Marrying my 9500ix to a Laser Jammer

[Redleg]

Cliff and I are in contact now and all have you have been correct. He's been great to work with. I'm still doing some reading on these forums about jammers but am leaning towards the LI. My big concern, in addition to performance, is customer service and Cliff has been top notch.

I'm going to follow some advice and take a pause to see what Blinder releases in the near future (hopefully this M47 releases soon) though I'm still very impressed by LI's features.

We'll see soon enough.

[Gokhos]

Cliff and I are in contact now and all have you have been correct. He's been great to work with. I'm still doing some reading on these forums about jammers but am leaning towards the LI. My big concern, in addition to performance, is customer service and Cliff has been top notch.

I'm going to follow some advice and take a pause to see what Blinder releases in the near future (hopefully this M47 releases soon) though I'm still very impressed by LI's features.

We'll see soon enough.

I am also now interested in looking at some type of Laser countermeasures.

But I know very little about them. Like RDs, there are lots of opinions out there as to what is best. I have been reading the reviews and I am still not sure what to start really seriously looking at.

Most of my driving is in town, with some limited daily short run highway drving, and occasional long run highway driving. Most all of it is in TX. Most laser I see used here is in town and by the county around cities and towns. Never seen DPS use laser but I hear they have it.

I would like something easy to use and understand, that I can install myself if possible.

I would appreciate any information from any of use that are actually using any of the various laser countermeasures out there.

One question I do have is how do you know your laser countermeasure actually countered a direct laser hit?

Thanks.

[djrams80]

I am also now interested in looking at some type of Laser countermeasures.

But I know very little about them. Like RDs, there are lots of opinions out there as to what is best. I have been reading the reviews and I am still not sure what to start really seriously looking at.

I'd have to disagree. I'd say there is very little argument among those that test these setups regularly that LI is the best there is.

Most of my driving is in town, with some limited daily short run highway drving, and occasional long run highway driving. Most all of it is in TX. Most laser I see used here is in town and by the county around cities and towns. Never seen DPS use laser but I hear they have it.

I would like something easy to use and understand, that I can install myself if possible.

Nothing is simpler to use and understand than an LI. It's informs you of what gun you are being tagged with and when you have slowed down enough, you flip the power switch to the off position. The installation will be basically the same for every laser jammer.

I would appreciate any information from any of use that are actually using any of the various laser countermeasures out there.

One question I do have is how do you know your laser countermeasure actually countered a direct laser hit?

Thanks.

If you're hit, it alerts. It has no way to determine the difference between a direct hit and laser scatter, but scatter is extremely rare, so if you get an alert, chances are that you were the target.

[TSi+WRX]

I'm 100% with brother dj, on his post above.

There's no contest, when it comes to performance, as currently independently tested. Basically *any and all* trusted independent/individual hobbyist groups or enthusiasts' tests have cemented the LI's to the position of "the king of jammers," in terms of overall performance.

Sure, there are tests where the LI may not have come out on-top, but if you look closely at the data, you'll see that it's well within the ballpark, even in those cases - and when things truly don't add up, you'll see that it's either due to a mechanical concern or is due to a non-optimized or even improper setup (or, alternatively, look at who is conducting the test...if it's The Goons, well, there you have it, too ).

It doesn't matter who you ask - of anyone with experience, it's all going to be the same answer: "LI is king."

This is especially important, Gokhos, for someone like you, who faces LIDAR, per your posting above, at typically shorter ranges. Although "true-JTG" per current-convention testing setups isn't necessarily all that important, overall, in the real-world, it becomes more and more important, the more you face "adverse" LIDAR challenges, including ones of closer and closer initial engagement distances. Look at who owns the LI in this Forum community alone, and you'll see that there is a blip in the ownership statistics for those of us who live in heavy LIDAR-usage areas such as Ohio and parts of Canada, where highway engagements can start as low as 700 ft., and where surface-street engagements can start as low as 400 or even 300 ft. Redleg, the same goes for owners of vehicles which present less-than-ideal LIDAR profiles, too.

-----

And as for customer service?

Cliff, at the helm of LI North-America and UK, has completely turned things around from the disaster that Elvis created, and furthermore, has also come to reset the bar in terms of professionalism and follow-up/follow-through. If you see posts/threads concerning LI's customer-service, in a negative sense, take a look at the posting date. You won't find any such concerns after Cliff took over, officially, in May of 2008 (REF: http://www.radardetector.net/forums/...w-usa-rep.html).

It may seem like we're a bunch of Cliff's FanBoys over here at RD.net, but the truth of the matter is that he's redefined customer-service, when it comes to this industry. He's earned his praise, and continues to earn it over again, every day.

-----

Regarding install, again, like dj said, it's all about the same.

If you can hardwire your detector or have installed aftermarket driving lamps in your car, you can just as easily install a LIDAR jammer, even without "wireless" fitting.




-----

Redleg -

About the only potential performance advantage you'll have, in having the Escort's "Linked" system, is in an over-the-crest situation. With your in-vehicle detector high-mounted, it's possible that, upon cresting, your in-vehicle detector would first see the LIDAR threat and give you slightly earlier actuation of your jammers, but in all honesty, this concern is more academic than practical.

The only true tactical advantage to be had with the "Linked" Escort system is, when the heads are set up in their by-the-books front/rear configuration, you'll see an unmistakable "F" versus "R" threat alert - and much as how experienced users will garner good tactical advantage off of the directional arrows on the V1, this bit of information, during a LIDAR trap encounter, can also be of critical importance.

Unfortunately, this tactical advantage is overshadowed by the fact that it's information which will do you no good, if your jammer has already presented with a PT.

The problem with the ZR4 is that its jamming performance simply isn't stellar - and on a vehicle like yours, which presents with rather awful LIDAR profile and hardpoints, you'll need a "more powerful" jammer.

[Redleg]

Redleg -

About the only potential performance advantage you'll have, in having the Escort's "Linked" system, is in an over-the-crest situation. With your in-vehicle detector high-mounted, it's possible that, upon cresting, your in-vehicle detector would first see the LIDAR threat and give you slightly earlier actuation of your jammers, but in all honesty, this concern is more academic than practical.

The only true tactical advantage to be had with the "Linked" Escort system is, when the heads are set up in their by-the-books front/rear configuration, you'll see an unmistakable "F" versus "R" threat alert - and much as how experienced users will garner good tactical advantage off of the directional arrows on the V1, this bit of information, during a LIDAR trap encounter, can also be of critical importance.

Unfortunately, this tactical advantage is overshadowed by the fact that it's information which will do you no good, if your jammer has already presented with a PT.

The problem with the ZR4 is that its jamming performance simply isn't stellar - and on a vehicle like yours, which presents with rather awful LIDAR profile and hardpoints, you'll need a "more powerful" jammer.

Yes...that's what I'm hearing more and more. That the ZR4 just won't cut it thanks to its "low power" and the size/shape of the Challenger. In fact, my authorized Escort dealer (who sold and hardwired my 9500ix) told me he couldn't recommend the ZR4 over the Blinder. His suggestion...the Blinder will be less expensive and provide better protection - all this coming from a shop that doesn't even sell Blinders (yet).

Of course all this is moot (Blinder vs ZR4) as I'm leaning towards LI thanks to Cliff's presence. I'm only waiting for the Blinder to release their M47 because I feel like I owe it to my wife to tell her "Yes, dear. I have looked at all my options." I'm sure some of you know how that goes.

Off subject from the original post, is there a good way to test all my countermeasures (in phases) through the install? It would be good data for this forum...but more so for my Challengertalk forum if I could provide baseline data, add the Jammer, then add the Veil (ran with Jammer off), then test both LI and Veil together. I'm just not sure how to execute though.

[TSi+WRX]

^ Your local area enthusiasts are your best resources - check:

http://www.radardetector.net/forums/...t-archive.html



Pre-install, mock-up, using either your car's 12V source or a 12V DC source of your choosing, the installation, to verify that all heads and the control-box are working properly.

This can save you a lot of time and heartache, from the get-go.

During the install, there's not really much to be verified, other than checking power and ground during the control-box install, switchgear functionality during switchgear install, and then the heads, as you go (again for easier troubleshooting).

To test and optimize placement of jammer heads, you'll need to hook-up with someone who has at least one (but preferably more) police LIDAR device.

[JDS]

I would appreciate any information from any of use that are actually using any of the various laser countermeasures out there.

One question I do have is how do you know your laser countermeasure actually countered a direct laser hit?

Thanks.

If you're hit, it alerts. It has no way to determine the difference between a direct hit and laser scatter, but scatter is extremely rare, so if you get an alert, chances are that you were the target.

I think he was asking more about laser falsing, which DOES occur due to laser cruise control systems, certain taillight designs, and sometimes sun reflections.

So Redleg...what gun did you serve on?

[Redleg]

So Redleg...what gun did you serve on?

It doesn't take long. Every forum somebody in the know asks about my background. Are you prior service? Or still active? Or...just in the know?

I was "around" M119 105mm back at Fort Drum as a fire support officer but wasn't actually on a gunline. Most recently, I commanded a battery of MLRS - that was just before my last assignment of selling sand to the Iraqis.

[JDS]

It doesn't take long. Every forum somebody in the know asks about my background. Are you prior service? Or still active? Or...just in the know?

2 years AFROTC, enlisting to go on active duty as soon as possible...plus a lifetime as a military history nerd

I was "around" M119 105mm back at Fort Drum as a fire support officer but wasn't actually on a gunline. Most recently, I commanded a battery of MLRS - that was just before my last assignment of selling sand to the Iraqis.

Very nice!

[Redleg]

JDS....what made you decide to step away from the easy AFROTC life and enlist? If I could enjoy life as an AF officer...I'd be all over it.

And I have to ask...who is that girl in your avatar?