Techedge opened one up finally and compared and Peter (owner of Techedge) gives his comments. Of course this is biased towards Techedge since it is the founder of techedge's opinion



>

> I was searching through the archives for infomation on the topic.

> I've heard that the Innovate Motorsports LM-1 is "much faster and more

> accurate" according to a couple people. I have used an Innovate box ...



Mike,



The "much faster and more accurate" statement applies to the LM-1 vs

most other wideband units EXCEPT the Tech Edge WBo2 range ...



Just so we could speak from an informed position, we "bit the bullet"

and finally got an LM-1 in November. We haven't actually had a lot of

time to look at it, but I'll make some general observations about

wideband meters first.



We HAVE seen "other" wideband products using LSU sensors and NTK

sensors. I hesitate to mention names (only from a legal perspective,

but I have made some comments that are in this list's archives). Some

of these wideband products, although nicely packaged and presented,

are absolute and total rubbish. The LM-1 is NOT rubbish and it does

work pretty much as advertised. It's packaged reasonably well, though

people say it's a bit large. Klaus is pricing it aggressively and it

seems to be selling well with all the advertising he pays for. At the

moment Tech Edge has taken a low key approach to selling and has

relied on word of mouth advertising.



Now for some comparisons with our unit - as we have a few different

models now, I'll mention the aspects that are common to all our rev 2

WBo2 units:



1. LM-1 uses a 10 bit DAC for it's linear output, Tech Edge use a 12

bit DAC. This is 4 times the resolution. Interestingly, both the LM1

and 2B0 use the Atmel AVR processor (Mega16).



2. LM-1 does not use the calibration resistor that comes with every

LSU sensor - therefore it MUST be calibrated each time a sensor is

swapped. Tech Edge correctly uses the calibration component in the LSU

sensors, and changing sensors (of the same type) does not require

free-air calibration to maintain a fairly good accuracy.



3. LM-1's in-built AFR display is hard to read.



4. Tech Edge has always had extra logging capability built into the

base unit.



5. Having a big calibrate button on the LM-1 invites people to

free-calibrate - this can result in inaccuracies unless the sensor

really is in free-air.



And, there are some things that the LM-1 does quite well. It has a

larger internal (on-board) logging memory, and it has the integrated

display which is handy for showing error messages. It's also field

upgradeable like our unit. In operation it has an aggressive heater

control algorithm and it provide a %o2 reading which we've never

thought was much use until last week when a potentially large

industrial user asked us to provide a linear %o2 output mapping for

WBlin (I will be providing this facility very soon via the next rev of

the CONF program).



Lastly, there are some "big" brand name wideband products that have

been around for quite a while (no need to mention names). I think some

of them, although they work reasonably well, are not good value for

money, and it would be good for someone, with the facilities, to do

some revealing back-to-back testing (no point asking me to do it -

who'd believe me ;-). Just for the record, we have a couple of ETAS

LA-4 units we use for comparison against our own units.



Summing up ...



> Does anyone have good information on 2B0 vs LM-1 in terms of

> performance?



I think it boils down to a purchasing decision between a good apple,

and a good orange, and trying to steer clear of the very tempting,

flashy, well advertised, but potentially expensive and not

particularly good performing, and poor value for money, bad lemons.



The final word ...



We've not been sitting on our hands since we developed the first 2A0

unit and then improved it with the 2B0 unit. We have come up with some

recent improvements that will result in some new products and

improvements to the existing range. But, 2A1 and 2B1 won't be out any

time soon, but we will have updates for some of our products in 2005.

To us, the technology and the results are more important than a flashy

go-fast look.



Peter.

 

i've used the LM1 and agree with some of the small details he pointed out.. the re-calibrating thing is a PITA to me. Other than that, it works well and i had no problems using it to tume my Fd.



I have no experience with the other unit... but i'm interested in hearing what people have to say about it.

 

I have the other unit (the techedge 2A0). I bought the DIY kit and put it together. it works very nicely. THe logging thing can be a bit tricky to setup and use. Especially if you do not have a laptop.

 

I have a 2B0 and couldn't be happier with it. The unit has worked flawlessly and the TE people have been very good about getting back to me when I have questions.

 

i've used FJO and LM1 both work very well. very very briefly used tech edge and it appeared to work ok

 

It's important to remember that not all T.Es are equal. On the T.E. website they compare the 2b0 (the unit I purchased) to the 2A0:



"The following enhancements boost accuracy, performance and usability :



Twice the program memory (16 k words).

Improved sensor drive circuitry.

Differential wideband analogue output WBlin.

One input is differential (User-3).

Duplicated RJ45 output port.

WBlin, NBsim & SVout now on screw terminal outputs.

Additional serial output for future intelligent display.

Differential thermocouple inputs.



The 2B0 unit is an evolution of the world proven 2A0 design. Tech Edge's continual R&D program has improved the sensor drive circuitry to improve measurement accuracy and sensor response speed. As well as good looks it has extra program space to add future functionality via code re-flashing.



The new packaging has allowed us to add extra connectors making it easier to hook up and use in the field. Plug-in connectors allow one wideband unit to be used in multiple vehicles. Some inputs (all thermocouple and User-3 voltage input) are now differential to reduce noise and measurement offset errors. The WBlin output is now differential to aid accuracy and reduce offset errors.



There's a new 6 pin mini-DIN connector that's ready for connecting to a new intelligent serial "



I never thought a wideband could look sexy but.....

 

if they offered the 2b0 is a DIY kit I would be all over it. Unfortunatel I have my2A0 which works flawlessly. Although if they offered the LD02 in DIY kit I would buy that to update my package so that the readings are digital instead of analog via lookup table.