Radar Detectors

[david-b]

Hey all. I searched, but couldnt find a good answer.

I'm looking for a radar detector. I went to Best Buy nd Circuit City, and they told me to go for the expensive ones for what I do. What i do:

-Speed
-Race
-Drag Race
-Burnouts
-Donuts....
all that good stuff

Anyway, they said the cheap ones will only tell you when you get hit by the cop speed thingy. I forget the name, maybe GW something... I dont know. What would you guys suggest, and maybe could you post some info about them. What r urguys experiences with them. i need good protection. thanks.

Dave

[WarPigs]

Valentine just released a new one https://store.valentine1.com/store/ its goin for $400 there, its the best though. second best right now would be the escort 8500 http://www.escortradar.com/8500.htm.

heres the scoring chart http://www.valentine1.com/lab/detectortests.asp

if I would have went with the TA rather then the Blazer i'd get one, savin money for bike instead

[MustangRoadRacer]

yeah, valentine is the shit.
you can also wire it to your stereo so that it beeps loudly and cuts off your music when a cop is close.
because sometimes the detector is hard to hear with the music up.

[Sluttypatton]

No radar detectors are worth a thing, unless the officer with the radar gun is a moron and simply leaves his gun on.

[viper8369]

I own a cobra radar detector and since I have had it, I have received more tickets with it than without it. But if you are going to get a radar detector than get a valentine. Cobras look good but they aren't that good.

[david-b]

It seems like when people buy these things, they stop paying attention to the cops themselves. When I get one, I'm still gonna be looking all over the place.

Anyways, those are kinda of expensive. Are those cheaper ones any good at all? I just need aliittle something that can se elike maybe a 1/4 mile ahead and behind. Dont need anything too hightech. Thanks.

[originalmike]

There are many different ways cops measure your speed with radars, most commonly x band, k band, ka band, instant on, and laser.

Many cheaper radar detectors have poor k and ka band sensitivity and these bands are most common in cop's radars. x band radars are old technology and not common anymore. Instant on radars commonly use k and ka band but they give the cop the option to not send a detectable signal until they can quickly register your speed, when they use this you have very little time to slow down when you recieve a signal. There is pretty much nothing you can do if the cop has a laser. You wont even detect it unless the cop is aiming right where the radar is mounted.

Right now i have a cheap Radio Shack detector and it works fine in most cases, just keep your eyes open. Oh yeah, most importantly, dont get a Rocky Mountain Radar radar detector, all their detectors are crap, they make extravagant false claims and their "passive jammers" dont do a thing.

No radar detectors are worth a thing, unless the officer with the radar gun is a moron and simply leaves his gun on.

Actually, most officers are legally obligated to monitor the target speed and listen to the target-speed audio Doppler for a few seconds to verify that both he and the radar are looking at the same vehicle. At that point he can lock the speed--although in many states this isn't required--and take enforcement action. So in many cases a radar detector can help you from getting a ticket.

Oh yeah, anything you could ever want to know about radar detectors is at www.radartest.com and they rate all kinds of radar detectors, even the cheap ones.

[MustangRoadRacer]

yeah, they help, but they are no substitute for common sense.

[david-b]

OK. Thanks Mike. That's the info i needed; someone using a cheap one. Common sense is the best. Having a passenger also is even better.

[david-b]

I ended up buying the Cobra. Not the top of the line, just the regular non-speaking one. Tried it when coming home and it was pretty good. It's weird tho that it didnt seem to pick up any state cops. They just went driving right by... but it was great. Thanks for the info

[viper8369]

Yeah my cobra doesn't pick up state troopers too good but it picks up city cops and sheriff pretty good.

[originalmike]

State troopers probably have the good radars, But it'll probably tell you right after you get caught,

[david-b]

Now, the regular cops don't have to have the radar directly on you, right? Also, does the City and Highway mode really make a difference. I mean, the city has less fake alerts, but which is better?

[originalmike]

Most cops have radars that they point in your general direction and they pick the stongest (closest) signal. But the more advanced ones seperate the speeds for different cars or displayes the fastest one. But lasars shoot a very narrow beam so theyd have to aim good.

The city mode tries to eliminate false alarms by ignoring weak x and k waves generally emited by motion detectors, security systems, etc. So the highway mode is better because it is more sensitive, but it could get really annoying.

[viper8369]

I always keep my radar detector on highway b/c one reason is the sensitivity is up and plus i am lazy and don't want to hit the bottom from highway to city all the time. If the beeping gets annoying which it will I just turn it down enough to were I can barely here it.