to see how spare parts pan out. It’s not perfect — but it is very good.
Fit and Comfort: 8/10
Audio Quality: 9/10
Controls/Usage: 7/10
Comms: Too little usage to rate
Overall: 7.5/10
Learn more about the Sena Phantom Smart Helmet at Bay Motorcycles in Hastings and Waipukurau, in other good dealers elsewhere in the country, and online at bits4bikes.co.nz.
Credit: Mat Walters, Bay Motorcycles
