ESCORT PASSPORT 9500 RADAR DETECTOR

[Ashalina]

For several years I have been happily using the Escort Passport 8500. My one complaint was I could not hear it over the motor and wind noise when used with a bike so I was forced to use the ear bud speaker to hear the audio alerts. I am not ready to make the plunge for an Autocomm or similar device which will pipe audio in my helmet. I guess I just do not like anything that attaches my head to the bike.

I used a Valentine One for a while and that was plenty loud to hear at any speed. The down side of the Valentine was if the volume was loud enough to hear at speed it was obnoxiously loud in town. The Valentine does not have the auto mute feature I came to love on the Passport so I would either have to remember twist the little knob and reduce the volume or just let it blast. What made this situation worse is the fact the Valentine has very poor filtering of false alerts. This limited filtering is probably also what makes the Valentine a good detector (some say the best) because it does pick up every little thing. Basically the detector was going off all of the time unless you were pretty far away from civilization (even went off very frequently in light residential settings) and it got tiring.

When I started looking at a replacement for the 8500 this spring I came across the new Passport 9500. It automatically adjust both volume level and city/highway filters with the speed of the vehicle. It uses GPS technology to prevent repeated false alarms on your daily drive. It will flash your speed as you pass a radar source so you know just how fast you are going as you approach the radar source. It has a few other nice features as well. I have read of a few guys that had Harley's with loud pipes where they report they can hear the detector easily at speed, but it quiets down as you slow down.

Another good choice to consider if you live in Virginia or drive in Canada is the relatively new Bel STi which is reportedly not detectable with radar detector detectors.

I will be trying my 9500 in a couple of weeks on a trip from NY to WV. Will let you know how it goes after I get more time with it.

I did find both the V1 and 8500 to be excellent at detecting radar. When I had them set up next to each other the 8500 tended to alert me quicker than the V1. Many test will say otherwise. Basically both are so close at detecting that I would lean to the better filtering to get rid of the constant false alerts with the V1 and to get the auto mute feature on the 8500 if you are choosing between those two models. There were so many false alerts with V1 it was hard for me to take any of the audio alerts seriously and I do not live in an urban area.

Here is a review from a guy that sells Escort and Bel products: http://www.radarroy.com/archives/37

Here is a forum for guys that really get into detectors: http://www.radardetector.net/. You will find some folks who are so blinded by brand loyalty they cannot be objective, but many/most seem to be objective and have tried several detectors.

 

[Highrider]

Have you considered the Marc Parnes visual alert?
http://www.marcparnes.com/Visual_Alert.htm
I use this with my Passport 8500 and I am satisfied with the performance and lack of maintenance required. I'm not sure if they have a model yet for the 9500, considering it operates from the audio circuit the 8500 model is probably compatible. The Legal Speeding HARD system is the most efficient as an alert, but the batteries in the receiver can be a pain, and expensive if you forget to turn the unit off.

 

[Ashalina]

Highlander,

I have considered the various visual alerts but did not come across the one you noted. It looks like it is reasonably priced and a good option.

For me the audio alert gets my attention more effectively than a visual alert.

There is the HARD system that is wireless and can be mounted inside you helmet and positioned right in your field of vision. That looked like a good option as well if a visual alert was what you were after.

For those considering the Passport 9500 you should know there is some debate about the ability to block out a false radar that you drive pass every day yet still be able to pick up a cop if they decide to shoot radar at that location where the false alert was blocked out. Some claim if an area is blocked out automatically by the 9500, it will also block out a cop why may be sitting there once a week if he is using the same band of radar. Some of those making those claims know a lot more about radar and radar detectors than I do!

For me this was not a deal breaker. As silly as it may sound the ability of the 9500 to be heard at speed, but quiet at lower speeds was the primary reason for giving the unit a try. I probably will not use the lock out of false radar sources until there is more confirmation as to how effective this is in the real world instead of marketing material. As of today it appears it may be blocking both false and real radar.

One nice thing about the 9500 is it does have a port that would make it possible to download updates. If there is a "problem" with this new unit, a download could be done to fix it. There is not commitment from Escort to do this or any other updates at this time, but as far as I know it is the only detector that even offers that possibility.

If the 9500 does not perform as well as I hope I will try the Bel STi. That does not modulate sound automatically, but will auto mute and I could use it in Canada and VA.

 

[wjbertrand]

For those considering the Passport 9500 you should know there is some debate about the ability to block out a false radar that you drive pass every day yet still be able to pick up a cop if they decide to shoot radar at that location where the false alert was blocked out. Some claim if an area is blocked out automatically by the 9500, it will also block out a cop why may be sitting there once a week if he is using the same band of radar. Some of those making those claims know a lot more about radar and radar detectors than I do!

This wouldn't be a deal breaker for me either. Virtually all the false alerts (there are three of them caused by those traffic speed trailers) on my daily route are K band, and in my area I've yet to encounter a LE agency using anything by Ka. Ka falses are exceedingly rare with the 8500 in my experience. I think they may come from CHP on the other side of the freeway that I can't see or may be due to surface street enforcement by local PDs, either way, I'd rather hear those alerts anytime than miss them!

The only time I've ever been able to assign a K band alert to a LEO was on an Indian reservation in Arizona. Apparently they use hand me down technology there.
X bands aren't a problem because you can turn that completely off or decrease the sensitivity in "city" mode with the 8500 to the point where they are a non-issue. I only turn on X band when traveling in unfamiliar areas.

In addition to the auto muting feature, the 8500 has a button on it's face that allows you to immediately mute it. Very nice feature. I will be interested in the real world impressions of the new 9500.

 

[George]

I bought a cheap detector at Wally World while on my last trip. Use an audio tube into the helmet to hear it. It saved my butt a couple times, so at <$70 I figure it's already paid for. Prolly equivalent to a 4 or 5 year old Escort. My very old Escort 8500 was full of false Laser alerts, and didn't even _hint_ at the approaching Texas Ranger, so it's relegated to the trash pile.

Anybody know why a radar detector, with good test, would fail in actual use? I have two of'em.

 

[John Anthony]

+1 on the Parnes visual alert. When that puppy goes off, it's tough to miss.

John

 

[Ashalina]

As for hearing it, it will be connected to the comm system so that's not an issue. Just need a great detector that does as it should. Don't have the $$ to switch so we have to make the right decision the first time around and I know that V1 will update your hardware for a fee by just sending the unit in.

I also don't care about laser detection as that usually means I'm getting pulled over. I'm not sure I want the detector sitting out for everyone to see so I'm thinking of putting it in an Otterbox and hiding it under the front fairing with just audio signals coming through.

That's just where I'm at right now...that could change 10 minutes into the future...

My father in law just sent back his 5 year old Valentine One to be updated and the cost was $190.00. Both the Escort and Bell and I believe Valentine will give you money back if the unit is returned in the first 30 days and it is still in like new condition. With Escort and Bell I believe you have to buy direct to avoid "restocking" fees.

 

[wjbertrand]

I bought a cheap detector at Wally World while on my last trip. Use an audio tube into the helmet to hear it. It saved my butt a couple times, so at <$70 I figure it's already paid for. Prolly equivalent to a 4 or 5 year old Escort. My very old Escort 8500 was full of false Laser alerts, and didn't even _hint_ at the approaching Texas Ranger, so it's relegated to the trash pile.

Anybody know why a radar detector, with good test, would fail in actual use? I have two of'em.

George, did you ever send it back to Escort? Sounds like it wasn't working right. I have had two of them. The first 8500 sustained eventual fatal injuries after it was ejected from SThenia when I crashed a few years ago. The case was deeply gouged but it still worked fine initially. A few months later though it started dying a slow death though. I traded it in on a X50 model 8500 and it has performed flawlessly save for the time I dropped it in a parking lot in Torrey Utah on the way back from WeSTOC last year. That drop busted the dimmer micro-switch. Escort fixed it and updated all the firmware for $50 and it has returned to flawless performance. I've only seen a laser alert 2 or 3 times and one of them was actually a cop 'cause I saw him! Luckily I was being a good boy at the time.

 

[George]

George, did you ever send it back to Escort? Sounds like it wasn't working right. <snip>

Didn't bother to send it back. It was several years old, don't really remember when I bought it. It always falsed on the laser so didn't really like it anyway.

I also had (have) a Bel that I bought at Radio Shack sevral years ago. Both function about the same, i.e. only alert when the radar is RIGHT THERE! About the only alerts I was getting with either the 8500 or the Bel was when sitting in front the supermarket auto doors. Useless for police alert.

My new one is a Whistler XTR-220, bought cheap at WalMart. No markings on the unit, pretty small and unobtrusive, seems to work. Has 3 city settings plus full-on Highway. Got some false laser alerts from it coming across Texas last month in _really bright_ reflective conditions but nothing like the old ones.

I'm sure it ain't as great as a V1 or 9500, but it's cheap enuff to toss and replace compared to the others, _and_ it did work when I needed it on my return trip home.

YMMV, ya buys yur ticket <pun> and takes yur chances, caveat emptor, etc.

 

[Ashalina]

I sent the Passport 9500 back last week. It was a fine detector. It did a better job at filtering out real and false radar alerts than my Passport 8500 x50 and is infinitely better than the Valentine V1.

The reason it went back was 1) the 8500 x50 picked up radar alerts marginally quicker than the 9500 2) The 9500 had very little ramp up with the alert of a radar threat. Both the V1 and 8500 start with a slow beeping alert when the radar threat is off in the distance. As you get closer they beeping gets faster. I call this ramp up. The 9500 would alert a bit later than the V1 or 8500 and go from slow beeping alert to full alert and before I knew it the radar source was upon me.

This could have ended up being a strength if I kept the detector. It has so few false alerts (even with the lock out feature turned off) that you can be pretty sure if you are getting alert it is a good idea to slow down as it is likely you will be seeing an officer with radar soon.

I will next try the Bel STi. I do not need the "stealth" feature of this detector, but there is enough data to indicate that it will detect forward facing radar in the league of the V1 without all of the false alerts. I will let you know what I find.

 

[Ashalina]

The 9500 did have a port that could allow you to connect to your computer and get updates. However, there is currently no commitment from Escort to provide updates. I do think it is likely they will use the port at some point to provide updates, but I was just going to hold out until they fixed some of the issues that made 9500 a less effective detector than the 8500 at detecting radar (in my opinion).

What they talk about using the data port for right now is sharing GPS information for known radar traps or false radar signals but no commitment that Escort will provide upgrades.

 

[Ashalina]

STi

Well I gave the STi a try for a few weeks and really liked it. I liked that it gave an audio "Beep" alert, followed by a voice alert notifying the type of radar, the visual alert showing signal strength and finally a flashing light coming from the front of the unit. I found it attention getting without being obnoxious. Like the Escort 8500 and 9500 it will go to automute after a few audio beeps which is unlike the Valentine that will not automute.

Visually it was may favorite detector as well. It was not slanted to the right or the left and the power cord plugged into the right side of the unit unlike the 9500's odd left side placement. I thought it looked modern and felt very solid.

I am not an expert on radar detectors. Just a guy trying four of the best detectors trying to determine which is best for me. For more expert advice I would troll around at http://www.radardetector.net/ and learn from folks who really know what they are talking about.

My main objective was getting a detector that was good at detecting radar/laser and was loud enough to hear on the bike without wearing an earbud or adding a visual alert in my helmet. The only detector that met that criteria was the Valentine. It also had the helpful rear antenna to pick up the cop cruising the interstate behind you at 80-90 mph (our speed limit is 65) and none of the other units have the rear antenna. Why did I not keep the V1? Way too many false alerts and the lack of automute function. I think I could have dealt with the false alerts if the V1 had automute. Without automute it was like the little boy who cried wolf and I did not pay attention to it and though it only takes a push of a button to mute it, I would wear my arm out pushing the mute button if I muted at every false alert.

After the V1 I would have a difficult time saying whether my 8500 or the STi was the better detector. I definitely liked the looks, audio and visual alerts and "Stealth" factor of the STi. I live near Canada and at times travel to or through VA. Had I not already owned the 8500 I may have gone with the STi. Since I already own the 8500 and it was almost dead even or better at detecting radar compared to the STi I had a hard time paying the price of admission for the STi. I did like the STi so much that I may change my mind down the road, but for now I will be content with the old faithful 8500.

9500 also was a very good unit. I did not like the power cord being on the left and would need the false alert lock out to be more refined, ramp up from initial radar alert to full alert to be extended and/or a commitment from Escort that they would take advantage of the ability of the 9500 to be updated via the PC. As of today the 9500 is the only detector that could be hooked up to your PC for updates but there is no indication from Escort that they will offer updates for the 9500 through the PC.

I do believe the V1 is the best one out there for detection. It does false way too much for my taste but it does tend to be the best for detection. After that I would say it is a toss up between the STi and 8500. All units were quite good.

Hope this helps!