Whelen ST8RRBB Liberty LFL

Sep 16, 2018
119
Kentucky
Hey all, scored several of these at an auction and can't find wiring diagrams for them nor can get a single one to power up. I am used to the SL8 and SX8 bars. These ST8's have the main power cable and another small, thin cable just containing a blue and grey wire. Any feedback is greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!
 
Sep 16, 2018
119
Kentucky
Thanks for the response Nolines.....see attached
 

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Nolines

Member
Apr 5, 2018
1,678
Margate, FL
Based on that model it says ss8 light bar, I did find the basic serial manual but it isn't specific for the bar. It needs to get hooked through a bl627 siren to a mpc01, 02, or 03 controller, so I could use it on my setup, it's pre 2011 according to a state of nj prod list PDF they could purchase does it have strobes or less or super LEDs?
 
Sep 16, 2018
119
Kentucky
Based on that model it says ss8 light bar, I did find the basic serial manual but it isn't specific for the bar. It needs to get hooked through a bl627 siren to a mpc01, 02, or 03 controller, so I could use it on my setup, it's pre 2011 according to a state of nj prod list PDF they could purchase does it have strobes or less or super LEDs?
All LED's all the way around

All LED's all the way around
I have 15 of them all the same exact configuration

I have 15 of them all the same exact configuration
Sad cause all are in very nice shape but can't test
 

Nolines

Member
Apr 5, 2018
1,678
Margate, FL
It was worth a shot whelen will lie and be untrue as often as needed, did you ask tech support for the manuals for these babies?
 

Nolines

Member
Apr 5, 2018
1,678
Margate, FL
Well then the only I can say is to get your hands on the serial setup to test them out otherwise just pull them apart piecemeal.
 
Sep 16, 2018
119
Kentucky
So am I understaning this correctly? I have to wire this bar through a BL627 (which is a siren amplifier) to bench test the lightbar? Or is hooking it up to a MC01 controller sufficient enough to just bench test the light?
 

Nolines

Member
Apr 5, 2018
1,678
Margate, FL
Well it says to the bl627 which is also hooked to your mpc but as to wether or not it will work straight through the mpc I've never tried that.
 

RS485

Supporting Donor
Aug 5, 2019
369
Central MA
So am I understaning this correctly? I have to wire this bar through a BL627 (which is a siren amplifier) to bench test the lightbar? Or is hooking it up to a MC01 controller sufficient enough to just bench test the light?

The manual states, "Without BL627 Siren Amplifier: Splice the BLUE and GREY wires from the lightbar to the BLUE and GREY wires in the 4-conductor MPC cable."

You shouldn't need a BL627 just to test the lightbar. But you do need an MPC01 (or 02 or 03) configured for the lightbar.

There's a great thread all about Whelen serial comm here: https://elightbars.org/forums/threads/whelen-blink-b-link-serial-thread.5914/
 

thatoneiowan

Member
May 23, 2016
44
Central Iowa
Both my B-Link Liberty and Patriot bars are directly to my MPC01s. Blue comm wire to blue comm wire, grey to grey, and shield to shield, at least in my case. I have a BL627 but it is not necessary to go through that if you are not wanting the siren.
 

icomfire1

Member
Jun 9, 2010
262
TX
You can use the lightbar with just the controller and no siren amp but the lights on the controller may flash or make a beeping sound since a sore neck amp is not connected but it will power the bar with the control head itself.
 

Nolines

Member
Apr 5, 2018
1,678
Margate, FL
Depends on what the controller was programmed for the slide switch and individual buttons. I know my mpc01 was programmed for a different bar/halogen/ siren setup so when I hooked it to my power supply that was serial I had to change everything to get it to fire but didn't get to finalize it before a drunk driver plowed into my unit and destroyed it and almost me.
 

smallish

Member
May 8, 2020
84
Fremont, CA
Yup, I've got the same bar, same configuration, same harness also ST8RRBB...here's how I made it work:

#1. Bought a MPC01 controller. Make sure to get one with the harness to make things easier.
#2. In my case, I tied the grey wire from the lightbar to the gray wire from the MPC01. Same thing with the blue wires. If you're doing a permanent setup, splice the wires together.
#3. The MPC01 has three harnesses that plug into the control head itself...aux, comm, and power/ground harnesses. I didn't use the aux harness. The largest harness has a black wire, a yellow wire, and a red wire, and some others. The others I didn't use.

Black=Ground
Red=Power
Yellow=Backlighting

So I just put the black wire to ground, red and yellow to power. Also put the power/ground from the lightbar to power/ground. Turn it on and it should work. If it doesn't, a possibility is that the program currently in the MPC01 is for a different lightbar. So, if you want to program it, you'll need to download the SC software. Hope this helps! (anyone know which agency this is from?)

Links to my SC Liberty videos:

Part 1 (front)
Part 2 (rear)
 
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