Stinger VIP Slays the Dragon
After months of waiting, RALETC finally acquired the latest hardware for the Stinger VIP. We first tested this system back in April at Radar Roy’s “Shootout in the Desert”. At the time the system was still in development and required many new algorithms to complete their laser library; however, RALETC noted that the VIP was doing exceptionally well at jamming the Dragon gun’s including the infamous DragonEye Compact. A gun that was only jammed by ALP to date. I’m sure the question on everyone’s mind is how well does it jam it? Well check out the video below and see for yourself:
A few things to note from this video. First of all, notice that gun does NOT produce a jam indicator even at VERY close range. Normally visible as 3 slash marks in the HUD (“\\\”). Also, notice that upon testing the edges of the vehicle the coverage is very very good. It was clear as we were testing various versions of the Dragon guns that the Stinger VIP has got these guns nailed. Each run consistently jammed without issue.
The hardware on the VIP also contains some really nice features including new USB connectors for the LAB. One of the things I noted in the first review of the Stinger VIP was the hardware seemed to be easily disconnected. This has been addressed with the new USB connectors. Also with these smaller connectors it is now possible to put more transmitters and receivers into a single box without the need for an extension box. This makes a big difference when it comes to placement under the hood of the vehicle.
I still absolutely love the fiber transmitters. These things are amazing. You only need a 3mm drill bit and a drill with a level to ensure you get everything aligned perfectly. Keep in mind though that Stinger does recommend a very small 1-2 degree upward tilt. As can be seen from the pictures below:
For comparison purposes look at the difference in the ALP head located above the Stinger fiber transmitter. The footprint is less than half the ALP head including the receiver! One major difference is the length as the length of the Stinger VIP receiver is longer than the ALP head is wide. This makes installation on the rear of a vehicle much more difficult. I hope that Stinger will address this for the rear of vehicles with a smaller head by removing the electronics from the head itself leaving only the photodiode. Much like they did on the fiber with the cylindrical enclosure.
While we are still testing, overall the new hardware is going to be a formidable competitor for the top lidar jammer. One thing we noticed during testing on the LRB (a very popular lidar gun), was that it does not produce the stuttering sound when it is being jammed. It sounds completely normal. This is huge because now you have the opportunity to JTK and the officer will never know the difference. I have to give Stinger credit they have upped the performance with this new hardware and are tackling these guns as good or better than even ALP. Very impressive!
Overall the system is performing very well, but it’s not without it’s own set of issues. We have discovered some inconsistencies with guns that appear to related to the timing accuracy of the gun. Especially on older models. Newer guns are very consistent and the Stinger handles them without issue, but a few older guns the Stinger VIP is what I would believe to be too accurate with respect to timing. The engineers are aware of this and are working to resolve it. Until such time I have to give the VIP laser a 9/10.
Radar remains consistent and has even been outperforming our own original test results. The only thing I have found to be mindful of is be very careful of how your patch antennas are configured if you have multiple antennas. The rear antenna is attenuated and if you inadvertently flip them in the settings your performance will degrade. I discovered this accidentally as my V1 started to outperform the Stinger VIP radar which made no sense as it had performed excellent prior. After some analysis I went back to the settings and adjusted the front/rear antenna and now my performance is off the chart again. Beating both the V1 and Redline in some cases by 2-7 seconds (depending on frequency). Radar IMO is 10/10 with superior filtering and lots of features including one button K band enable/disable.