Changing flasher in Whelen Liberty

kenwied

Member
Jan 22, 2015
77
Wisconsin
Has anyone ever changed the flasher module that controls the takedowns and alley lights? I'd like to put something else in there that has a little more flash to it when it's activated, instead of just the alternating wig wag or double wig wag, but possibly maintain the steady burn override. Whelen could have given us a few more flash options for this part of the bar. Bar is a LFL Liberty SX8. Also, 1 more question - When I have the entire bar activated (without flashing takedowns/alleys) and I advance through the patterns, there are some that appear to restart the entire bar after a few seconds. Almost like it won't let the selected pattern finish it's cycle, and eventually after continuing to advance patterns, the front and rear of the bar lose synchronization. It's most noticeable when the takedowns are on, because they will turn off for a fraction of a second. They were updated to the LED versions. Could this be the I/O board going bad?
Thanks in advance.
 

shues

Lifetime VIP Donor
May 21, 2010
10,276
NW Indiana
The only way to get multiple pairs of of lightheads to sync is to put the entire Liberty into sync mode, as described by @Keith K. here: https://elightbars.org/forums/threads/sync-option-on-whelen-liberty-sx-model-lightbars.17452/

The SX control board was designed around halogen alleys and takedowns, namely the MR-11s. Faster flash patterns would have been ineffective. LED alleys and takedowns came later. It wouldn't take much work to move the alleys and takedowns to a different flasher.

However, using them as either flashing or steady-burn would take some creativity. A four-channel flasher like the ULF-44 could handle the flashing, providing you with a large selection of faster flash patters. Unless you would be satisfied to steady-burn both alleys and the takedowns at the same time, you would likely need to use diodes, or relays, to handle the steady-burn override functions.
 

kenwied

Member
Jan 22, 2015
77
Wisconsin
Ok, thanks for the info. I wasn't sure if there was an updated board that would be compatible that addresses utilizing LED instead of halogens for takedowns and alleys. For the sync question, the whole bar was set to factory setting by applying +12v to the sync wire and then turning the entire bar on. Now, every time I apply a short contact of +12v, the pattern for both front and rear lightheads advances to the next. But, after a few advances, the front and rear of the bar are doing completely different flash patterns. Why wouldn't they keep going together, after all, power was applied to each one simultaneously. That's what makes me question a failing IO board. Thoughts?
 

shues

Lifetime VIP Donor
May 21, 2010
10,276
NW Indiana
From the factory, there is no sync wire per se. The sync terminal is not populated from the factory. Did you move a wire into the sync terminal position? Applying power to the sync terminal should not reset the whole bar to factory settings. Did you mean that you applied power to the scan-lock wire?
 

kenwied

Member
Jan 22, 2015
77
Wisconsin
Yes, sorry. I applied power to the scan-lock wire. No, the only thing I've done inside the bar was replace the halogens with LED.
 

kenwied

Member
Jan 22, 2015
77
Wisconsin
It's just funny that the rear ones don't stay with the same pattern the fronts do. It's almost like they are different light heads with a different order of flash patterns or something.
 

shues

Lifetime VIP Donor
May 21, 2010
10,276
NW Indiana
Each pair of lightheads in a Liberty is an island. Each pair can be turned on and off independently. Each pair has its own flash pattern. This is the default behavior.

If you want the entire Liberty to be on the same flash pattern, then you will need to provide +12v DC to the sync terminal. The control cable should be terminated into a 16-place connector and a 3-place connector. The sync terminal is on the 3-pin connector, and it is the only one of the three that is not populated from the factory.
 

kenwied

Member
Jan 22, 2015
77
Wisconsin
Ok, so the manual that I have is evidently not for the right bar. I have all the rear lightheads together on one switch, and all the front ones on another. I figured that applying power to the scan-lock wire to change the patterns while all light heads are on would keep all of the lights on the same pattern because they are all being told to go to the next pattern at the same time. So this one needs to be set up with each set of light heads individually. Maybe that's why it cuts off momentarily at a certain pattern because it doesn't know what it needs to do lol.
 

kenwied

Member
Jan 22, 2015
77
Wisconsin
So today - I disconnected all of the light head wires. Set each individual pair to action-scan. Hooked them back up and the bar still did the "reset" after about 5 seconds. It won't advance through the entire action-scan setting with all of the lightheads activated. If they are on idividually, it works. It gets maybe 3 or 4 separate patterns in and then resets itself somehow. Does this sound like a characteristic of a bad I/O board?
 

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