Ear pods with Garmin Varia?

Triathlon Forum
1

I can’t hear my Garmin head unit warn me of oncoming traffic my Varia picks up. Is there a way to use an Apple ear pod? Is there a super loud head unit that can be heard in wind, etc?

2

I don’t have any experience with the Varia and a Garmin head unit. However, I don’t have any issues hearing the Varia with my Bolt. Is there a sound level setting for the Garmin that you can adjust.

3

FWIW, I found the Edge 130 to be slightly louder than the Elemnt Bolt, but both seem plenty loud enough to me, even in traffic and wind. Maybe consider a different mounting location?

4

Which head unit are you using currently? Which tone setting are you using, single or multi?

We’ve heard from a fair number of people who have had issues like this, and we’re working on some editorial content to perhaps offer some solutions. More to come!

FWIW, we now have a curated thread that we’re trying to steer discussions like this to, you can check that out here.

5

Edge devices don’t have Bluetooth audio support, so no. I’m not aware of any other bike computers that do.

You could try with some of the x45/fenix 6 watches that do have music support, although I never tried this with the Varia myself. When paired with a watch, you will get a vibration alert.

But I would have thought that wearing earpods in a situation where you need to use a Varia is a bad idea. (Personally, I use earpods when training at the velodrome, but definitely NOT on the road).

Also note that the alert tones can be customized on Garmin Edge’s to be more or less distinctive. gplama has a video on this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SaHd6PohRro

6

I checked today, and the Garmin 945 will send Varia audio alerts to connected bluetooth headphones. It’s pretty cool, especially for folks who ride with headphones.

7

Great find! I’ll have to check that out on the 945. Thanks!

8

Thanks!

9

Neat! Thanks for posting that.

10

I checked today, and the Garmin 945 will send Varia audio alerts to connected bluetooth headphones. It’s pretty cool, especially for folks who ride with headphones.

And since it’s an ANT+ device there’s no issue connecting it to an Edge device and your watch. I do that with a pair of Aftershockz bone conducting headphones - I can generally still hear the beeps from my 520 (and I can actually read the display while riding), but it’s much more distinctive through the headphones. Was a surprise benefit of upgrading to the 945.