I’ve been testing Bluetooth ski helmet speakers for the last few years, including those you add to your helmet yourself as well as helmets that incorporate speakers into their designs. While the majority work fine and serve up acceptable sound quality, few deliver the kind of sound you’d expect from more premium-priced traditional headphones and earbuds. But after spending the day using POC’s new Obex Connect headset, which POC developed with Harman Kardon, I can say I’ve finally found speakers that deliver impressive sound quality.
Alas, these aren’t speakers you can add to any ski helmet. The headset is sold as a $300 accessory for any of POC’s Obex helmets, or it’s available in POC’s $550 Obex Connect helmet, the audio upgraded version of the company’s Obex BC (Back Country) helmet. Both seem to be in limited supply at the moment, but hopefully that’ll change in due time.
Typically, when you buy third-party ski helmet speakers, you slide the speakers into the slots in the ear pads that many helmet companies offer as part of their helmet designs. With Smith helmets, for example, there’s a zipper that lets you access the opening in the ear pads and slip in the speakers. You can get true-wireless speaker options with no cable between the speakers, but it’s generally a better idea to get wireless speakers tethered together with a cable, because they offer more-reliable connectivity and better battery life and the wire gets hidden anyway after you snake it around the inside of the back of the helmet.
With the Obex headset accessory, you’re replacing your Obex helmet’s ear pads entirely. I unsnapped the ear pads from a standard Obex helmet ($200) and snapped in the new Connect ear pads with the headset built in. I then hid the wire connecting the Bluetooth speakers in the back of the helmet.
One of the problems of adding third-party speakers to your helmet is that this tends to change the fit of the helmet. I’ve added Outdoor Tech’s Chips speakers, Aleck speakers and even some budget ski helmet speaker options from Amazon to Smith and other helmets and ended up with a little more pressure from the ear pads on my ears because the speakers take up a little extra room in the ear pads. With the Obex Connect headset, the ear pads feel no different than standard Obex helmet ear pads.
Read more: Best high-tech ski gear of 2025
POC’s design also has some other benefits. Since both the USB-C charging port and control buttons are part of the ear pads’ design, they’re exposed and easy to access. Even with my gloves on, I had no trouble playing and pausing my music, skipping tracks forward or answering and ending calls.
The Obex Connect headset not only allows you to make calls using your smartphone, but it also has mesh technology that allows you to create a private group network with up to eight people that you set up via the Obex Connect companion app for iOS or Android.
You talk to the group in an intercom mode by simply pressing a button on the ear pad (you can also tap into a public mesh network that others can access). No cell service is required. The other people in your group need to have a compatible speaker system (another Obex Connect headset or helmet), and the range is limited to around 150-200 meters and can be impacted by obstacles like trees. I didn’t get a chance to test the mesh feature, but I’ve tried it with a Sena bike helmet audio system and it’s fun to use. (I’ll update this post once I test it.)
Sweden-based POC has a bit of history with ski helmet speakers. Back in 2012, it released its Receptor Bug Communications helmet with integrated wired Beats headphones, followed by a Beats-infused Fornix Communications helmet. I actually tried the Receptor Bug with the Beats speakers and thought that though the sound was relatively decent, it fell short of expectations. POC also did a more recent Obex MIPS Communication helmet, but this new model, from a sound standpoint, seems to have benefited greatly from the partnership with Harman Kardon.
The Obex Connect speakers deliver clear sound with punchy, well-defined bass and produce a fairly wide sound stage. The sound may not quite match that of JBL’s well-regarded $200 770NC headphones (JBL is a subsidiary of Harman, which is owned by Samsung), but it seemed pretty close to me. While the headset is IP54 splash- and dust-resistant, POC doesn’t give a battery life rating, though I had no problem getting through a seven-hour day of skiing with a 40-minute lunch break.
As I said, there are plenty of other ski helmet speakers available. The Outdoor Tech Chips 3.0 and Aleck Nunchucks are both on my list of best high-tech ski gear for 2025. And I know some people who’ve tried and liked the affordable but somewhat generic Alta Wildhorn Alta Bluetooth ski helmet speakers, which sell on Amazon for around $110 and seem like a good value.
But the POC Connect headset speakers sound significantly better than the Chips 3.0 and Aleck Nunchucks. I haven’t tested the Cardo PackTalk Outdoor Helmet Communication system, which incudes JBL speakers, but it’s received some pretty good reviews.
Of course, a lot of folks just ski with their earbuds in their ears. I’ve skied with the AirPods 4, AirPods Pro 2, Jabra Elite 8 Active Gen 2 and Sony LinkBuds Fit, and they all sound very good. From both a safety and comfort standpoint, it’s not so great to have ear tips jammed in your ears under your helmet. And unless you use voice controls to control playback, you end up frequently taking off your gloves and pulling your phone out of your pocket to adjust volume levels and control playback, which can be annoying. A helmet audio solution like this ends up being much better, albeit fairly pricey.
It would be nice if Harman Kardon or some other big audio company developed ski helmet speakers that sounded great and worked with a wide variety of helmets. But for now, POC’s new Connect Obex system is not only well designed, it’s also the best-sounding ski helmet speaker system I’ve tried. It’s easy to recommend, if you can find it in stock.
POC Obex Connect key features, according to POC
- Sound by Harman Kardon with preset EQs for voice, music and bass boost.
- Mesh technology allows up to eight Obex Connect Headset users to communicate with every other member of the group. The Mesh connection doesn’t interfere with your phone’s functionality, so you can still make and receive calls.
- Self-Healing Group: If one person drops out of the Mesh group, the rest of the group stays connected with each other. Anyone who drops out will automatically rejoin the group once they come back into range.
- Bluetooth Intercom: If you don’t want to use all the features of the Mesh Intercom, a Basic Connection via Bluetooth with your smartphone gives basic sound functionality and allows for a short-range (up to 25 meters) one-to-one connection with another headset user.
- IP54 certified: Protection against dust and splashing water.
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