A Radar question...

[BigWill]

Ok... I did a preliminary search, but could not find anything, so, here is my question.

For those of you who use radar detectors, what brand do you have, and how happy are you with them? I am strongly considering the Valentine One, but would sure love to get some feedback from those of you who have been using any brand for a while.

Thanks in advance for the help!!

[audtatious]

I have a Bel 985 in one car (3 years old now) and the Escort x50 in another. Both are great detectors. I like the functionality of the Bel better than the Escort.

I have not tried a V1 but they do nothing for me.

[BigWill]

Thanks Matt...

I agree that the Valentine is not the most pleasing aesthetically, but I like that it has both front and rear detection, as well as pop detection, and they offer continued upgrades at a discount once you are an owner.

[TJMaxx98]

My Escort 8500 is one of the best I have ever owned....it has saved my butt a few times. One of the cool features is that it allows you to disable the X band....before it would drive me crazy around Walgreens. Not the case with the 8500.

Excellent unit.

[BigWill]

Excellent info Todd. I have heard a lot of people say that the door sensors of department and grocery stores can set those off.

Thanks!

[audtatious]

The 8500 ranks top with almost every radar test to date. V1 is in the top 3. All are great units and will give ample protection.

[BigWill]

In doing some more extensive research tonight, I found a couple of great sites that review the top detectors, in case anyone else should have the same question.http://www.radarbusters.com/default.asp ... ul...tion/

I decided on the Bel RX65 Pro. It turns out that Bel and Escort are owned by the same parent company.

Thanks again for your input!!

[turbobrian]

hands down the v1 is the best out there. most all have the same signal strength. the best thing about the v1 is the fact that the arrows tell you where the cop is. front or back. and with a counter to tell you hom many signals, and the strongerst signal blinks and "weeds" out the weeker false signals.. this is the most usefull feature. how many times does you radar go off and you think to yourself" where the f is he" the v1 takes the guess work out. as well as when your in an area that you know well and drive everyday you learn where the false signals are because you know that its coming up ahead.... an example from experiance. i was going over 100 on the highyway i usually drive. my v1 goes off with a ka band at the usuall spot. but this time it read 2 singnals ahead. i knew this must be a cop. and yes there was a cop doing instant on around the same spot where i get a false signal. i have not had one ticket in 10 years with my v1. i drive at least 80-100 everyday to and from work.

i highly recomend it over anything out there.

[G_whizz]

Don't they have Radar detectors that detect Radar detectors?

[joe603]

Radar detectors are legal in most states.

[G_whizz]

Not here...I think there's a major fine involved $$$$$

[audtatious]

hands down the v1 is the best out there. most all have the same signal strength. the best thing about the v1 is the fact that the arrows tell you where the cop is. front or back. and with a counter to tell you hom many signals, and the strongerst signal blinks and "weeds" out the weeker false signals.. this is the most usefull feature. how many times does you radar go off and you think to yourself" where the f is he" the v1 takes the guess work out. as well as when your in an area that you know well and drive everyday you learn where the false signals are because you know that its coming up ahead.... an example from experiance. i was going over 100 on the highyway i usually drive. my v1 goes off with a ka band at the usuall spot. but this time it read 2 singnals ahead. i knew this must be a cop. and yes there was a cop doing instant on around the same spot where i get a false signal. i have not had one ticket in 10 years with my v1. i drive at least 80-100 everyday to and from work.

i highly recomend it over anything out there.

The x50 can track multiple signals in expert mode ( 2 ka, 2 k, 4 X ). Regardless, if you are used to the road you know what is a false and what is not. Best approach is to slow down regardless (there are still X-band cop's that radar the highway in my area so even X band is important). In 15 years with Bel products I have not received a ticket and I usually push 15mph over the limit on highways.

The V1 is a nice product. It is not the "end all" of radar detectors tho.

[roofrecon.com]

LIDAR....does anyone have a detector that gets this band..new and sharper than anything..no radar detectors work with that up here and the troopers all use it...I threw mine in the trash after gettting burned with it.

[BigWill]

hands down the v1 is the best out there. most all have the same signal strength. the best thing about the v1 is the fact that the arrows tell you where the cop is. front or back. and with a counter to tell you hom many signals, and the strongerst signal blinks and "weeds" out the weeker false signals.. this is the most usefull feature. how many times does you radar go off and you think to yourself" where the f is he" the v1 takes the guess work out. as well as when your in an area that you know well and drive everyday you learn where the false signals are because you know that its coming up ahead.... an example from experiance. i was going over 100 on the highyway i usually drive. my v1 goes off with a ka band at the usuall spot. but this time it read 2 singnals ahead. i knew this must be a cop. and yes there was a cop doing instant on around the same spot where i get a false signal. i have not had one ticket in 10 years with my v1. i drive at least 80-100 everyday to and from work.

i highly recomend it over anything out there.

Good points, but for me, I guess that my thinking is, 'get a signal, slow down', rather than to start to second guess the detector, and worry about where the guy is.

[BigWill]

Don't they have Radar detectors that detect Radar detectors?

They do indeed Sean, but there are only two places in the US where it is currenlty illegal to have a detector... Washington DC and Virginia.

[BigWill]

LIDAR....does anyone have a detector that gets this band..new and sharper than anything..no radar detectors work with that up here and the troopers all use it...I threw mine in the trash after gettting burned with it.

Nathan... have a look at the sites in my earlier post. Detecting the LIDAR is a bit more iffy, but can be done. It is the same with 'instant on' type radar. There is some very enlightening research in those two sites. One of them is run by an ex-cop who is a licenced radar instructor.

Hey, I see that you are from DC... can you verify that detectors are illegal there?

[J-Owner]

I have a V1 and it has paid for itself about 10 times over the years. I have not had a ticket in as long as I can remember (knock on wood).

Mike Valentine, inventor of V1, helped develop the radar that cops use and decided to make more money inventing a detector to detect the radar that cops use. Considering his knowledge and the fact, as mentioned earlier, that he continually upgrades his technology, made the V! a hands down choice for me. I didn't even consider other brands and never will. I have three V1's and have never regretted the purchase for a moment.

Just my $0.02.

[turbobrian]

its not that i dont slow down. i do when it goes off. but it is the best feature to know exactly where the radar is coming from. i have had a few and tested them side by side with the v1 and just never saw that anything else picked up a better signal. they all seam pretty close to the same. but the fact that the v1 tells you where the signal is coming from is the most usefull tool. i will never buy another other than the v1. just my opinion because i have tried other detectors.

The x50 can track multiple signals in expert mode ( 2 ka, 2 k, 4 X ). Regardless, if you are used to the road you know what is a false and what is not. Best approach is to slow down regardless (there are still X-band cop's that radar the highway in my area so even X band is important). In 15 years with Bel products I have not received a ticket and I usually push 15mph over the limit on highways.

The V1 is a nice product. It is not the "end all" of radar detectors tho.

[txgcoupe]

LIDAR....does anyone have a detector that gets this band..new and sharper than anything..no radar detectors work with that up here and the troopers all use it...I threw mine in the trash after gettting burned with it.

LIDAR is LASER.

Your're safe with any detector that detects Laser.

John

[FanOfNissan]

Nathan... have a look at the sites in my earlier post. Detecting the LIDAR is a bit more iffy, but can be done. It is the same with 'instant on' type radar. There is some very enlightening research in those two sites. One of them is run by an ex-cop who is a licenced radar instructor.

Hey, I see that you are from DC... can you verify that detectors are illegal there?

Detecters, both radar and laser, are illegal in Wash. DC and Virginia. I live in Maryland, but had a detecter confiscated by a US Park Policeman while driving on the George Wash. Parkway in Virginia. As a Maryland resident, I was able to get it back after paying the $90 fine. I believe a VA resident may have lost it for good. I did escape a speeding ticket though!

BTW, this is my first post to this forum. I'm the proud new owner of a 04 Coupe 6MT w/ 30k miles

[BigWill]

Thanks for the confirmation on the legality of detectors over on the right coast.

And welcome to NICO Tim! Post some pics of your ride when you get a chance!

[G_whizz]

Welcome to NICO!!

Get pics up in the Members Rides area!

[smockers83]

to answer the question about detectors to detect radar detectors, yes there are. but many radar detectors have protection against this (called VG-2 and the new technology is Spectre) where it can detect a detector and it shuts down the oscillator in many models.

in quickly reading this, i didn't see an answer, so sorry to repeat if its already been answered.

[BigWill]

I'd like to once again thank everyone who replied for their wisdom! That's one of the things I love about this site. Lots of good people willing to help.

I just got the Bel RX65 Pro yesterday. I'll let you all know what I think of it as I begin to avoid tickets! lol