OMG

[hockey005]

sweet, well il write up a review in the next few weeks on how it is preforming ..thx!

[Virion]

That's hilarious. I did the same exact thing. I sent my STi back in my V1 repair box inside the foam.

[MEM-TEK]

So i send my bel STi back to bel to get tuned and upgraded (to get rid of the 33.8 bug) i had an a4m9 and the last 4 digits were 2007...i get it back today and its the same exact thing...i doubt they even did anything..wouldnt the serial number be different and i would have an a7m9? there is some card included and looks like they tuned it...but do i still have the 33.8 bug?!

Hi hockey005,

You have an A4M9 STi just like I do. My STi was produced in 1007. My STi, after it was flashed, came back displaying the same A4M9 firmware version. Yet it was obvious that the firmware had been updated since the display now no longer quickly changes its brightness depending on how much or little light the photocell is detecting. Any A4M9 STi, no matter what future firmware updates are applied to them, will always display the firmware as A4M9. Here is why:

The reason that your firmware does not display either A6M9 or A7M9 is because these later firmware revisions actually indicate either a change in the particular red LED display model used in the STi, and/or indicate that the STi uses a slightly different display board which has a tiny IC light sensor rather than the photocell light sensor. The switch to the different display board with the IC light sensor was done simply because the IC light sensor can be automatically installed by a pick-and-place robot, whereas the photocell is soldered to the display board by hand. Yet the IC light sensor's output signal must be interpreted differently compared to the photocell light sensor. This required a change in the firmware to make the firmware work with the newer IC light sensor. Its six of one or a half dozen of the other since the display dimming on reflashed A4M9 and the later A6M9 and A7M9 STi RDs behaves virtually identically. I could have had my STi's display board upgraded to the latest display board, but I would have seen no difference in operation whatsoever. My motto is "If it ain't broke, don't fix it!"

So, as you can see, Belscort uses displayed firmware versions to simply and quickly indicate to their technicians what specific hardware components are installed inside the radar detector. Note that no changes can be made to the antenna or local oscillator board (the actual radar signal detecting guts of a radar detector) without requiring that Belscort go through the FCC process of obtaining a new FCC ID for the radar detector. This is a point which I wanted to make to everyone who is concerned, for example, if their version 6.2 X50 comes back after a firmware update yet still displays 6.2 as the firmware rather than 6.3. As another example, the only way our A4M9 STi RD's can be updated to show the firmware as A7M9 is if the display modules were to be replaced with the revised module which uses the IC light sensor and different LED display part number. Needless to say, these small design changes have no effect on the operation of the radar detector or its sensitivity.

So, there you have it! Simply be sure to save your service card along with the return shipping label to be able to prove to a buyer, should you ever decide to sell your RD, that your RD received service on such and such date and what service was performed.

[hockey005]

ooo i see now..at first when i saw the same serial number and same rev. i thought bel just held it for 8 days because i sent it in the V1 foam and that pissed them off alright good..it will be in action tomorrow so il let u no how it goes

[MEM-TEK]

ooo i see now..at first when i saw the same serial number and same rev. i thought bel just held it for 8 days because i sent it in the V1 foam and that pissed them off alright good..it will be in action tomorrow so il let u no how it goes

Aside from the 33.8 fix, you may notice a slight increase in X band sensitivity, possibly a very slight increase in K band sensitivity, and a very slight increase in 34.7 Ka band sensitivity. At least this is what I observed after testing my reflashed STi. Its not that the STi's inherent band sensitivities have changed, its just that the filtering algorithms were fine tuned to produce a slightly earlier alert when the STi encounters extremely weak signals on these radar bands.

[hockey005]

sweet! X is my main threat when i go back to NJ next month and now Maine State Police use 34.7 Ka

[hockey005]

alright i got it back but have not run into ne LEO's...picked up a K band false tho from a rest stop that the STi did no pick up before..or the v1! better sensitivity is right 8)