hey everyone i was interested in getting a wideband so i can keep a close eye on if my engine is running smoothly and also when turning up the boost to make sure i dont lean out. if any one can recommend a wideband that would be great. i was looking at the NGK AFX. and opinions would be greatly apprectiated.

 

PLX, Innovate, FJO

 

Tech Edge -cutting edge, proven to be accurate, reasonably priced.

 

All of the current units (with the exception of the AEM) have been proven to be accurate and pretty easy to work with -- Tech Edge, PLX, Innovate, and FJO. They do have slightly different feature sets, price points, and build quality, of which you need to do your research to decide what fits your situation the best....

 

I use innovate and it works great.

 

what's wrong with the aem? are you talking about the 6in1 uego?

 

^ same here , whats wrong with AEM ?, i got one ...works great

 

AEM is kinda a moot wideband. the gauge goes 'dumb' once it hits 11:1 and if you know rotaries you need a gauge that goes to 10:1 before going stupid.

 

Do all of those units have a RS232 connection between the display and the unit (where they are not combined) or do they use a converted analog signal?
Do all of those units have a ground ref wire -I think this is critical if the unit will be used with the datalogit.
Do all of those units have a linear 0-5v output? This obviously isn't necessary for the datalog output to be accurate, but it does make setup less error prone.

 

my aem uego goes down to 10.00 works great....and will be great once i get my aem ems to use with the datalog built into it

 

I also have the AEM but I have yet to get the sensor tapped... I may wait and see how accurate it is during the dyno tune and think about replacing it if it sucks..... Keeping my fingers crossed that it doesn't. I bought it after reading good reviews, then after the order I found out that it wasn't that accurate at low afr's.

 

All of the units have a gauge options that can be used in conjunction with the output to feed a datalogit or whatever.

All of those units have a dedicated ground ref wire.

All of those units have a 0-5V linear output requiring no polynomial.


The AEM unit has had repeated problems interfacing with the Datalogit. Since there is no logical reason for this, and given the fact that ALL of the other units on the market work just fine, there is no reason to go with it. None. (Not to mention AEM's lovely rotary electronics record so far....)

EDIT: Oh, and something else. The other companies mentioned have been making wideband setups for YEARS....AEM is new to the game -- they still have learning to do.

 

http://wbo2.com/2j/default.htm
^^ simple, acurrate, effective.

http://wbo2.com/2c0/default.htm
^^ extra fetures like RPM input and such

http://wbo2.com/3a1/default.htm
^^ advanced (but not mind numbingly confusing) setup

i wouldnt go with anything besides TechEdge

 

All I can say about the subject with widebands is the FJO with the NTK sensor all the way!! Myself and alot of other racers on this forum as well as the Supraforums will tell you that nothing else is going to perform and be as reliable, even in the most extreme conditions. Try running any of those other units on leaded gas for a few passes and see how many O2 sensors you go through. Yes, the intro price to the FJO is more expensive than the other O2s mentioned, BUT it just plain works the way it's supposed to, once again, YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR! www.fjoracing.com

 

I had the NGK AFX on my WRX and it worked great! Reads down to 9.0 and up 16.0 and has an output for stand alones. If you look around you can also find them for dirt cheap. got mine last year for 199.00 shipped. Only downside is you need to find somewhere to mount it.

 

i will plug the Techedge and say my wideband has about 30k miles on it and the NTK sensor has been swapped into about a dozen cars so far for tuning purposes and has never given me an issue.

 

Which one works the best with the PFC (in terms of how well it will merge into the PFC's reading). I can get teh Innovatove locally at a good price, so this is the best option for me so far.

 

i haven't dealt with the Innovate widebands but i have heard both good and bad about them. the good is the versatility but the bad is the sensors do not like heat or lead very well.

 

Don't go NGK. They have a major lag in response compared to the Techedge and Innovate that I have used. My brother in law has one and it can be a pain to tune based on the lag ~.5 sec.

 

Which ever wide band chosen if leaded gas is ever to be used consider one that use the NTK sensor. You'll be very happy you made that choice.
Just for reference I have two NTK sensors that I switch back and forth to verify calibration, both of which I've been using for over 5yrs and have tuned many applications. My widebands that use the Bosch sensors have probably blown about one hundred sensors allready.
The only problem with the AEM units vs the rest out there would be their use with leaded fuels. It seems that the AEM unit's heater control is not as good as the others and once leaded fuel is used the sensor normally goes bad in a heartbeat. Some have better luck but most and myself don't.
As for the Innovate I'm not going to go into detail as to why I don't like them but I've personally found that the negatives far outweigh the positives when it come to that particular brand. Too bad because it's got some very good features going for it but the electronics/hardware part of it is less than what you would expect for a unit at that level. Just too many 'bells' and 'whistles' and I'm going to leave it right there.
My reccomendation would be for the FJO, Techedge or PLX units.
Just my personal experience with the above products.

 

so basically the AEM will work well , but i got to stay away from leaded fuels right?

 

+1

 

in for future reference

 

what plx units do you reccomend? i'll be using it for monitoring purposes.
i've been thinking about using the aem, since i'm only running 10psi never leaded fuels, but if ya'll have that many problems then i'll use the plx, i see them ranging from 240-500$

PLX dm5
or
PLX m-300???

THanks!

Los

 

You cant mess with PLX theyre the shyte