RX65 sensitivity

[Earendil]

Hope I am not making false assumptions but I know what I see. I am also familiar with the concept of radar and radio waves being an engineer in that area a few times.

Well I had this Uniden radar detector (RD) for over 15 years. It was in use for my latest commute which includes a 20 mile stretch of rte 495 (outer beltway of Boston). So I am a bit familiar with the radar and other electronic signals that set off my RD. After a simple replacement of some fog lights in my Saab 9-5 Aero I got constant laser alerts. Well thinking the ole RD has finally gone batty I searched the web and came to Radar Roy's site. In time I bought an RX65. I wanted it hardwired and got the hardwire kit. Sorry Roy but I got it from Beltronics because Ohio was closer!

Anyhow I haven't installed the hardwire last weekend like I wanted to but I did want to try the RX65 just in case it was bad so I used the (way too noticable to police) coiled power (smart?) cord and mounted it precisely in the same spot the Uniden was - high and just to the left of the rear view mirror. Now yes, I have read all over how not so good this is but I decided to take the chance of all the cons of such a mount location. In the least it should be the same or slighty better than the Uniden, right?

Hmmm, well not quite. My first day commute roundtrip not one alert showed itself! Like I said I know where the "hot" spots are and I was surprised. Yes, I had set the RX65 up with the threat alert but reset it but still no go. I was actually worried but hoped the RX65 could actually determine bad (like cell phone signals) from radar. Logic won over hope though so I am still worried. Still I drove to work the second day (today, at work now ) and it went off three times (I had threat alert on and in one case had both K and Ka alerts). Now I know there are at least 4 hot spots my old Uniden would regularly light up (except now it lights up all the time, hehe) and the RX65 lit in only one of them (Ka with the car pointed at a cell phone tower a mile away).

So the short question is - isn't the RX65 supposed to be more sensitive than most other RDs?

In further reading I did see the post about electrical noise which makes sense. I guess I should break out (it's in storage) my oscilloscope (yes, a real Tektronix one) to see the 12 Vdc line. That may solve the Uniden false laser alerts but I feel it leaves me with a very expensive paperweight in the RX65 (with the 30 day return-for-money-back clock ticking away). I did notice when I was considering installing the hardwire last weekend, I was listening to the radio and the interior lights were on it detected a low battery voltage condition! It wasn't a problem after I started the car though.

BTW if this is the wrong forum, sorry. I could find no other support email or forum... :?:

[eviltwin67]

Maybe your RX65 is just not falsing as much as your older Uniden. The RX65 maybe ignoring the "hot spots" you are used to because it recognizes them as not being real LEO radar threats.

You mentioned that you got a low voltage alert when you had the radio and interior lights on w/o the engine running. Check if your new fog lights are causing the same problem. I have seen similar voltage problems w/higher wattage and even normal headlight and driving/fog lights even with the engine running. I ended up replacing my main 6 engine grounds with thicker gauge wire and even using a "heavy duty" wiring harness for my headlights. They are normal wattage bulbs, but they seem brighter than they used to be before the modification and are noticeably brighter than cars of the same year and model. My engine starts "faster" now too and I don't get any more voltage irregularities.

[kpatz]

Voltage problems could be causing your issues with your Uniden as well as the RX65. Check your battery, it could be on its way out.

[ES13Raven]

Maybe your RX65 is just not falsing as much as your older Uniden. The RX65 maybe ignoring the "hot spots" you are used to because it recognizes them as not being real LEO radar threats.

Bingo...

I have just recently come from a Whistler Pro 58, and a RadioShack POS before that, and I have noticed that the RX65 will not alert to some of the falses that I saw before with the other 2 detectors.

In this case, you get what you paid for - better filtering technology.

The RX65 is supposed to be one of the best at detecting a real threat at long range. I have not had a LEO encounter yet with my RX65, so I cannot confirm that. But I am happy with the filtering capabilities so far! :wink:

[aust3333]

Hope I am not making false assumptions but I know what I see. I am also familiar with the concept of radar and radio waves being an engineer in that area a few times.

Well I had this Uniden radar detector (RD) for over 15 years. It was in use for my latest commute which includes a 20 mile stretch of rte 495 (outer beltway of Boston). So I am a bit familiar with the radar and other electronic signals that set off my RD. After a simple replacement of some fog lights in my Saab 9-5 Aero I got constant laser alerts. Well thinking the ole RD has finally gone batty I searched the web and came to Radar Roy's site. In time I bought an RX65. I wanted it hardwired and got the hardwire kit. Sorry Roy but I got it from Beltronics because Ohio was closer!

Anyhow I haven't installed the hardwire last weekend like I wanted to but I did want to try the RX65 just in case it was bad so I used the (way too noticable to police) coiled power (smart?) cord and mounted it precisely in the same spot the Uniden was - high and just to the left of the rear view mirror. Now yes, I have read all over how not so good this is but I decided to take the chance of all the cons of such a mount location. In the least it should be the same or slighty better than the Uniden, right?

Hmmm, well not quite. My first day commute roundtrip not one alert showed itself! Like I said I know where the "hot" spots are and I was surprised. Yes, I had set the RX65 up with the threat alert but reset it but still no go. I was actually worried but hoped the RX65 could actually determine bad (like cell phone signals) from radar. Logic won over hope though so I am still worried. Still I drove to work the second day (today, at work now ) and it went off three times (I had threat alert on and in one case had both K and Ka alerts). Now I know there are at least 4 hot spots my old Uniden would regularly light up (except now it lights up all the time, hehe) and the RX65 lit in only one of them (Ka with the car pointed at a cell phone tower a mile away).

So the short question is - isn't the RX65 supposed to be more sensitive than most other RDs?

In further reading I did see the post about electrical noise which makes sense. I guess I should break out (it's in storage) my oscilloscope (yes, a real Tektronix one) to see the 12 Vdc line. That may solve the Uniden false laser alerts but I feel it leaves me with a very expensive paperweight in the RX65 (with the 30 day return-for-money-back clock ticking away). I did notice when I was considering installing the hardwire last weekend, I was listening to the radio and the interior lights were on it detected a low battery voltage condition! It wasn't a problem after I started the car though.

BTW if this is the wrong forum, sorry. I could find no other support email or forum... :?:

First off, welcome to the forum Earendil. The RX65 has superior filtering capabilities and I too am amazed and sometimes get worried at how quiet it is. Let me assure you that your Uniden and the RX65 are miles apart in detection, range and filtering. Although the RX65 is very sensitive, it does a great job filtering as well. I think you just have to get used to your new detector doing its job, and filtering just happens to be one of the things that it is very good at. Hope this helps and again welcome.

[Earendil]

Well that's a relief! I was afraid the RX65 was only good on the flat roads of New Mexico! :P Good to hear it is better at false alerts. I guess I'll just get a new battery. I drive 70+ miles a day (at speeds not to be discussed :twisted and depend on my car so I keep it in tip-top shape.

Thanks for the welcome.

[GTO_04]

What Uniden model did you have?

GT0_04