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8/16/2011The BEL (Beltronics) RX65 formerly was the flagship windshield-mount model in the BEL Professional Series of premium detectors. (The range-topping model today is the ground-breaking BEL GX65 GPS-enabled unit.) Read the 2011 BEL (Beltronics) GX65 review. The BEL's housing is titanium-colored and the top is adorned by a trio of black switches with a fourth, extra-large button for audible muting at the front. In comparison to its Escort 8500 X50 sibling (Escort owns BEL and these detectors share their electronic platform), the BEL RX65's big, top-mounted mute button is much easier to locate. A large LED display—in a choice of red or blue—is adjustable in four steps from all-dark to maximum brightness. Visual alerts depict the radar band—X, K or Ka—accompanied by a bargraph that shows signal strength, or proximity to the radar gun. With experience, a driver can use this to tell if the radar gun is an imminent threat or only a potential problem far up the road ahead. Three operating modes—highway, city and AutoScan—maximize sensitivity (radar warning range) while also limiting false alarms. (Most urban false alarms are generated by radar-controlled automatic door openers that share X and K band with police radar. The only solution is a top GPS-enabled radar detector.) Standard is a Smart Cord, a clever remote control/display module built-in to the power plug. Its mute button silences the audio alerts and also adjusts volume level. A green LED glows to verify system-ready status and a red LED flashes during radar or laser encounters. The BEL Pro RX65 is plug-and-play but it also offers seven user-selectable options. One is voice alerts, a feature not offered by its sibling, the Escort 8500 X50. These make threat identification nearly idiot-proof and speed the process of getting acquainted. Those who prefer alert tones can opt out with a few seconds' worth of button-pressing. Another unique feature is Ku-band detection, not something you'll need in the U.S. but potentially useful in some European countries. This band and any of the others can be deactivated, a simple task that can heighten the RX65's resistance to false alarms.
On the open road, the BEL RX65 has good resistance to false alarms, many of them caused by older Cobra radar detectors in nearby vehicles. It also has Tech Display (a.k.a. Spec Display), a handy feature that will tell the driver whether a Ka-band radar alert is police radar or another radar detector. Knowing the difference means not having to stand on the brakes in reaction to every alert. The BEL RX65 showed outstanding radar-warning range in our tests, equalling or bettering that of the Escort Passport 8500 X50 while scoring far ahead of the competition. If lasers pose a headache, the Escort ZR4 laser-jamming system connects with one wire and uses the RX65's display. A separate remote muting switch will turn off the laser shifters with a double-tap. (Advisable since it allows the officer to finally get a speed, even if it wasn't quite what he'd hoped for, and allays any suspicion that you're packing a laser jammer.) With its solid array of features and sparkling performance the Beltronics (BEL) RX65 remains the tool of choice for the serious road warrior.
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