Now that the speed control wars are over, most everyone have settled in to "blinky" non-boosted 17.5 racing for sportsman classes. The question is, are all "blinky" non boosted speed controls the same? I see some that are well below $100 while others like the high end ones that are programmable to have "blinky" non-boost well over $150 and beyond.

If I am only planning on racing non-boost would I still be competitive with a "budget" fixed zero-boost restricted speed control? Examples would be the Hobbywing Juststock, Havoc 2s, GTB2, and Duratrax DE10, etc...

For club racing they all get the job done.

I would look for something that is 1s ready.

the simple answer is yes. but the real answer is no. different speed controls have different feels as you progress thru the throttle range. less experienced drivers may not feel it, but it is there.

newer guys that go out and buy all the very best newest stuff, and still get pulled down the straight away have a hard time understanding that different speedos/motor/setup combos all require different gearing, and therefore may feel that their speedo is not as good as someone else's. where in reality, getting "pulled" down the straight often is a result of the "faster" car just being able to carry more corner speed thru the sweeper on.

Yes in blinky mode the output is all the same.

But not all esc's can perform other modes or other features.

They all may but out the same max power at fixed timing but there are other adjustments that can be made on the high end ESCs that are either not available or difficult to find on the less expensive ESC's. The adjustments I'm thinking of are brake and throttle curves. Throttle rates, current limits that sort of stuff.

However, you could run the best ESC, have it set up perfect and RedBullFiXX would still beat you silly with the cheap ESC. Don't you just hate it when it comes down to skill?

By different feel, do you mean "punch"? If so isn't that just the drive frequency which is programmable on some of the budget speedos?

Thanks for your reply. I have an RS on "blinky" mode in my TC and it runs great. However, I just don't have the budget right now for another RS. Frankly, I think the RS is overkill for a "blinky" non-boosted class. The RS is a great all around speed control which would allow me to run mod, boosted or even 1s from my understanding of its capabilities. The question is, if I were to replace the RS on my TC with a budget non-boost speedo, would it perform just as well as the RS in the same mode? Reason is that I may want to use the RS in other applications like 1s boosted and such.

Mr. RedBullFiXX can still beat everyone with a wiper-arm controller on a 12I

Hi Randy,
Any thoughts on differences in component quality or materials and their effect on pure power output? Logic would tell me a unit built to a higher standard and better materials may incrementally make available more power than a unit built with cost as a main focus. I'm not an electrical engineer so no idea if what I'm thinking is remotely accurate or if true whether the output difference would be enough to make a difference..

Thanks,
Chuck

i had the same question after last trophy race 2 weeks ago. i think they are pretty much all the same and its a close race since everyones power is about the same.
my problem is someone at my local race used orca esc with suspected timing boost thats faster than others.
to answer you question. i think another non boost esc maybe a good idea if you want your rs for other races. you will not see others going alot faster than you. the most important is your skill, setup of the car and right gearing

There is a reason ORCA was banned from ROAR blinky classes.

Thanks Bruce.
Once we get to iic I'm sure I'll be the one getting a driving lesson or two, while moving over for the "Real" fast guys

I have 4 types of speedo that are blinky aproved , LRP SXX stock spec , SP GT2.0 , Tekin RS , and a Citrix .

I like the feel of the Citrix the most , our club runs 0 timing stock class with ONLY the citrix the most

cheapest speedo and nicest throttle profile , but the brakes are poop

The fastest blinky esc is the one with the most corner speed. I'm still looking for it!

haha me too , the one that removes the driver

I am not running blinky mode here but do you think than an "old" Novak GTB would be as fast as the newer models around?