Audio, Video & Mounts

Audio, video and mounting for your motorcycle

Audio, video and mounting covers phone mounts, intercom headsets, speakers, amplifiers, camera mounts and the brackets that hold it all in place. It's accessories, but it's fitted to a machine that vibrates and gets wet.

A mount has to do the same job after 10,000 km as it did the day you fitted it. If it works loose, the phone goes — and even if it doesn't, vibration can still destroy the camera from the inside.

Intercom is about more than talking. It's navigation prompts in the helmet and contact with the rest of the group when you're spread out over several kilometres of back road.

This guide runs through bracket dimensions and standards, the difference between Bluetooth and mesh, choosing speakers, what wears out, and how to fit it all without wrecking your handlebars or wiring loom.

We stock Sp Connect, Sena, Ciro 3D, Ciro, RAM Mounts, Precision Power - Motorcycle Audio, Cayo, Kuryakyn, Aquatic AV, Soundstream, Hogtunes, Klock Werks, Show Chrome and Tecmate — and there's free shipping on orders over €200.

Dimensions, standards and construction you need to know

All mounting comes down to three things: the handlebar diameter, the ball size in the bracket system and the locking mechanism the phone sits in. Get those right and the rest usually fits together.

Handlebars are measured at the clamping surface, not in the middle. Most European and Japanese machines use 22.2 mm, while cruisers often run 25.4 mm.

Bracket dimensions and fittings

• Handlebar diameter: 22.2 mm (7/8"), 25.4 mm (1"), 28.6 mm and 32 mm
• Ball system: the 25.4 mm (1") ball is the most common on RAM Mounts
• Mirror thread: typically M8 or M10, both right- and left-hand thread
• AMPS hole pattern: four holes, 30 x 38 mm
• Speakers: 130 mm (5.25") and 165 mm (6.5") are the standard sizes

Electrical basics

• Vehicle system: 12 V nominal, resting voltage around 12.6 V on a healthy battery
• Charging voltage: typically 13.8-14.4 V with the engine running
• USB socket: 5 V and at least 2.1 A for a phone
• Amplifiers need their own fuse close to the battery
• Ingress protection: IPX6 or better on exposed electronics

Choose audio, video and mounting to suit your riding

The choice depends on how long you're in the saddle, how much wind noise you get in the helmet, and whether you ride alone. A commuter needs something different from a tourer with a pillion.

Riding style	Type	Pros	Cons	Brands in the range
City commuting	Phone mount and single headset	Quick to fit, navigation in your ear, low weight	No music sharing, short range	Sp Connect, RAM Mounts, Sena
Back-road touring	Mesh intercom and bar-mounted holder	Stable contact over long distances, multiple riders	Needs charging and setup	Sena, SP CONNECT, Klock Werks
Bagger with pillion	Full audio system with amplifier	Enough volume at motorway speed, room for two sets	Needs power and cable routing, considerably more expensive	Hogtunes, Precision Power - Motorcycle Audio, Soundstream, Aquatic AV
Adventure and gravel	Vibration-damped mount and camera mount	Protects the phone's optics, holds on rough terrain	Extra height in front of the instruments	RAM Mounts, Sp Connect, Ciro 3D
Custom and cruiser	Speaker brackets, mounts and screens	Fits bars and forks without modification	Model-dependent range	Ciro, Kuryakyn, Show Chrome, Cayo

If you mostly ride alone to and from work, a solid mount and a single headset is enough. It's also the cheapest place to start, and you can build on it later.

If you ride in a group, intercom makes the biggest difference. Mesh keeps several riders connected, even when the line strings out, and re-forms the network on its own.

Systems and variants explained

The collection falls into three groups: mounting, communication and audio. They're often bought separately, but they share both space on the handlebars and power from the same battery.

Phone mounts and bracket systems

There are two principles: clamp mounts that grip the phone, and locking systems with a dedicated plate or case. Clamps fit everything, while locking systems sit tighter and are quicker to use with gloves on.

Sp Connect and SP CONNECT use a twist-and-lock principle with cases for Iphone, Google Pixel and other Smartphone models, while the Spc series covers the newer brackets. RAM Mounts is built around a ball and arm and gives you more freedom of angle.

Intercom and headsets

Sena covers Headset and Communication products plus mounting kits for Helmets. Bluetooth reaches two or three riders close together, while mesh keeps groups connected up to around a kilometre and a half with clear line of sight.

The speakers sit in the helmet's ear pockets, and the microphone comes both as a boom and as a wired mic. Sound quality depends more on speaker placement than on the unit itself.

Audio systems, amplifiers and screens

Hogtunes, Soundstream, Precision Power - Motorcycle Audio and Aquatic AV supply Speaker and Speakers products plus amplifiers. Ciro 3D, Ciro, Kuryakyn and Show Chrome supply brackets and mounts so the speakers sit where they should.

Cayo covers screen solutions with Android Auto, so maps and music show on a display built for sunlight and rain. The Camera Mount and Mount products handle action cameras on helmet, bars or frame.

Wear, service life and maintenance

Electronics on a motorcycle rarely die of old age — they die from vibration, water and bad connectors. Those three things are easy to keep an eye on yourself.

Mounts and brackets

Look for play in the joint. If you can tilt the phone more than a few degrees without releasing the lock, the ball or the rubber insert is worn.

Check the clamp bolts at every oil change, and replace the vibration dampers when the rubber has gone stiff and the surface is cracked.

Headsets and batteries

An intercom battery loses capacity over the first few seasons. When talk time has dropped noticeably compared with new, the battery is the limiting factor.

Never store the headset fully discharged over the winter. Charge it to around half capacity and keep it somewhere dry and frost-free.

Speakers and wiring

Rough, distorted sound at moderate volume usually means the surround has broken down, or the voice coil has taken too much. Turn it down and find the cause.

If system voltage drops below around 12 V at idle with the volume up, the system is drawing more than the alternator can supply.

Fitting in practice

Good installation starts with finding the space before you buy. Offer the part up loosely and turn the bars lock to lock before you drill or clamp anything down.

Use the manufacturer's torque figures on clamp bolts. An over-tightened bracket breaks before it holds any better.

Route cables with a drip loop so water runs off before the connector, and secure them so they don't pull tight at full lock. Use spiral wrap rather than tight zip ties on the wiring loom.

Small loads can run off an ignition-switched socket, while amplifiers need a direct connection to the battery with their own fuse. A charging lead from Tecmate keeps the battery topped up when the system is used at a standstill.

Use Find your bike on Partsdenmark.com before you order brackets and speaker mounts. Many from Ciro 3D, Kuryakyn and Klock Werks are model-specific.

Frequently asked questions about audio, video and mounting

These are the questions we get most often from customers fitting a phone, intercom or audio to the bike for the first time.

Can vibration damage my phone?

Yes. High-frequency vibration can damage the optical image stabilisation in the phone's camera, and the damage is often permanent.

The answer is a vibration-damping interface between the bracket and the phone.

Does an intercom work with another brand?

Yes — over standard Bluetooth pairing most headsets work together across brands, typically as a call between two units.

Mesh functions, on the other hand, usually require the same system throughout the group.

How many speakers do I need?

For city riding a pair of speakers in the fairing is enough. If the sound has to keep up at motorway speed, you'll usually need both an amplifier and a set at the rear.

The volume has to beat wind noise, which rises quickly with speed. More and larger speakers do more than turning up a weak amplifier.

Is the equipment waterproof?

Headsets and motorcycle speakers handle rain, but not pressure washers. Aim for IPX6 or better on anything that's exposed.

The phone is the weak point — a Weather Device Cover keeps moisture away from the charging port.

Can I take power straight from the battery?

Yes, and for amplifiers that's the right solution. The fuse has to sit as close to the positive terminal as possible.

For smaller loads an ignition-switched socket is better, so the battery isn't drained at a standstill.

If more kit is going on the bars, you'll find brackets and switches under handlebars and hand controls, and gauges for voltage and temperature are under electrical and gauges. If the camera is coming along for the ride, take a look at luggage.

All products are covered by 2-year right of complaint, and we run European price matching, so if you find the same item cheaper at a European dealer, we'll match the price. Use Find your bike on Partsdenmark.com.