Knock/detonation sensor

[Tony Walker]

Any technical wizards have a way of using an original knock sensor to maybe illuminate an led, i know the voltages are small but surely theres a way of utilizing the voltage output from a knock sensor in a visual way?(cheaply ;) )

[James5]

Knock sensor as you prob know is basically a microphone on the side of the head and will not work with an led but you could prob wire it up to a volt meter though and see it move about

[Tony Walker]

yeah i thought as much.
Ive seen LED's on gauges wasnt sure how complicated they were to make work.

http://www.turbomagazine.com/tech/0703_turp_knock_sensor_monitor/index.html
Just a quick google.

[James5]

yeah i thought as much.
Ive seen LED's on gauges wasnt sure how complicated they were to make work.

http://www.turbomagazine.com/tech/0703_turp_knock_sensor_monitor/index.html
Just a quick google.


That prob has a box of tricks between the knock gauge led's display so the box of tricks prob converts the voltages within a set range to give the led display I suppose.

IanS is prob the man to see about knock sensor gauge

[Tony Walker]

http://www.allcarracing.it/ENG/Prodotti%20UK/PROD7.HTM

Another

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/MSD-8964?part=MSD%2D8964
And another.

I just want something visual really, cant drive everywhere with stethoscope in me ears lol.

[Scoff]

From experience they're all pretty crap compared with your own ears. What makes an ok one better than a god awfull one is it's ability to pick out unusual peaks within the right frequency range. Different shape and sizes of engine knock (resonate) at different frequencies though so a kit that works well on one engine may not work well on another. This is why I think opinions on them differ so much, but even the best ones are generally no where near as good as a trained pair of ears and a knock box.

[Tony Walker]

Yeah i agree listening is prob the best way, was thinking of something just as a precautionary measure when not listening, eg an aei fails or sudden leaning off(reg fail, fuel starvation,pump problem) What do you mean a knock box?

[Scoff]

Yeah i agree listening is prob the best way, was thinking of something just as a precautionary measure when not listening, eg an aei fails or sudden leaning off(reg fail, fuel starvation,pump problem) What do you mean a knock box?

Well yeah, it might stop **** hitting the fan :D

knockbox = a brand of knock listening box that most folks seem to prefer. I use something a bit different though since a lot of the cars I tune are noisey feckers where headphones don't cut it. Instead of headphones I use a stethoscope that runs to a little 0.5w speaker sealed in an air tight box. The speaker replaces the headphones, so I can sit and adjust the volume to suit so that I can listen at a comfortable level while the stethoscope blocks out all cabin noise. I have a few different sensors too that have different frequency responces. The sensor you find on the 172, etc, works wonders on F blocks. The common 2 pin bosch thing that you find on the Volvo engines, etc, works great on bigger stuff. Always attach to the top of the block if you can, the cylinder head should be the last option.

[Tony Walker]

ah, sounds interesting.

http://turboxs.com/knockliteupdate.htm

Thats what i was thinking sort of, nice and simple like me.

Will look in to the stethoscope/headphones
Cheers