mikahb

So my first year of W2W is complete - what a blast!

I have never used data acquisition but it seems like the kind of thing I would love since I'm **** about analyzing my driving, and also a data geek at heart.

I ran the whole year on 710 scrubs - which was perfectly fine for what I'm doing. I still have a lot to learn about racecraft, which to me is about 50% of winning races. The other 50% is being able to crank out fast laps when needed, and of course this is where data acquisition comes in.

I'm not driving my car to its absolute limits yet, I know that. I'm not too far off, and my laptimes are competitive, so I'm wondering at what point does data acq. become NEEDED versus just nice to have? When I stop gaining time through other means?

Any input about when you decided to take the plunge, what system you got, what you like, what you don't, how you use it, how much time you picked up, etc. would be great. Seems there's always another $1,000 part I need.

Thanks guys!

froggy47

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Mikelly

I really like the ease of using the traqmate. It's got a bunch of functionality and is really easy to use...

Mike

Rob Willis

I'm just a slow guy doing HPDEs for fun (5-7 a summer) and just bought a Traqmate.

VERY cool little toy/tool!

sperkins

Gotta love a little Ross Bentley talk.

From reading your posts and watching your videos, I'd say you're definately ready for a DAS Mikah. Frankly, I'm suprised you don't already have one. The ability to review corner entry speeds (+/- 1 mph), braking points and overall consistency in testing sessions is invaluable to get to the next step as a driver. There are so many variables in racing conditions that I don't really see a huge benefit for reviewing the DAS (for learning purposes), but I'm probably wrong. I'm not anywhere near being ready to really utilize one of these things yet, but I'm saving up for one for when I am.

C66 Racing

Mikah,
I did all my races without DAS as well but have been wondering the same thing. Actually spent about an hour yesterday looking at the way too many options in my most recent issue of Grassroots. Good luck deciding this one.

varkwso

I think a fresh set of tires will make you faster right off the bat.

I look at a lot of test data and modeling data in my "day job" so data can overwhelm you pretty quickly.

The data systems can really help you out in picking up time and identifying improvement areas. To do a lot of real testing means you have to remember what you are doing on each lap/segment since the loggers catch all data on every lap - it can be overwhelming if you wait too long to analyze results.

I will be getting a Traqmate at some future point - 3 Hans, new tires for the FRC, new tires for the Mustang, some safety gear for the Supra, a 2 car trailer, a video camera are currently also on the list...

Those pesky house payments, tuition bills and filliing the dang gas tanks are getting in the way of my progress on the really important things.

SouthernSon

Mikah, I saw JO's G2X (I think) in action at Putnam. It is sweet. Using GPS tracking the lap time is displayed at the start/finish point of your choosing. It then reverts back to mph/rpm and whatever else you desire. The camera picks up the readout on the console so you can see it in the comfort of your livingroom. Of course, it gives times in each turn, computes the theoretical fastest laps by tallying up the fastest in each segment. I suppose most DAC do the same thing. But you are right, another $1K.....

0Louis @ LG Motorsports

Spend the money on the Stack. It has the power for what you want to do, and VERY user friendly. we used it in WC, and it was killer.

A GOOD DAQ system will do wonders for your program. Money well worth it.

Slalom4me

As an amateur who particpates in 'Solo I'-like events a few times a
year, I feel that the outlay in money and time has more than been paid
back. I have posted a few times in favour of the RacePak G2X.

When I purchased my G2X in 2005, it offered the most features and
best extensibility for the price. The GPS tracking, number of channels
and the ease of adding additional inputs were forefront amongst
deciding factors in the purchase decision. I have since added a number
of sensors and also integrate G2X data with video.

I had an expectation of what I wanted from DA when I was shopping.
However, in using data acquisition, I discovered that the truly TANGIBLE
benefits came from other directions.

Data logging helped me identify suspension bottoming as the cause of
handling issues, it helped change shift points to better match engine
performance to the course and it identified an unknown oil-starvation
issue that would have destroyed the engine. Studying the logs has
helped focus on areas of drivetrain upgrades I believe provided the best
improvement for a given outlay.

Regarding the sub-$2K market, there have been several discussions
about features and benefits. My vote is that when the total picture is
factored in there is a strong case favouring selection of a RacePak
system like the G2X, G2XPro or now the IQ3 Dash

That said, systems may vary but all of them will provide more and better
information in a repeatable objective format than a driver can be relied
on to consistently deliver.

.

spazegun2213

i love my g2x, its simple, easy to setup and use... which is great!

ERND IT

Hi, Mikah,

I'm just starting to move into higher speed roadracing events from autocross...and granted, I'm definitely not at a competitive level at all, but I bought the traqmate which works well for either type event. Since I make use of in-car video as a learning tool as well, traqmate also has a couple of cool features that let you embed your on-track data onto the video-including, if you want it, engine data (RPM's) and more.

Now I can watch my on-track video with the traqmate data stream synchronized... at my HPDE level it has definitely helped me.

mikahb

Thanks for all the input!

So I checked out the Stack systems. Holy sheet that's some cool stuff! Sadly, I think it might be cost-prohibitive for me - but I'm still investigating.

A racer friend of mine recently got the G2X and so far he seems very happy with it - maybe I'll go spend some quality time with him and have a look-see. I like the fact that the Traqmate is widely used and praised, and that it integrates easily with video. Right now, my video is the best tool I have to review what I did right and wrong and intuitively it seems adding DAS data to that would be the ultimate.

Anyway, thanks for the input so far - keep it coming!

mikahb

Well if you pick something - let me know! I'm counting on this to pick me up at least 5 seconds per lap.

mikahb

Heck ya, Scott - good call! I think that has been the single most eye-opening realization for me this year, that running fast laps is only a small part of finishing well. I'm going to go back and re-read Speed Secrets I and II this winter!

Slalom4me

Some threads from the past.

Keep the dates in mind and consider that the sector is evolving constantly:
Incidently, be aware that unless TrackVision finally succumbed to
market pressure, videos made with licensed versions of their product
display the TrackVision branding prominently on screen. Imagine having
each of your MSWord, MSExcel and PowerPoint documents branded
across the pages with the 'Microsoft' logo to get a sense of what this
represents.

I understand companies using that tactic on trialware/shareware
but it has no place on licensed, paid-up software. If you find another
product that does not use this tactic, buy it instead of TrackVision

.

Jason Staley

The latest version of Traqmate's software, Traqstudio, does not put any banner on the exported video clips. It does take some patience synchronizing the video, if you don't use thier chasecam hardware.

For an reasonably priced system, I'm very happy with the Traqmate system.

Slalom4me

How many channels does the current Traqmate system have and which
inputs do you log?

.

Jason Staley

The base unit only records speed, g's, lap times, and track position via GPS. If you want to log other channels, they have an add-on connector that has 2 digital, 4 analog, and a tach input. If you use their chasecam, it uses one of the digital inputs to synchronize the data & video.

I am currently only recording the tach right now, but I intend to connect the oil accumulator valve, oil pressure, oil temperature, and throttle at some point. Since I run a carb. I need to figure out a good way to mount a throttle position sensor first.

mikahb

Is there a way to get steering wheel position from the stock ECU, or does anybody offer a sensor to provide this? Seems like it would be a useful thing to have.

To start, I think I'd need RPM, G-forces, lap times (of course), throttle position and brake pressure (not just on/off).

The more I think about it, I'm not positive video integration is a requirement for me. Thanks for all the great input so far!