Given the frustration this caused, the fact I was about to give up on connecting my device to the bike altogether, and the relatively simple solution — I thought I’d share how I did it for others.
This should be easy, pair my phone and away we go, right?
The problem is the Bluetooth protocol assumes that both the Bluetooth control and the audio stream are going to be handled by the same paired device — the FTR Ride Command in this case.
Unfortunately, this is not the scenario here — I wanted control of my device via the Ride Command unit and the audio output to my wired headphones.
Make my wired headphones ‘wireless’
A workaround for the wired → wireless headphones problem is to use a battery powered Bluetooth transmitter(TX)/receiver(RX).
I got this SoundPEATS S1 unit from Amazon.
It works well, its basic and compact.
No complaints.
Next pair SoundPEATS S1 to phone
Set the SoundPEATS S1 to RX mode, and pair to phone like you would any other Bluetooth device.
Note that both the SoundPEATS S1 unit and the FTR Ride Command are paired to the mobile phone directly. Also note from title image that only the mobile phone is paired with the FTR Ride Command.
Connection schema
The important step.
Media output selection
The last thing to do is configure your source device/mobile phone to transmit via Bluetooth to the SoundPEATS S1 receiver.
Done and done.
I can now use the full functionality of the FTR Ride Command to conveniently control my music with the output going exactly where I want it.
You might be thinking, why not just use a helmet communicator and save the hassle? Simple — I don’t want to take or make phone calls or have a conversation when I ride.
But I do want my tunes!
Thanks for reading.
— — Motocroft.
