Plate Service Radio Setups: Safariland Liberator & Silynx Clarus

Napoleon famously stated, “The key of struggle lies within the communications.” This concise assertion reinforces the significance of communication in any respect ranges of a combating pressure — people, squads, platoons, corporations, battalions, and so forth. If communications are severed, the flexibility to coordinate usually follows go well with. Outdoors of a navy context, the identical rules apply to civilian emergency preparedness. In case your group of household and mates is your squad, you need to set up a strong plan for communications for any emergency. In yesterday’s article about encrypted radios, we supplied an introduction to how encryption can assist you guarantee communication safety (COMSEC). At this time, we’ll check out two plate service radio setups from Safariland and Silynx that combine our encrypted Off Grid Comms handhelds into our load-bearing gear.

Radio Setups & Purposes

Above: Integrating a dual-comm setup into this TYR Tactical plate service was straightforward, with one radio positioned on either side of the cummerbund.

You are able to do so much higher than clipping your radio to your belt or shoving it right into a pocket. There’s a virtually countless ecosystem of equipment and upgrades for radios, particularly standard fashions such because the Motorola XTS collection. To profit from your radio, we suggest integrating it into the remainder of your gear. A number of choices to contemplate:

• Add a speaker mic so you need to use the radio whereas it’s stowed in your climbing pack or in your responsibility belt
• Join a low-profile earpiece so you possibly can discuss extra discreetly in public
• Pair your radio with an lively ear safety system to be used on the capturing vary, or different loud environments
• Construct a whole dual-comm system that features two radios on separate frequencies with a push-to-talk (PTT) button to activate every radio

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Above: The Motorola XTS 3000 radios supplied by Off Grid Comms can be utilized as stand-alone handsets, or will be related to quite a lot of headsets and PTT methods.

Learn on as we share two plate service radio setups configured by our workers. Every of those is related to one of many Motorola XTS 3000 radios featured in our encrypted radio article. Nevertheless, via using modular connectors, every of those methods will also be related to quite a lot of different radios and comms units.

Patrick McCarthy: Safariland Liberator V

I spend loads of time capturing, whether or not it’s out within the desert with mates, at native competitions, or taking courses to study particular expertise and weapon platforms. These actions don’t all the time require the identical quantity of drugs — typically it’s simply ear professional and eye professional, and different instances it’s a full plate service, battle belt, and helmet with evening imaginative and prescient system hooked up. With this in thoughts, I needed a scalable, modular comms system.

The Safariland Liberator V is a professional-grade headset that integrates lively ear professional and a dual-comm radio setup. Ordering the Liberator V reveals choices for coloration (black, FDE, or OD inexperienced), left or right-side microphone placement, three varieties of suspension methods, two varieties of PTT controls, and even a fuel masks enter. Every system is made to order, and will be configured for all kinds of navy, regulation enforcement, and industrial radios. Sure configurations additionally provide a connector to combine a cellphone into the system.

Above: Safariland’s Adaptive Suspension Package allowed me to mount the Liberator V headset to the again of the rails on my Workforce Wendy helmet, preserving the highest rails open for lights and different equipment.

Because the Liberator V is a dual-comm system, I requested connectors for 2 Motorola XTS radios. This permits me to make use of one in digital encrypted mode for safe communication with Off Grid Comms radios, and one in analog GMRS mode for basic use, or use each in encrypted mode to speak on two separate encrypted channels. Audio from each radios is piped into the headset, and I can management every from the two-button PTT. This configuration didn’t provide a cellphone connector, however I’m OK with that. My cellphone is clipped right into a Juggernaut Case PALS mount for navigation and video-recording duties.

Above: This PALS Plate Service Mount from Juggernaut Case provides fast entry to a cellphone for communication and navigation.

Each XTS radios are mounted on opposing sides of my TYR Tactical plate service’s cummerbund in Blue Power Gear elastic pouches. The PTT’s inline disconnects permit me to unplug or substitute a radio with none problem. In conditions the place I don’t want one of many radios, I can shove a rifle magazine into the vacant pouch.

Safariland’s Adaptive Suspension system makes it doable to swap the headset from a scarf to a helmet mount in seconds. After I’m coaching with evening imaginative and prescient, I connect it to the Safariland rail mount put in on my Workforce Wendy Exfil LTP bump helmet. The remainder of the time, I take advantage of the headset in the usual Consolation Match headband. And in conditions the place I simply want ear professional with out comms — like informal vary periods with mates — I can disconnect the headset from the PTT and use it as lively ear safety. Clear sound and comfortable gel cups make the Liberator system straightforward to put on all day, it doesn’t matter what I’m utilizing it for.

Above: The Safariland Liberator V headset can be utilized as standalone ear safety, or it may be related to the included push-to-talk button that provides management over two separate radios.

Tom Marshall: Silynx Clarus

Organising my comms system, I used to be in search of two issues. First, I needed my communications system to be unbiased of my helmet. Whereas over-the-ear muffs hooked up to helmet rails look cool and are superior for fight operations the place a helmet is obligatory, these days I not often put on one exterior of a photograph shoot. Even working as a safety contractor abroad, helmets weren’t broadly used, although comms functionality was obligatory when rolling off the bed within the morning. The opposite issue vital to me was a system that might combine with a number of varieties of communication units. Whereas having an encrypted setup is a boon for household or neighborhood groups working collectively, ready civilians can’t guarantee everybody round them shall be working on the identical frequency and even utilizing the identical radio platforms. Enter Silynx. Although their bread-and-butter is outfitting navy and authorities organizations, virtually all of their gear is out there to civilians, they usually provide scaled {hardware} suites for quite a lot of purposes.

I began with their Clarus dual-lead push-to-talk (PTT) field, the cornerstone of this complete setup. I needed to verify I had the flexibility to speak inside my household/crew on the Off Grid Comms encrypted radios in addition to exterior parts or responders who could also be speaking to me on different units. The Clarus has a modular split-cable adapter system permitting you to configure the PTT field to interface with a number of varieties of units. Silynx provides adapters for quite a lot of system sorts. I centered on three: the Motorola XTS sample, a two-pin adapter for Baofeng radios, and a 3.5mm headphone jack that’s suitable with good telephones.

After enjoying with a few totally different permutations, I settled on establishing my Arbor Arms Communicator Armor System (CAS) plate service to run the Silynx Clarus with one Motorola and my smartphone. The Motorola is stowed in an Esstac radio pouch on the left cummerbund arm of the CAS. The smartphone is on a Juggernaut Case cellphone case and PALS Adapter tray, which lets me connect my cellphone on to my plate service for hands-free operation. It must be famous that almost all current-gen smartphones don’t have legacy-style headphone ports in-built anymore. However there are small adapters accessible that may interface this jack with both USB-C or Apple Lightning Cable ports. Since I run a Galaxy cellphone, I bought a $20 USB-C adapter from Amazon and was in enterprise. This specific functionality — integrating your cellphone into your radio communication setup — is probably probably the most distinctive and helpful characteristic of the Silynx system for ready residents.

With this setup, I’m in a position to make a cellphone name and preserve the road open arms free. However the particular person on the opposite finish of the cellphone can solely hear me once I press the corresponding transmit button on my Clarus PTT field. That is an impressive functionality to have if, for instance, it’s important to name 911 and communicate with first responders whereas additionally coordinating with a member of the family, neighbor, or pal who has an Off Grid Comms Motorola. Now you now not must be on the scene of the incident to direct responders to another person who wants assist — you possibly can relay info remotely by having two traces of communication open. Whereas a daily cellphone name won’t be safe, you need to use apps like Sign or Threema (each mentioned in Challenge 53), to make voice or video calls with end-to-end encryption, whereas nonetheless being able to transmit/obtain via your Off Grid Comms Motorola, additionally encrypted.

Above: We used an Esstac pouch to safe the radio to the cummerbund, routing the wires via it and into the rear plate bag.

Since I particularly needed my communications to be unbiased of a helmet, Silynx despatched me their Clarus in-ear buds, that are outfitted with an in-line microphone in addition to their hear-thru and sound localization know-how. This characteristic directionally amplifies low-level ambient sound to boost situational consciousness however cuts out when receiving or transmitting communication so you possibly can have clear conversations over radio or cellphone. This know-how features very like current-generation lively listening to safety methods, however with the additional advantage of receiving radio and cellphone transmissions as effectively. It must be famous that the Clarus we used additionally has a modular prime lead, that means you possibly can unhook the in-ear buds and swap to helmet-mounted muffs or growth mic-style headsets if that higher suits your utility.

Above: The Arbor Arms CAS 2.0 provides loads of routing pass-throughs, which allow us to bury a lot of the Silynx wiring beneath the service.

I used to be in a position to route all my cables via sleeves built-in into the Arbor Arms CAS, to attenuate the quantity of cable uncovered to snagging or atmosphere injury. Whereas the Silynx system does embrace clips which are sized to go via MOLLE/PALS-style webbing, I used a few small zip-ties to completely safe the {hardware} to my service. Routing the antenna and PTT cables via one arm of the wraparound cummerbund lets me don and doff the service with out having to swim via a sea of cables to get the service off.

My expertise with Silynx’s communication {hardware} suite was wonderful. Transmission and receiving high quality have been each clear and clear. The modularity of the Clarus system provides a excessive diploma of flexibility for each person interface and communication/radio platform interface. There are additionally single-channel and fixed-lead variations of the Clarus accessible that’ll prevent some cash in the event you don’t want dual-comms functionality or don’t plan on switching radio sorts.

Plate Service Radio Gear Sources

Written by Patrick McCarthy and Tom Marshall