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Comparing Computer Chips

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Old Feb 23, 2004 | 09:15 PM
  #1  
LowStyleII's Avatar
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From: Tinker AFB,OK
Car: 1998 Camaro
Engine: V-6 200 HP
Transmission: T-5
Comparing Computer Chips

I am going to buy a new computer chip but which one. I was looking thru summit and the prices are reasonable.

Summit Catalog Page 94

Motorvation strip chip
Hypertech Stage 2 Thermomaster
Jet Stage 2 Off Road Chip

Anywayz I hear jet sucks but i wanna know everyones opinion and no I don't wanna custom burnt chip cuz my engine is all stock for now.
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Old Feb 23, 2004 | 09:42 PM
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Save your money and don't get any of them. Look into burning your own chips (ie the tech article on Prom Tuning on this page); if you don't want to do that don't bother buying a chip they are worthless and you are better off with your stock tune.
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Old Feb 23, 2004 | 09:49 PM
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From: Tinker AFB,OK
Car: 1998 Camaro
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Like I said before my engine is STOCK so I dont need a CUSTOM CHIP. Anyways how can a stock chip be better than an aftermarket one?
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Old Feb 24, 2004 | 03:04 PM
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i believe it is the opinion of many of us here on board is that the miniscule increase in power does not justify the cost. i believe they enrichen the wot and add some spark and possibly the shift points. if you have any intention of modding engine more than a minimal amount you will need to learn to tune anyway. i too purchased the hyper and found no difference in power on my stocker. there are/were better areas to spend the $$$. i believe the exhaust is the first mod that fbody owners do.
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Old Feb 24, 2004 | 03:25 PM
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From: Manassas VA
Car: 04 GTO
Engine: LS1
Transmission: M12 T56
Originally posted by LowStyleII
Like I said before my engine is STOCK so I dont need a CUSTOM CHIP. Anyways how can a stock chip be better than an aftermarket one?
Because aftermarkte off the shelf chips ARE just stock chips with only very small and insignificant changes made to them that 99 out of 100 times do not in any way help power output.

https://www.thirdgen.org/techbb2/sho...hreadid=104792
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Old Feb 24, 2004 | 03:50 PM
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From: Ft. Leavenworth, KS
Car: 83 TA, 89 TTA, others
Engine: ZZ4 TPI, LC2 turbo v6
Transmission: several, mostly broken
Originally posted by LowStyleII
Anyways how can a stock chip be better than an aftermarket one?
Maybe because the people who do calibrations at GM are more talented and better resourced than those who work at JET or Hypertech. And although they've got other considerations to deal with (i.e. EPA and CAFE), they also have a lot more incentive to get things right, compared to an aftermarket vendor who's mainly interested in taking your money.

If you're starting with a stock engine, you have a great learning opportunity there. The stock calibration is going to be fairly close, so you can make small changes, and see what the effects are, without chasing your tail trying to get the engine running decent. If you wait until after you've modified the engine, you'll spend a lot more time just trying to get things back to where they're close to correct. Besides, setting yourself up for chip burning doesn't cost that much more than the price tag of those aftermarket chip, and then when you do modify the car later, you're already set up to tune it accordingly.

Anyway, that's how I see it.
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Old Feb 24, 2004 | 04:26 PM
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i am gonna put the hyper 2 into pp2 and see if i can see some obvious changes they did. i have a supposed stock bin in TC from day one tune. car in barn till 4/04 and i am getting bored. now gotta find the hyper chip and my pp2.
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Old Feb 24, 2004 | 04:54 PM
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From: Costal Alabama
Car: 1989 Iroc-Z
Engine: 350, ZZ4 equivalent
Transmission: Pro-Built Road Race 700R4
Axle/Gears: 3.23 Dana 44
Hypercrap chips are a complete joke. My brother had one in his car when he bought it and we compared it to a stock bin, they changed like 4 values in the spark table, total waste of money.
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Old Feb 24, 2004 | 04:59 PM
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Originally posted by LowStyleII
Like I said before my engine is STOCK so I dont need a CUSTOM CHIP. Anyways how can a stock chip be better than an aftermarket one?
You might review some of the postings here.
Might even look back the last few weeks, and find my thread where I explained the improvements I was able to make on my stock application, by doing my own chips.

No chip guy can taylor a chip for your driving style. If you really want to get into it, they're an incredible thing to work with.

The aftermarket ones, just do the min possible, so that they can have the fewest complaints, and risk mine legal exposure. Call up anyone of them and they all whine about you can tune big cammed motors, etc, etc..
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Old Feb 24, 2004 | 10:29 PM
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Originally posted by 89 Iroc Z
Hypercrap chips are a complete joke. My brother had one in his car when he bought it and we compared it to a stock bin, they changed like 4 values in the spark table, total waste of money.
Ths is true. And only in the WOT tables at that. Then they charge over $100 for it!! It's such a rip off!

You'd be better off putting the money toward a good exhaust system or something. At least that would net you some power increase and work with your factory chip.

But like the guys here are saying, burning your own chips is the only way to go.
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Old Mar 8, 2004 | 01:02 PM
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From: Wesley Chapel, Florida
Car: 1991 Camaro Z28
Engine: Dart SHP 406ci T88 turbo
Transmission: T56
Axle/Gears: QP 35 spline Ford 9" 3.50 gears
Is there anyway you guys that have actually compared the bins can show the differences by screenshot between JET, HYPERCRZZAP and STOCK bins? I'm waiting for my programmer to come in the mail and would like to take a look at the differences. Or you can email me the bins at rivedenn@yahoo.com . Thanks.
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Old Mar 8, 2004 | 01:27 PM
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Originally posted by pwdbychevy
Is there anyway you guys that have actually compared the bins can show the differences by screenshot between JET, HYPERCRZZAP and STOCK bins? I'm waiting for my programmer to come in the mail and would like to take a look at the differences. Or you can email me the bins at rivedenn@yahoo.com . Thanks.
In the last 10 years or so of chip burning, I've looked at literay hundreds of aftermarket chips and custom ones, it's to the stage of without exception, they've all been laughable. I've no doubt missed a few, but, when you're to the stage of 99.44% as being snake oil, then it just gets ridiculous to look any further. And I've found it MUCH better to tell a new guy to just look at his stocker, and then decide on what to do, since looking at the aftermarket stuff, and even folks with good intentions, can mislead the new guy. Once you get the basics down, then you might want to look at some other .bins, but normally by then, folks, have an idea of what to do. You won't actually learn anything looking at what workd best on another car, and you might start out going in the srong directions, the trick is giving the engien what it wants, not what you think it needs. The auto reflex of more timing and more fuel isn't always the right thing to do..

Hook a scanner to your car, and go out driving it, and closely note, what you'd want to change. Oh, and develope a baseline so when you begin tuning you know where you started from. So you can actually figure out if you're going faster or slower.

Last edited by Grumpy; Mar 8, 2004 at 01:30 PM.
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Old Mar 8, 2004 | 01:34 PM
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From: Wesley Chapel, Florida
Car: 1991 Camaro Z28
Engine: Dart SHP 406ci T88 turbo
Transmission: T56
Axle/Gears: QP 35 spline Ford 9" 3.50 gears
Originally posted by Grumpy
In the last 10 years or so of chip burning, I've looked at literay hundreds of aftermarket chips and custom ones, it's to the stage of without exception, they've all been laughable. I've no doubt missed a few, but, when you're to the stage of 99.44% as being snake oil, then it just gets ridiculous to look any further. And I've found it MUCH better to tell a new guy to just look at his stocker, and then decide on what to do, since looking at the aftermarket stuff, and even folks with good intentions, can mislead the new guy.

Hook a scanner to your car, and go out driving it, and closely note, what you'd want to change. Oh, and develope a baseline so when you begin tuning you know where you started from. So you can actually figure out if you're going faster or slower.
Very good advice, i think the reason why my 305 is not running up to par is probably because the prom has a stock 350 bin in it. I can't wait for that programmer to show up. I've already started messing with a stock 305 5 speed .bin file and started making changes to it to accomodate my mods. GEEZ THIS STUFF IS LIKE CRACK! VERY ADDICTIVE!
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Old Mar 8, 2004 | 10:49 PM
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Car: 88 Camaro SC
Engine: SFI'd 350
Transmission: TKO 500
Axle/Gears: 9-bolt w/ 3.23's
I got a hypercrap chip with the ecm that I bought for the test bench and its almost indistinguishable from the stock one. Its amazing how little work they did. Ddint even change the temp threshold for closed loop.
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Old Mar 9, 2004 | 01:43 PM
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There are some vendors who actually put alot of effort into thier chips.. with radical VE PE AE etc changes... not just 2 degrees of timeing in certian spots.


And as far as not much to gain on stock programming...

I personally tuned a 93 vette stock down to the original spark plugs... (only had 32k on it) Before 260rwhp.. about 15 minutes later 288rwhp

28rwhp over stock tuning in a stock vehicle
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Old Mar 9, 2004 | 03:13 PM
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Nobody is saying there isn't power to be gained over stock with a personally tuned chip that is done on site. People are saying there's nothing to be gained with mail order, off-the-shelf chips.

What are these vendors you speak of that make these radical changes. If you make a claim like that you need to support it with evidence.
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Old Mar 9, 2004 | 03:36 PM
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Originally posted by rooster433
There are some vendors who actually put alot of effort into thier chips.. with radical VE PE AE etc changes... not just 2 degrees of timeing in certian spots.
Let's see them then.
And which vendors are you talking about?.
If they're making RADICAL changes, I'd be even more worried.

Chip vendors seem to only be successful in that their customers really don't seem to know what good is, so they're just thrilled with a car that does little more then runs, at least in the 3rd Gen Community from what I've seen.

A vendors first job is to make money, they can't really afford to put the time into doing each chip correctly. And, I've yet to see anyone do a chip correctly with data logged material, or other then tuning to the limits of detonation. Which so many people seem obsessed with.
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Old Mar 9, 2004 | 03:57 PM
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kinda like a doctor diagnosing your pain on a 1-800 #.
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