9500i vs STi Driver vs. RX65 vs V1

Darn, this is the most 'quiet' and 'mature' argument(s) I have ever read on here....Good points and great facts and opinions.....Ill only add that the v1 has crazy sick really great sensitivity...

Great points

I currently have a V1, STi, & 9500i.

The only thing I like about the STi better than the rest is the looks/case, feel. I HATE the tones. I do think it is chatty around where I live, more than the 9500i and equal to the V1 in "A" mode. The audio ramp up is absolutely worthless as K1 and K6 have the EXACT same beep rate, K7-K9 have a fast rate. So, 2 beep rates on a $450 RD ??? Unreal. IMO there is no reason to own this RD unless you have no other choice. Even then the display must be visable since the audio ramp up is worthless.

9500i: Love it, just not as much as my V1. Great tones and K is not really a major threat here (X cannot be used) so I truelocked the hell out of it and deleted X.... it is SUPER quiet. I would rather have a slightly wider RD and not as long, that way bounces less and more room for a display / front mounted buttons. Angle the display please! Also, I would like a metal case.

V1: K automute is your best friend in the city! Only complaints are lack of freq display, all red leds. WTF are you thinking!! Raise the price $10 and throw some colors in there. What I think could be improved on: A BIG belscort style display could show more info to. I want to know where every threat is and how strong/freq.

For me:
1) V1
2) 9500i
3) X50

what is important is V1 has not changed their displays for several years. They only have 1 unit and Mike Valentine is anal retentative. Therefore, he is continously focusing on making the unit better and better. In addition if you spend $450 on the Escort 9500i you are out 450 (unless u sell it on ebay). So with the V1 you can pay $85 (around) and upgrade that bad boy.

i loved the 9500i but the v1 seemed to have a better/quicker response to LEO's in the back. Also the v1 has a stronger rear antenna then the 9500i. I do miss the 9500's gadgets though but I just want the intended purpose to not get a ticket.

It's absolutely amazing to me that someone could say the V1 is not "chatty". I have owned three generations, and their range is astounding, to say the least, BUT you have to have some screws loose to not say it is "chatty". Hell, I live 10 miles from town off a two lane road, in the middle of nowhere. EVERY Valentine I have owned has given false alerts along this road, while NO Belscort, Whistler, Etc. ever has.

I completely agree with the statement that the V1 can get you a ticket because you begin to doubt the constant alerts. I have literally changed detectors going down the road because I just couldn't handle all the falsing.

I used to have a 3.812, and to be honest, it was the quietest V1 I ever owned. In fact, it was soooo quiet I was almost afraid to use it.

Unlike many others here with their favorites, I don't for a minute believe there is any ONE detector that fulfills everyone's needs.

You don't have my driving style, you don't drive the routes I take, you don't live/work/travel in the same threat arena as me, so don't tell me your opinion of which detector is the greatest should tell me which is best for me. Choice of a detector is PURELY subjective.

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Originally Posted by bigalinwv

It's absolutely amazing to me that someone could say the V1 is not "chatty". I have owned three generations, and their range is astounding, to say the least, BUT you have to have some screws loose to not say it is "chatty".

You don't have my driving style, you don't drive the routes I take, you don't live/work/travel in the same threat arena as me, so don't tell me your opinion of which detector is the greatest should tell me which is best for me. Choice of a detector is PURELY subjective.

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Before you post another idiot rant to this thread, stop and read the first post. I said it was my opinion. You are welcome to disagree, but you do not tell me I "have some screws loose". If you want to be an immature jerk and act like an idiot, go to another forum. If you do this again here, I will ask the mods to ban you.

I stated I found the V1 to be less chatty, and it could be the area I drive in. Your problems could be the area you drive in. Have you specifically used the STi Driver? I don't see where you have, and that is the detector that had the most chattiness in my experience. If you have used it, and you like it, great! I didn't, and my comparison stands in my experience. Others posted here in this thread who liked the STi best, or the 9500i, and they all treated each other with respect.

Now, if you want to post here with real information that contains specific references to specific detectors, great. If you want to try that internet bully crap again, go ahead, and I guarantee you, if I have to reach out to the owner of this site to get rid of you, I will do so faster than you can type your next post.

Wow, sounds like you are a V1 fanatic. Read every radar detector test known to man, and take it from people who have owned every version of V1, the V1 is BY FAR the chattiest detector known to man, HANDS DOWN. This isn't even worth discussing, even diehard V1 fans will admit.

As far as your threat, do what you have to do. Your post is ridiculous.

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Originally Posted by bigalinwv

Wow, sounds like you are a V1 fanatic. Read every radar detector test known to man, and take it from people who have owned every version of V1, the V1 is BY FAR the chattiest detector known to man, HANDS DOWN. This isn't even worth discussing, even diehard V1 fans will admit.

As far as your threat, do what you have to do. Your post is ridiculous.

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Thanks, consider it done. By the way, I have not noticed anyone else on this thread acting like you, so why don't you just go away and bother someone else? You seem incredibly emotional on the subject of detectors, is this topic really that important to you that you have to get upset because someone does not agree with you? If so, you ought to be able to find something more worthwhile to spend your energy on.

As for being a V1 fanatic, that is not a true statement. If you had bothered to read my post, you would see I just found it better than the others. No detector is perfect. Interesting you still did not answer the question; do you own the STi driver, or are you just generalizing?

Since this thread has gone down the ****er...

COBRA RULES!

http://www.cartoonstock.com/lowres/abr0678l.jpg http://www.fotosearch.de/comp/arp/ar...~-forcdout.jpg http://home.comcast.net/~massbackwards/beavis.JPG

Hi everyone,

Wow, this thread seems to be getting a bit out of hand! Yet everyone has their own personal opinions based on their points of view. Anyway, I will interject some of my personal observations about all of the RD models being discussed, and a few other comments...

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Originally Posted by buntaro

...So here we go:

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First, I will say that it appears obvious in your following reviews that you likely tested each of the Belscort RDs in and around town in Highway mode rather than in Autoscan or Auto Sensitivity modes as recommended by Belscort. Of course I may be wrong; its just that your observations don't generally match mine. :)

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Originally Posted by buntaro

9500i--Nice idea, but no need to repeat all the issues with ramp-up (maybe fixed on newer releases?), the true-lock questions and the bad mounting clip. But the real problem I had is I am certain it missed some LEO hits with not much distance and not a great road curve. Sure, the filtering of false alerts makes this a quiet detector, and this may be the right way to go for some of you. I do not trust this detector, and tried and returned 2 of them before giving up. This item needs to be taken off the market and completely overhauled before I would try it again.

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The 9500i firmware has undergone a few undisclosed revisions prior to the currently released firmware which finally addresses the ramp-up issue. Indeed, the 9500i with the earliest firmware versions notably lacked sensitivity and ability to detect very weak radar signals. The firmware was greatly improved a few months ago to address sensitivity issues although the ramp-up issues still persisted. The 9500i's ramp-up issues have finally been addressed and resolved by the latest firmware.

TrueLock at present does not have enough resolution to always reliably filter out K band falses yet still alert to true K band police radar. My initial tests suggest that TrueLock against K band door openers has around a 60% probability of accidentally blocking an alert for a true K band police radar gun. This is why (at present) I only lock out false X band sources and false K band sources with frequencies which are significantly off from the standard 24.15GHz K band police radar frequency.

I have been using my new 9500i for over two weeks now, yet initially I wanted to return it. There are a ton of undisclosed software filtering algorithms active within the 9500i which help to make it a very quiet radar detector when used around town and when not using TrueLock, yet I have found that my 9500i still has the uncanny ability to respond to true police radar even when its algorithms are quietly filtering out radar signals which it is correctly interpreting as false.

I respect your opinion that the 9500i needs to be taken off the market even though I completely disagree with it. The 9500i has undergone a few firmware revisions which greatly improved its performance before its ramp-up issues were finally resolved by the latest current firmware release.

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Originally Posted by buntaro

STi Driver--The detector is the most chatty and annoying detector I have ever used, even in City mode. It does perform well in giving warnings in most situations, and the laser alert does work (you better use a jammer, license plate cover and the Veil paint too though or you will get a ticket). The 33.8 bug and the fix may be ok, but do not leave me feeling very secure. The Bel RX65 performs just as well for less money, unless you really need the stealth feature.

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I've found that my STi in Autoscan mode is fairly quiet around town. The STi in Autoscan mode moderately filters out pairs of X band door openers and slightly filters out pairs of K band door openers. This filtering effect is increased further on both X and K bands if you use City LoX mode. In City LoX mode the STi is extremely quiet around town. In my opinion, the STi in Autoscan mode is second to the 9500i in quietness when used around town.

The STi with its latest firmware (which fixes the 33.8 bug) outperforms the RX-65 on all radar bands, and this firmware took so long to be released because it apparently is a complete rewrite of all of the original code. The latest firmware also addresses several other minor issues as well. I have complete confidence in my re-flashed STi after using it for a couple of months now. Many STi users do wish that the STi had a a stronger audio ramp-up. Myself, I have gotten quite used to it.

Bel RX65--Good all around detector. Lots of falsies, annoying to the point of ignoring the real warnings. But, still, a solid unit that we use on our second car.[/quote]

I totally agree. I would have also mentioned that the RX-65's audio ramp-up is more compressed compared to Escort's 8500 X50 or 9500i and that this compressed ramp-up takes some getting used to in order to audibly interpret how strong an alert is. The compressed audio ramp-up is far less annoying for passengers in your car.

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Originally Posted by buntaro

Valentine One (V1)--I do not want to come off sounding like some of the V1 fanatics on this forum, who rave about the device as if it were some kind of divine intervention. But, this is the best detector in my experience, and from that standpoint, the V1 fan club is right. It has the least amount of false alerts except for the 9500i, much greater range than anything else currently on the market, and is very easy to use. I am not sure what some critics are referring to when they talk about the complicated programming of the V1. Either they don't know what they are talking about and have never used the product, or they have an older model. I am using the 1.8 in Advanced Logic mode and if using this is too difficult for some, then my best advice is to just observe the PSL. I am sure there will be issues with this product, as a detector is always imperfect. Only going the PSL will guarantee no speeding tickets. But, from my on the street results, the V1 is the best currently available.

Some chattiness observed in the V1 even in Advanced Logic mode, but I don't want to miss the alert that keeps me from getting a ticket, so there is always going to be a trade-off.

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Well, I've used a V1 and found it to be extremely chatty. There is no doubt that the V1 is an ideal radar detector to use for mostly rural and open interstate driving. Indeed, that is the V1's forte and seems to be what Mike Valentine has always concentrated on.

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Originally Posted by buntaro

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Originally Posted by bigalinwv

It's absolutely amazing to me that someone could say the V1 is not "chatty". I have owned three generations, and their range is astounding, to say the least, BUT you have to have some screws loose to not say it is "chatty".

You don't have my driving style, you don't drive the routes I take, you don't live/work/travel in the same threat arena as me, so don't tell me your opinion of which detector is the greatest should tell me which is best for me. Choice of a detector is PURELY subjective.

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Before you post another idiot rant to this thread, stop and read the first post. I said it was my opinion. You are welcome to disagree, but you do not tell me I "have some screws loose". If you want to be an immature jerk and act like an idiot, go to another forum. If you do this again here, I will ask the mods to ban you.

I stated I found the V1 to be less chatty, and it could be the area I drive in. Your problems could be the area you drive in. Have you specifically used the STi Driver? I don't see where you have, and that is the detector that had the most chattiness in my experience. If you have used it, and you like it, great! I didn't, and my comparison stands in my experience. Others posted here in this thread who liked the STi best, or the 9500i, and they all treated each other with respect.

Now, if you want to post here with real information that contains specific references to specific detectors, great. If you want to try that internet bully crap again, go ahead, and I guarantee you, if I have to reach out to the owner of this site to get rid of you, I will do so faster than you can type your next post.

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Buntaro, I have to agree with Big Al's statement, 'It's absolutely amazing to me that someone could say the V1 is not "chatty".' It is, and every V1 owner here will admit this, yet also admit that there are ways to quiet the V1 down when it is used in suburban areas and cities. Don't take offense to Big Al's comment that "you have to have some screws loose". He is a pretty good dude, but you must have a bit of a thick skin to hang around here on this forum or most other online forums. Hey, take a look at this thread where I posted that this was my last post ever to this forum! Hopefully you will get a kick out of it, and also realize that most everyone here are really good people even if their posts might momentarily make your blood boil. :)

This is my LAST post here on this forum.

Best Regards To All,

--Michael