What are some advantages to a tuner over stock tune. Is it REALLY worth it? It seems the Edge is the most prominent one I see but what about others? I have a SC Tirepaq that can be upgraded to a Flashpaq for $180, would it be worth it? Are there preset tunes for any of them to cut out the leg work or do most of you tune it to your preferences?

 

Custom tuning is the only proper way to do this. Check out the chips/tuners forum.

 

I'm getting an EDGE for these reasons:

Power gains are more than confirmed, and it arguably has the best canned tunes over others, according to a few that have tried 3-4 other canned tuners.

I can correct my speedometer, and in so doing it will also correct shift points. (all programmers do this)

It apparently saves fuel, if you drive accordingly. (all tuners claim the same)

The readouts are a huge bonus.
I'll definitely have my mpg and average mpg displayed. I believe you can display 4 readings at a time and there are around 20 to pick from (ie. tranny temp, coolant temp, etc) (No other programmers do that.)

And the EDGE looks awesome. It has a great finish that looks factory.

If I ever want to upgrade in tunes, for a reasonable price I can send the EDGE in to be converted into a programmer called the Gryphon, which will accept more precise tunes.

If I was paying full pop for a new EDGE, I'd just buy a Gryphon. That in itself makes it more than worth it to me.

 

I have Troyer tunes and love them for about the last 1.5 years. The truck has more get up and go to it(by no means fast but better). But what I noticed the most is the firmer shifts. It's not too hard but shifts about 100 times faster than factory. From the factory my truck shifted way too soft spending a lot of time between gears.

I think ordering custom tunes from Troyer, VMP, or another company that has a lot of experience is the way to go. I don't know if Troyer's lead times have improved yet or not but it was a long wait when I ordered mine.

 

What exactly do YOU mean when you say "proper way" ?

Proper for who?

If it's a STOCK motor, then paying all that extra cash for a Gryphon is a COMPLETE waste.

The performance advantage a Gryphon might have over an Edge on a STOCK motor is absolutely not worth the extra $$. Show me some REAL numbers before you or anyone else argues otherwise.

I have designed and built a 650hp supercharged SBF, so I know a thing or two about motors/racing.

 

I put my edge in a few weeks ago and I amvery happy with it. The butt dyno still has a smile from cheek to cheek.

 

I have tried repeatedly to explain to you that you are wrong. Once more. I have had both. I had the Edge for 30,000 miles and it did great other than it would not downshift at times when I really needed it to. Plus, to get the responsiveness I like at higher speeds, I had to run it on Level 3, premium fuel. I paid $100 to get Bill's custom tunes. His 87 Performance tune is every bit as strong as the Level 3 in the Edge, but now I can get that performance on 87. It paid for itself in 6 months, corrected the Edge downshifting weakness and, I no longer have to punch in all my custom settings every time I reprogram. It is worth much more that the $100 to me to have the Gryphon "custom" tune even though I have no desire to dyno.

There is no way to prove it with out making time passes or a dyno, but I am positive that that Bill's 93 Performance tune is about 10% stronger than the Level 3 in the Edge. But, even if it were not, just the downshift alone would be worth the money. Unless you have driven the same truck with the two programs, you have no idea the difference it makes.

 

I love the Edge, but still think I'm going to do the "Bill" upgrade eventually.

 

If you are disappointed, I think you will be the first.

I loved my Edge too, and argued forever that I had no need for anymore pwer. Then I talked to Bill about my downshift problems and he said he could fix that. He did. Before, on these two lane Texas highways where I would need to pass a vehicle in a short space due to hills and curves, I had no confidence that it would downshift when I was going about 60 mph. Now, it never fails at any speed. The same thing applied to freeway traffic at 40 or 45. There were just 2 dead spots that are now eliminated.

 

A tuner is the single best performance upgrade you can make out of the comparable price things like CAI or exhaust. If you just want to do one the tuner is the best of the three. A $359 edge is perfect for anyone who has a stock truck and wants more performance. It looks great and lets you view all sorts of differnt things on your truck like impg, ampg, tranny temp, oil temp, rpms, mph, air intake temp, voltage, and so on. If you do have a exhaust and intake then an edge will also work for you, but there is the gryphon which is a edge that can be setup with tunes for what you have done to your truck. But either way you go a tuner is great way to get performance and whatever you want to spend is what you should get. Right now last week, I didn't want to spend $550+ for the gryphon so I spent $359 for the edge and am satisfied with it.

Plus it's not my first go around with the Edge so I was comfortable getting it again.

 

mSall always throws his comments in on tuner threads, but when asked to validate, he never returns to back up his comments. Very credible.

 

Proper way to do what! That wasn't exactly what I was looking for as far as a reply. I haven't even mentioned what I want to do. Re-read my original post. I have a stock truck with Magnaflow catback, surely there's a way to do this and get more performance with out going ONLY custom.

The tuner forum seems like a lot of bickering and I don't take time to read arguments.

 

That's what I'm thinkin'

 

Thank you...this is what I was looking for...I know it's all opinion, but I can figure out what I want to due based on that opinion.

 

Bill as in Troyer or with Troyer?