Manager


Manager - NA4M
Manager Notes

Reviews For: Heil BM-10

Category: Headphones & Boom-microphone Headsets

eMail Subscription

Registered users are allowed to subscribe to specific review topics and receive eMail notifications when new reviews are posted.
Review Summary For : Heil BM-10
Reviews: 25MSRP: 89.00
Description:
Headset/boom mike
Product is in production
More Info: http://www.heilsound.com/BM10.htm
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
00253.7
KE7FPM Rating: 2008-03-06
modular plug needs to be redisigned for yaesu 897 Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
I bought the bm 10 headset for my yaesu 897 about 4 months ago and the modular plug on the adaptor chord is so sloppy already it wont key the radio anymore..I called Heil to see if they had a solution, and the lady said maybe I could stick a piece of shrink tube in to tighten it up. (I guess I was expecting a more intellegent solution from a company like Heil,but they obviously dont have one at all..) I really did like the headset itself, but if it wont stay plugged into my radio, what good is it? This adaptor chord costed about $35.00,but if I had my money back I would just buy one of Yaesus chords and make my own.
K1JAN Rating: 2005-05-22
Great Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I realize everyone has an opinion (and at least one other thing) but I have had my BM-10 for 20+ years, and have literally worn out several radios, with it still going fine. I have never had a bad report with my HC-4. And that's through a lot of talking! I have replaced the foam (radio shack has some that fit great!) about a hundred times.
Don't know about the new ones, but my original goes in my will! (IF I decide I like anyone that well!)
Paul Andreasen, K1JAN
ARRL Technical Advisor, Southwestern Division
N3JBH Rating: 2005-05-04
heil bm-10-4 Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
My personal impression of my BM-10-4 headset is wonderful sound speakers in the headset. But the microphone section seems kind of to heavy for the headset. As it seems
To pull the headset off your head. ((And trust be I have big head)) so spring tension should be tight.

As far a microphone sounds well the 4 element is somewhat higher pitched but not unpleasant. I give the headset 4 out of 5
N4SRT Rating: 2004-05-31
Lots o' bang for the buck Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
I never really liked the look of the Heil BM-10 headset, and for years -- despite wanting and needing to have hands-free operation at times -- I resisted buying one. Finally, I picked up a used headset on eBay, figuring I could sell it once I tried it.

After using it in contests since last fall, I can say that this is an excellent headset. It won't block out room noise very well, but that's not a problem at my QTH. In fact, since I have young children in the house, it's actually good to be able to hear some of what's going on elsewhere in the house. The headset isn't indestructible, but given reasonable care you'll get many, many QSOs out of it.

I bought a Heil Proset sometime after buying the BM-10, but frankly I prefer the BM-10 because of its lighter weight. The earphone audio quality is still quite good, and the mic provides plenty of drive for either my Kenwood or Yaesu rigs.
WA0TTN Rating: 2004-02-21
Almost forgot... Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
One of my concerns was the earphone quality. Bob Heil assured me that even though the earpiece is an open foam-cushoned system, the audio would be very good. I've bought so many cheap headphones with foam cushons that were tinny and made my ears hurt, that I was concerned about this.

I have to add to my previous review that I am very pleased with the audio quality. Although it's not the same as a full muff, I don't like wearing muffs. This is the best non-muff earpiece, and integrated with a boom microphone, I've ever used.

----------------------
Earlier 5-star review posted by WA0TTN on 2004-02-21

I recently had a really great experience with a Heil product (see my review of the HS-706) that I bought a BM-5-5 headset. I hate the full earmuffs, like the Pro's, and like the lightweight headsets. In talking with Bob Heil himself, he recommended the BM-5-5.

I received mine just last night so I've had only two days of use. But I love it so far! The first evening I used it I worked four stations, three of which were using Heil-5 elements. We had a great time comparing our (most excellent) audio. This evening (my second night) I've been working DX with excellent audio reports on every QSO.

I realize that two days is not worth a high vote on this product, so I'll probably have more to say after I've used it for a while. I do have concerns about the durability of the foam earpiece and the lightweight construction. But the reason I wanted this headset was because of the lightweight. And from my past experience, I believe that Bob Heil has great integrity in backing up his products should customers have problems under normal use.
W7CO Rating: 2003-05-22
poor Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Just received my new BM-5-5 (single ear piece) headset. When I tried to use the unit I got poor drive on the FT920 ALC. Spoke with the dealer and they shipped me another unit. Had same problem until I started wiggling the connections. Finally got it to work part-time. My dealer spoke with Heil and they admitted that the connector (AD-1Y) had some problems. End result is that the dealer is taking all of my unit back and sending it as well as their defective AD-Y's back to Heil. Ihe getting the desk mic instead. A lot of money for junk.
N3ZKP Rating: 2003-01-20
Great Value! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
A BM-10 was my requested Christmas present last year (2001) and I am not sorry. I use it with an Alinco DX-70TH as my portable/travel/drag-along rig. It folds up nicely to fit in the case with the radio, tuner and power supply.

While I prefer my big Pro-Set, the BM-10 is ideal for my travels. It may well be one of the best bargains around. Thanks, Bob, for bringing it back!
W2PA Rating: 2003-01-20
Great product, responsive company Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Well, here's my Heil story...
I've been using the BM-10-5 for the past two years or so without a problem. The microphone is excellent with my FT-1000D. The headset is quite comfortable - I didn't want one that covered my ears so for me, this one is ideal.
This past month the boom attachment came loose and could not be tightened. I couldn't figure out how to take it apart to see if something inside needed tightening. Before sending it in for service, I figured I'd try to contact Heil directly first. I sent an email off to the company's "info" email address (the one listed on their web site) asking about it, hoping it was something simple that I could do myself.
That same day I was surprised to receive an email back from Bob Heil saying it was a simple fix. He explained how to remove the earphone using a small screwdriver to release the plastic catches that held it in place. It was then a simple matter of tightening the internal screw.
What a great experience. I'll probably never buy a microphone from another company.
N2ERN Rating: 2002-03-20
The Best! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
What can I say! This is absolutely the greatest. Lightweight with foam pads, you don't even realize you're wearing it.

Mine turned into a basket case, and Heil "rebuilt" it for a song!
K4PDM Rating: 2001-06-07
classic quality Time Owned: more than 12 months.
On most rigs, the BM-10 will provide an audio improvement. Some radios respond predictably to microphones and some don't, in my experience. Neither of my BM-10s (one with a HC4, the other with a HC5) sounded good on my ICOM rigs, but both perform as expected on the Kenwoods I've had. Heil's mistake is claiming that the elements will perform similarly across-the-board, because they perform somewhat differently on different rigs. In my case, I am very satisfied with the receive audio and transmit audio on my Kenwood. The BM-10, although not really heavy-duty, holds up well. And what's this trent toward all this bass response nowadays? Give me clear, crisp INTELLIGIBILITY!