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  1. #1

    Default Newbie Seeks RD advice

    Hello all. Looking for some advice from the collective wisdom here. Let me start by saying I know nothing about the technical aspects of RDs. I’ll freely admit that when I’m clueless, I seek out help.

    That being said, I need to purchase a new RD, hopefully in the next 24 hours for an upcoming trip this weekend. I’ve had a Whistler 17xxxsomething for a few years. Nothing spectacular, but the bracket broke and I’d rather just buy something new. Only local retailers are Best Buy, Radio Shack, Walmart, etc. which seem to carry mostly low end stuff. Most likely will need to buy online. Budget is about $140 including shipping and because this is a quick purchase, will have to include overnight or 2-day shipping.

    With all of that being said, here’s what I’m looking at. I’d appreciate some opinions and recommendations. Not sure if I’m allowed to post prices or not, so I’ll just say that these seem to be in my price range at a particular online retailer, ranging from $95 to $150 or so.

    Whistler XTR-695SE
    Whistler Pro-78SE
    Whistler Pro-68SE
    Whistler Pro-690SE
    Whistler XTR-555
    Whistler XTR-575
    Beltronics V940
    Or…a refurb Escort 8500 $150.00

    Thanks for the help.

  2. #2
    Radar Fanatic
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    Default Re: Newbie Seeks RD advice

    i'd go with the beltronics or the escort, probably the escort.

    some whistlers are... okay.. but if you can afford escort or beltronics, go for it.

    if it was ME, i'd drive the speed limit, save up some more money, and get a better RD. You have to pay to play.. one way or another.

  3. #3
    Yoda of Radar
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    Default Re: Newbie Seeks RD advice

    My favorite among those is the Escort 8500 refurb. I'm not a fan of the Bel v940, because it lacks the ability to disable X band, but other than that, it's a good buy. Here's how I rate the budget RD category:

    Overall:
    1. Refurbished Escort 8500
    2. Bel v955
    3. Whistler SE

    Sensitivity:
    1. Refurbished Escort 8500
    2. Bel v955
    3. Whistler SE

    Reliability:
    1. Bel v955
    2. Whistler SE
    3. Refurbished Escort 8500

    Features:
    1. Refurbished Escort 8500
    2. Whistler SE
    3. Bel v955

    Reactivity:
    1. Whistler SE
    2. Refurbished Escort 8500
    3. Bel v955

    False Alerts:
    1. Bel v955
    2. Refurbished Escort 8500
    3. Whistler SE

    Warranty:
    1. Whistler SE
    2. Bel v955
    3. Refurbished Escort 8500

  4. #4
    Radar Fanatic
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    Default Re: Newbie Seeks RD advice

    I would go with the Refurb 8500.

  5. #5

    Default Re: Newbie Seeks RD advice

    The Bel I was looking at was the V940, not the V955. From what I can gather, it looks like in the Whistler SE series vs the Refurb 8500, the 8500 would be the pick, huh?

  6. #6
    Yoda of Radar
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    Default Re: Newbie Seeks RD advice

    Quote Originally Posted by crankky View Post
    The Bel I was looking at was the V940, not the V955. From what I can gather, it looks like in the Whistler SE series vs the Refurb 8500, the 8500 would be the pick, huh?
    The 8500 would be my pick for that price range. You can also find a brand new Escort C65 for $180ish, if you look around, which is a good buy, although slightly over your stated price range.

    I'm not sure where you drive, but if you don't need X band, you cannot turn off X band on either the Bel v940 or the Whistler SEs, for different reasons. The Bel v940 does not have any setting to turn that band off and if you turn X band off in the settings on a Whistler SE, they still slert to X band signals, but just call them K band.

  7. #7
    Advanced Member
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    Upstate New York where the Stalker Dual is King
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    Default Re: Newbie Seeks RD advice

    Quote Originally Posted by djrams80 View Post
    Quote Originally Posted by crankky View Post
    The Bel I was looking at was the V940, not the V955. From what I can gather, it looks like in the Whistler SE series vs the Refurb 8500, the 8500 would be the pick, huh?
    The 8500 would be my pick for that price range. You can also find a brand new Escort C65 for $180ish, if you look around, which is a good buy, although slightly over your stated price range.

    I'm not sure where you drive, but if you don't need X band, you cannot turn off X band on either the Bel v940 or the Whistler SEs, for different reasons. The Bel v940 does not have any setting to turn that band off and if you turn X band off in the settings on a Whistler SE, they still slert to X band signals, but just call them K band.
    Good advice.

    The C65 is equivalent to the Bel RX65 which is a solid tier 2 detector (one step under the top end STi / RedLine / 9500ix). The USA mode feature probably puts detection range on par with the 9500ix with better response times.

    The 8500 is the best tier 3 deal going..........it may get edged out on one band or another by a Cobra or Whistler, but it is a much more refined design with better resistance to falsing and superior band identification.
    [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

  8. #8

    Default Re: Newbie Seeks RD advice

    Thanks, everyone. Just ordered an Escort 8500.

  9. #9
    Power User
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    Default Re: Newbie Seeks RD advice

    Quote Originally Posted by crankky View Post
    Thanks, everyone. Just ordered an Escort 8500.
    Good choice, I bought one myself and it is very good.

  10. #10
    Yoda of Radar
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    Default Re: Newbie Seeks RD advice

    Just don't get a false sense of security with that. You're still wide open to laser, which no detector can save you from. And depending on where you drive, that may well be the bigger threat than radar. In fact, in many areas, it's the only threat.

    "Buy the BEST and screw the rest." - fire65

    "im intrested to see how well you do.i never seen a car JTG before would be a first for me.." - radarrob

 

 

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