Do you use a Laser Jammer along with your V1?

[AV8TOR]

I am curious how many V1 users are using a Laser Jammer as well.

[TSi+WRX]

^ I unfortunately don't own a V1 ( you know my reasons why ops: ) - but yes, I do run a jammer (well, actually, jammers!) with a top-flight detector.

Why?

I don't consider the detector a true first-line defense.

Yes, a good laser detector is vital, particularly one that will tell you the direction of the incoming threat, however, picking up scatter/reflections with something even as sensitive as the V1 is still something that I view as being very "up to chance," and, of course, the report of a true hit is just that, a true hit.

As such, I firmly believe that, where legal, the only true laser protection is a good active jammer (with or without supplemental passive protection).

[Holla]

As soon as the daggone Laser interceptor comes online I will have that...

[bauzer71487]

As soon as it becomes w/i my budget.

[TQUILL]

Yeah I've got a jammer running with my V1. Even the V1, with allegedly better laser detection, is really just a ticket detector when it comes to a laser hit.

The LI would be nice but I'm not sure if that thing is ever coming out. A month ago we were a a few weeks away from getting it, and now we're two months away from it. Judging from that and extrapolating, the timeline isn't looking so great.

Nothing against Elvis either, the government is 100% to blame for it.

[Phillip559]

When i get the laser interceptor then yes.

[Miata+Accord]

I'd like to get one, but since I move around between my accord and my miata, it means I have to buy two jammers... $$$

[JDS]

I'd like a Laser Interceptor, but this stuff is all so EXPENSIVE...

[TabulaRasa]

I don't have a laser jammer, but that doesn't mean I don't want one.

Couple of things have stopped me so far:

The cost. I bought my V1 about seven years ago, and $400 is a nice chunk of change, but alot of the jammers cost > $500. There must be some hefty profit margin in these things. I don't mind the companies making money, but if I'm going to spend my hard earned cash, I want to be sure I'm buying an up to date, quality product...read on.

There is no definitive "top dog". I was impressed by the video of the Antilaser AL-6 (I think that's the right name). The video was shot in Europe and showed a laser gun vs. a dark colored BMW equipped with the jamming device. However at the time (year or two ago), there was no easy way to get an Antilaser other than importing it directly from some former Yugoslavian country. That and I honestly haven't done much research since then. I remember when I first heard of laser jammers, the Escort Shifter ZR3 and the Lidatek LE10 were the only ones on the market. More recently Laser Pro Park and Blinder have their adherents.

Production quality. Alot of the units just look CHEAP. Plastic chassis, hand filled with epoxy goop to weatherproof it? Either that or many of the products are billed as "coming soon" and their videos only show pre-production prototypes. My jammer has got to be TOUGH. I drive when it's 110F outside and I drive when it's -40F below. It's gotta be able to go through all the harsh conditions my car does. I liked the Escort Shifter ZR3 the most, it was the nicest, most finished product. However I was wary of buying it after I heard Escort was discontinuing the product. I had emailed Valentine 1 to get their opinion and basically V1's answer was they didn't have a jammer in the pipeline.

Do I really want a laser jammer? Yes, but I haven't seen one that is really head and shoulders above the rest. I still remember there was some controversy with a jammer maker on this forum who used multiple accounts to try to talk up his own product. Very shady.

[TSi+WRX]

Couple of things have stopped me so far:

Hopefully, I can help - either to change your mind, or, alternatively, to make you feel even more secure in your current decision.

The cost.

No arguments here. This is indeed very prohibitive for many. A recent "Group Buy" organized by a fellow member of long-standing the BL/BP-Chassis Subaru Legacy Forums failed miserably - it's a very hefty chunk of change.

Also, even if you do put dollars-to-table at some point, there's still going to be the ongoing cost of continual updates/revisions - and even if it's just shipping costs, with various of the top-tier jammers, it's not quite as simple as sending in your detector. With Customs brokerage fees and/or taxes/duties always a possibility, as well as the potential for transit delays, it's just not quite the same.

There is no definitive "top dog". I was impressed by the video of the Antilaser AL-6 (I think that's the right name). The video was shot in Europe and showed a laser gun vs. a dark colored BMW equipped with the jamming device. However at the time (year or two ago), there was no easy way to get an Antilaser other than importing it directly from some former Yugoslavian country. That and I honestly haven't done much research since then. I remember when I first heard of laser jammers, the Escort Shifter ZR3 and the Lidatek LE10 were the only ones on the market. More recently Laser Pro Park and Blinder have their adherents.

I agree, there's no simple "top dog."

The current AntiLaser G8 has had some production quality issues - chiefly what some have come forward to bill as "the 6-month time bomb," where the unit eventually just fails to function properly (this has been confirmed by many members of long-standing and good-standing here and elsewhere in the community, including RacerX and Stlouisx50). Even though they are undeniably the fastest to-revision, this issue, combined with shipping hassles (direct-purchase from Croatia), raises some worries among those looking to purchase it.

The Laser Pro Park does have the convenience of having North-American distributors, however, the actual legality of the issue does worry some - and there is a not-insignificant cost-differential to the AntiLaser. This, combined with the fact that it does lag behind its AL counterpart, at least by a month or so, for firmware and software revisions, makes for concerns from those who may be looking at it.

The Escort ZR3 and associated sister products are, rather unfortunately, technically outdated. Yes, they carry outstanding customer-service and warranty support, but that's not going to help you much in terms of jamming "power." Still, against certain LIDAR threats (hardware and encounter scenario dependent, as well as mounting-dependent/vehicle-dependent), it can provide more than sufficient coverage and protection to at least slow-to-reasonable/PSL.

The Blinder product carries much of the same liabilities as well as limitations of the Escort - and also the same advantages. It's arguably a better jammer, overall, in terms of performance, but some of that can also be attributed to the fact that most enthusiast testing tests this unit with its maximal "all four heads pointed in one direction" configuration - this, however, brings up a unique liability of this unit...with such a setup, it does take up a lot of real-estate, and not all vehicles have this luxury.

With both of the LED-based jamming options, unfortunately, rear-jamming is pretty much ineffective outright.

Like you said, no clear winner.

Production quality. Alot of the units just look CHEAP. Plastic chassis, hand filled with epoxy goop to weatherproof it? Either that or many of the products are billed as "coming soon" and their videos only show pre-production prototypes. My jammer has got to be TOUGH. I drive when it's 110F outside and I drive when it's -40F below. It's gotta be able to go through all the harsh conditions my car does. I liked the Escort Shifter ZR3 the most, it was the nicest, most finished product. However I was wary of buying it after I heard Escort was discontinuing the product.

Actually, both the AL and LPP are metal-enclosed, with thick frontal lenses. I would actually rate their "external product appearance for durability" to be a notch ABOVE that of the plastic-housing Escort products.

However, I am truly not certain if the metal housing confers any advantages at all. I am a firm believer in "modern materials," and I have no reason to believe that a plastic housing won't be any less durable nor less weather-resistant than metallic counterparts.

My ZR3 has served for 3+ years (going on 4) of duty on my various vehicles, and it was only last year that it finally malfunctioned. To my surprise, no, it wasn't a leak in any of its externally-mounted heads (and here's where you're mistaken, my fellow AWD-bruddah it's actually the earlier versions of the ZR3, which you held in such high esteem, that suffered this kind of head-related weathering problem), but rather, something gave-way on the interior-mounted control-box.

While my average driving conditions are nowhere near as severe as yours, my ZR3 has seen exposure to ambient temperatures above 110 deg. F., lowest, probably, about -20. My LPPs have seen the low-side of this spectrum already - and high of about 100 deg. F. I have no reason to fear its durability/reliability.

I still remember there was some controversy with a jammer maker on this forum who used multiple accounts to try to talk up his own product. Very shady.

Sadly, this kind of childish behavior STILL exists. :cry:

Maybe it's truly because the market is so limited for these products that people are dying to make any money at all - hence all the bad blood. :?:

To me, such behavior reflects negatively on those who are making those claims/statements - and sadly, this has included just about EVERY one of the product makers (with Escort being the sole exception).

Indeed, not an easy choice at all, bro.