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  1. #1
    Newcomer
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    Sep 2005
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    Santa Clara, CA
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    37

    Default a few questions about V1 install

    so i have a radar mounting dilema. well, a few of them:

    1) on my car the windshield has special coating/film which blocks some of the signal from making it through. however, there are two cutouts designed for radars/transponders as documented here:

    http://members.roadfly.org/e65faq/#TT12

    one of the cutouts is on the bottom of the windshield and i used to have my radar there. the only problem with that is i have to reach pretty far to mute it or adjust it. so i decided to try and install the radar by the rear view mirror. but the cutouts there are so small that i have to install V1 pointing up: http://photos.jkb.org/v/cars/misc/75..._0901.jpg.html - you can actually see the "cutout" line to the left of the radar.

    my guess the radar works best when installed parallel to the ground. how much do i loose by having it installed pointing up? will mostly rear sensor be affected or both?

    2) second thing. i LOVE having radar mounted at the botton of the windshield because it is right in the line of sight (and sometime i play music really loud when i drive). but as i said, the only problem is reaching it while driving. so i figured i could get consealed display and mount consealed display near rear view mirror for easy reach to mute/control radar. but then i no longer have the arrows/signal in the line of sight. i wish there was a "remote control" unit Valentine 1 Research would sell in addition to 'consealed display' unit. that would solve my problem. i am not sure there is a question in here - more like a "feature" request from Mike for a new add-on to the V1

    3) third thing. lately i been getting a lot of K band hits. they built this real-time traffic info system in bay area and put-up a bunch of sensors which set off my K band every 10 minutes of freeway driving:

    http://traffic.511.org/

    however, it only hits the car from behind. you would be driving and all of a sudden your V1 goes off at FULL strenght on the K band with the back arrow. my question is, why do i not get the reflection from the cars in front of me ahead of time. why such a sudden burst?

    anyways, looks like i can solve this problem by disabling the "rear K band" alarms via custom programming. i already have X disabled and was thinking of also getting K disabled completely, but before i do that, i'll start with turning off only rear K band alerts. or should i turn off K band all the way? i cant remember last time catching a local or highway cop with a K band radar. anybody from CA here with that knowledge?

    4) last one is easy. i read somewhere on the net a simple RJ-11 phone cable would do when it comes to hooking up V1 - is that true? if so, i'll get one to match the car interior

    thanks for looking at my silly concerns. will appreciate any feedback at all.[/url]

  2. #2
    Newcomer
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    Sep 2005
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    Santa Clara, CA
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    Default Re: a few questions about V1 install

    Quote Originally Posted by yan_750i
    ...
    so looks like a simple phone cord can be used for the V1 "power" (doh, RTFM)

    i have decided to simply mute rear K-band and to flip #7 to on and bump it up to 15 or 20 seconds from default 10

    my question is this: i am trying to figure out different betwen E and F (as an engineer i should get it). it looks like the description of the two is the same except for E is for 4 LEDs and F is for 6 LEDs - am i missing something?

    oh wait, i just read it one more time and got the difference between the two. but i still dont understand which one do i use if i want to be really conservative with K-band and ignore it as much as i can. do i enable both?

  3. #3
    Radar Fanatic
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    Jan 2005
    Location
    East Bay Ca
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    1,799

    Default

    For area's that have a K band freeway drone problem like we have in the bay area I have added (E) stay muted at four LED's, (F) stay muted at six LED's.
    The reprograming instructions do not explain that in order for (F) to work (E) has to be enabled as well, or else you are back to a four LED threshold.
    They also make it appear as if (F) breaks at seven LED's, but what it should read is when (E) & (F) are both enabled all eight LED's will stay muted until your selected time threshold is over.
    Logic mode (l) enables all LED's but regular volume is transferred to the muted lever until your selected time threshold is over.
    Advanced logic mode (L) disables all LED's & volume basically rendering K band off until your selected time threshold is over.

    The reprogramming instructions for K band automute indicate that (b) through (G) will only work if (7) is enabled, however yesterday I noticed on my 1.7 that (G) will still work without (7) enabled making it possible to enable rear K band automute only. Would anyone with a 1.8 preferably a 3.825 like to verify that it still does this on newer firmware?
    It will be OK to leave X-off if that is how you have it but disable (7) (arrow up default) then enable (G) arrow down and see if rear K band automutes, it will be easy to see as regular volume will never sound.

  4. #4
    Newcomer
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    Jul 2005
    Location
    Austin, TX
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    32

    Default Re: a few questions about V1 install

    Quote Originally Posted by yan_750i

    i wish there was a "remote control" unit Valentine 1 Research would sell in addition to 'consealed display' unit. that would solve my problem.
    This is pretty easy to make. If you look into the accessory jack on the cig or hardwire adapter you will see 4 metal contacts. Looking into the jack with the pins on the top, you would want to connect the second and fourth pins, counting from the left. Run a regular phone cable (any one will work as long as it has 4 wires in it, not 2) from the jack, making a note of which color wire connects to which pin. Cut the end off the wire and connect the two wires to a normally open, momentary switch (a switch that is only on when you press the button, like this one from Radio Shack).

    For safety, you should probably also put in a resister in the line somewhere (a 10k should be fine) and check everything with a multimeter (the two center pins are power and ground, check the voltage to make sure you are connecting to the right pins).

    Quote Originally Posted by yan_750i

    4) last one is easy. i read somewhere on the net a simple RJ-11 phone cable would do when it comes to hooking up V1 - is that true? if so, i'll get one to match the car interior

    thanks for looking at my silly concerns. will appreciate any feedback at all.
    yup, just make sure it has 4 wires in it, and you should be fine.

  5. #5
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    Sep 2005
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    Santa Clara, CA
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    37

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by V1 Dave
    (A) mode for known K band LEO hot zones
    oh yeah? in the bay area? and there i was thinking i should just turn K-band off completely.

    where are the hot zones? who still uses K? i think a few years ago i saw one guy with a K-band under Central Underpass on San Thomas Expressway. Can't remember if he was CHP or Sheriff.

  6. #6
    Good Citizen
    Join Date
    Jul 2005
    Location
    San Jose, California
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    96

    Default

    I am in the California North Bay area. I have only encountered one K band LEO so far, but I would recommend you leave K band on at reduced volume as V1 Dave has described.

    Also, I have found it very useful to be able to identify the radar bands by sight as well as sound as described here.

  7. #7
    Good Citizen
    Join Date
    Mar 2005
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    98

    Default

    I can answer a bit on the UV coated screen, the term that my car manufacturer calls it by is a Athmeric screen.
    According to the manu there were two points next to the rainsensor, where the is no coating. These were designed for toll tags. It is near impossible to fit the V1 there, because the rearveiw mirror would obstruct the V1.
    I had the V1 mounted just below the rearveiw, anyway when the V1 was mounted there, I would only ever get alerts when 50m away from the radar and full strength as I pass.

    My way of solving the problem was a bit extreme, but basically I changed my windscreen for one that doesn't have the UV coating. It makes life a lot better. UV coated screens kill forward detection.

  8. #8
    Scratonicity Groupie
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    Mar 2005
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    7,614

    Default

    if you have full coverage insurance and can wait, when ever your windshield cracks just have them replace it without the coating...

  9. #9
    Radar Fanatic
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    Jan 2005
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    East Bay Ca
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    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by yan_750i
    oh yeah? in the bay area? and there i was thinking i should just turn K-band off completely.

    where are the hot zones? who still uses K? i think a few years ago i saw one guy with a K-band under Central Underpass on San Thomas Expressway. Can't remember if he was CHP or Sheriff.
    CHP are Ka only but I think most city's in CA still use K band the most.
    In lifespeed's North Bay area the city LEO's have had Ka for quite some time.
    I live in the Dublin, San Ramon, Danville, Alamo area and K band is big in all of these city's.
    So I can keep the freeway drones totally silent and watch the LED's in the logic mode if I wish hitting me in the front or back but simply switch to (A) mode when I am around home as all K band automute settings become inactive just as if you never messed with any of the automuting codes instead of reprograming K band on/off.
    If I had an RD that automuted with an initial alert each time with full tone blasts on drones I would be forced to turn K band off on the freeway then on again in town.

 

 

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