Cardo Spirit HD - Tested

Having used the Packtalk Bold for the past (almost) 3 years, I was interested to check out the new offerings from Cardo in the way of the base model/entry-level Spirit HD.

I installed the Cardo Spirit HD on my HJC i70 helmet, I was interested to note that the mounting plate hand hardware is the same as the Freecom X, apart from the speakers. The Spirit comes with Cardo's own 40mm HD speakers.

The button config is pretty much the same as the Freecom minus the volume wheel, but completely different from the Packtalk. Connecting to my phone was easy. Simply hold down 2 buttons to turn on, then hold down the front button, (play button) for about 5 seconds until you hear "First Phone pairing" then go to the Bluetooth menu on your phone and you should see "Spirit HD"
From here I owned the Cardo App, and after about 2 seconds it found the Spirit HD, and asked me to name it, then said it had an update to do. The phone downloaded the update via the Cardo app, and then pushed it through to the Spirit HD, nice and easy.
The whole process of updating the Spirit HD took about 4 minutes.

The first thing I did was listen to some music, and I was surprised how much volume I could get out of the 40mm speakers. The Spirit HD comes with the Cardo HD 40mm speakers, and in comparison to the Freecom X's JBL 40 mm speakers, there are some small differences in sound profile. I'm not sure anyone not in the audio industry would notice, and in fact, in a back-to-back comparison, it was even difficult for me to notice.
The JBL speakers have a little more mid and base, whereas the Spirit's HD speakers seem to have a little more top end. But in real-world use, with wind noise and traffic, I doubt this would actually make much of a difference, they're both rather good and definitely better than intercoms of old.

One of the features available on the Packtalk, that I thought I would miss going to the Spirit HD is voice commands, but in truth, with just one push of a button on the Spirit HD unit, I can activate Siri on my iPhone and get full control of pretty much anything, and the only other 2 voice commands I used to use on the Packtalk was "Hey Cardo, Next track" for skipping a song I was listening to, or "Hey Cardo, Battery Status" but the Spirit HD gives you an indication of battery level when you turn it off, and there is a button combination you can press to get the battery status anyway, so for me,  no great loss there.

Sound Quality has been massively improved with these new devices. WOW, it's amazing. Even compared to the current Cardo flagship the Packtalk Bold, the sound quality when talking to another rider over the "Live Intercom" system is astounding. There also seems to be more volume available. Listening to music I only need the device at around 50% to hear clearly even on the motorway. This also helps when listening to music and talking on the Intercom at the same time. It's much easier to distinguish what the other person is saying. When they start talking the volume of the music drops and I can easily carry a full in-depth conversation.

I've had a few conversations with people over the last few weeks, and many of them have this perception that Cardo intercoms are expensive. Starting at $189 for the Spirit, I can honestly tell you these are a bargain. For the features included, Cardo has outdone themselves. For the full rundown on prices and specs, check our Cardo breakdown story HERE.

So, to wrap up, the Cardo Spirit HD, it's a really good unit, at a brilliant price. I initially thought I wasn't going to like what is essentially an entry-level offering from a company of which I have been using their top-of-the-line offering for an extended period of time. But, I really do like the Spirit HD. I can hardly tell the sound quality difference. As most of my riding is on my own, I don't miss any of the features the Packtalk has over the Spirit HD, and I love the smaller form factor. These truly are brilliant devices for road trips or commuting. With their IP67 waterproof rating, they give confidence they won't crap the bed if you ride through some rain, and you still have the ability to connect with friends for group rides. Cardo has nailed this, and I expect these to fly off the shelves when they arrive in mid-April 2022.

Cardo Spirit

Price Single NZ$ 189.00
Price Duo NZ$ 369.00
Range: 400m
Speakers: 32mm
Battery Life: 10 hours
Comms Connections: 1x Live intercom
Bluetooth Connections: 2x (Phone/GPS/Other brand intercoms)
FM Radio: No
Voice Commands: No
USB-C With Fast Charge: Yes
Waterproof rating: IP67
Over-the-air updates: Yes
Cardo App Control: Yes
Physical Layout: 4x buttons

Cardo Spirit HD

Price Single NZ$ 279.00
Price Duo NZ$ 499.00
Range: 600m
Speakers: 40mm Cardo HD
Battery Life: 13 hours
Comms Connections: 1x Live intercom
Bluetooth Connections: 2x (Phone/GPS/Other brand intercoms)
FM Radio: Yes
Voice Commands: No
USB-C With Fast Charge: Yes
Waterproof rating: IP67
Over-the-air updates: Yes
Cardo App Control: Yes
Physical Layout: 4x buttons