Replacement head connector

[BestRadarDetectors]

You can cut the plug and put a new one on and you should be fine. You can also replace the cable but that might be a lot more work.

[awj223]

The receiving & transmitting functions are not multiplexed on the same wire lines,rather they are isolated from each other & that is why you have the receive malfunctions. Whereas when an incoming threat is detected by one of the heads the CPU commands the Fronts or Rears pairs to fire together.

So 2 pins for Rx, 2 pins for Tx, and 2 pins to test whether the head is there?

[OrlNmE]

Next week there is a laser and radar testing in the Cocoa Beach,Fl area if you want to get yours tested.

[Vortex]

Quick update.

I ordered a connector off of Digikey but it looks like the connectors aren't as standardized as they are for ethernet.

I got this one. It slides into the CPU port perfectly, but it doesn't click and secure itself into place the way the factory connectors do.

Rather than ordering more connectors, I decided to just get a replacement cable and have my installer install a new cable altogether which they've agreed to do. At no charge too which makes sense and is the right thing to do. Major props to Tom as well for wildly good customer service in hooking me up with a replacement cable.

I won't be able to get the cable installed until next month due to going home for the holidays, but that should be alright. The ALP has started throwing defective head errors now due to the damaged connector so I've unplugged it and am running one head up front for the time being. Fortunately I've got a small car, the ALP is very sensitive, plus I'm not driving all that much lately and rarely see laser in the first place so it's not a major issue for the time being. That said, it'll be great to finally get the ALP's up and running 100% again.

[Vortex]

Next update. Tom was great about the replacement cable. Much to my surprise though, that didn't fix it. Looks like it's actually a defective head. Not sure what caused that or how it happened, but it's really great to have a jammer system that lets you know when something goes wrong so you can do something about it.

[Vortex]

Latest followup. Looks like it was a bad head AND a bad cable. Surprised to see that happen.

Tom sent me a brand new head altogether and that fixed the issue.

I found that with a brand new cable but the existing bad head, it continues throwing a defective head error on startup.

When I use the old existing cable with a new head, it boots up properly but doesn't respond to laser. (Scary.)

When I use the new head and new cable, it all works properly and resumes normal operation.

Once I get the head and cables permanently swapped out of my car, I'll be sending the problematic units back to Tom and AL so that they can take a look at it.

A big thank you to Tom for his awesome customer service as always.

[BestRadarDetectors]

I am fairly certain that your damaged connector most likely damaged the head. In any case glad we got to the bottom of it and you are good to go now.

[awj223]

When I use the old existing cable with a new head, it boots up properly but doesn't respond to laser. (Scary.)

Yikes! You mean doesn't alert you that anything's wrong, and doesn't respond either?

[BestRadarDetectors]

Yikes! You mean doesn't alert you that anything's wrong, and doesn't respond either?

The cable was damaged during the install by the installer. This is a fault we see when installers pull hard on the telco connector and try to squeeze the connector though a hole that is too small. This type of damage will result in errors but until the new head is installed and a factory reset is run to tell the ALP to memorize the new configuration it will not alert to an issue on a port that was not listed as active again.

[Vortex]

Yikes! You mean doesn't alert you that anything's wrong, and doesn't respond either?

Just went out to go show the issue on video and now the unit is responding properly with the new head and the old existing cable. Interesting.

Either way, it does appear to be an issue due to damage from the installation. My installer is going to be redoing everything for me free of charge due to the issue.