The number-one bit of hop-up advice I give to beginners is this: replace your car's mechanical speed control (MSC) with an electronic speed control (ESC). While it has always been true that even the most basic ESC is much better than a mechanical unit, entry-level ESC's often paled beside their racier (and more expensive) counterparts. Times change, though, and we are now in a 'golden age' of electronic speed technology. There are more excellent, inexpensive speedos available now than ever before, and many offer features previously found only on high-end units. The new DuraTrax Streak ESC falls into that category and packs some race-ready features into a dirt-cheap package. Here's what you get:

FEATURES
The latest buzzword in the world of ESC's is "frequency": the number of times an ESC switches on and off per second to regulate the motor's speed. It is generally believed that the higher the frequency, the better the speedo. The Streak operates at 3500Hz, a frequency as high, or higher than those of many high-end racing ESC's. The higher frequency should make for smoother throttle response, greater efficiency and cooler operation, although the unit's low FET count (three forward, two brake) might cause the Streak to warm up a bit.

Given the Streak's $79.95 suggested retail price, the high-frequency operation alone would pique my interest in the product; however, the Streak offers more than extra hertz. You've no doubt already spotted the Streak's prominent adjustment pot, but it's not what you think it is. It looks like a current limiter, but it's actually the adjustable traction control feature. The pot adjusts the throttle curve in much the same way as the throttle exponential setting of a high-end radio. The Streak uses another feature to help maintain traction while braking: ABS. Like the ABS brakes on a full-scale car, the Streak "pumps" the brakes to prevent lockup. With the Streak's pushbutton setup, this feature is easily turned on and off. A notable omission from the Streak is an extra lead for FET-boosted servos, though it's doubtful many potential Streak buyers will have such high-performance servos.

INSTALLATION AND SETUP
As part of this issue's "Second Look" article, I installed the Streak in my Kyosho Mantis EP. I snipped off the supplied Tamiya-type connector and replaced it with a Deans plug, and I soldered the motor leads directly to the motor in lieu of using the factory bullet connectors. Although the Streak is set up as a 4-wire ESC, the positive lead for the motor is simply spliced into the battery's positive lead; if you ever wish to hard-wire the Streak, the more efficient 3-wire-style hookup can be used. A Schottky diode and a pair of capacitors are included with the ESC and were dutifully:soldered to the Trinity GT-1 motor I had installed in my car.

Once the Streak had been connected to a charged pack, only a touch of the setup button and the application of full throttle and full brake were required. The Streak uses two LED's to confirm the forward and brake settings; a green LED flashes for neutral, and a red LED lights to indicate full throttle. Both light when the brake setting has been confirmed. The Streak then oscillates the LED's for a couple of seconds; you can leave the transmitter alone during this period if you want standard brake action, or you may blip the transmitter's trigger, and the Streak will activate the ABS feature.

PERFORMANCE
Like any over-powered 2WD car, my hopped-up Mantis can be a tough car to drive on some parking lots; apply too much throttle too soon, and the car will spin out. The Streak's traction-control feature did a good job of taming the car's power delivery without limiting top-end speed. Nothing will keep the car planted if you dump the throttle from a standstill, but the traction control does make it easier to ramp up the speed without breaking traction. Dialing out the TC gives the Streak a punchier feel, but top speed is unaffected. In general, throttle feet was very smooth, just as one would expect from the unit's high-frequencyoperation.

Hard braking was as detrimental to the car's traction as drag-style launches were, so I activated the Streak's ABS function. This proved surprisingly effective. I could actually hear the pulses of brake application as I slowed the car, and I was able to maintain control on all but the loosest surfaces. I could still lock the wheels if I slammed on the brakes, but less aggressive stops were much smoother with ABS. After I had done three packs' worth of hard driving at varied speeds, the Streak's heat sinks were still cool. However, I could not discount the ambient temperature (about 50 degrees) during the test as a contributor to the Streak's cool running.

To further test the unit's tendency to heat up (or lack thereof), I took the car inside and rigged it up with another vehicle so that the Mantis's rear wheels would drive those of the other car. This served as a load for the motor and ESC. I then dialed in about 1/3 throttle at the transmitter's EPA pot to serve as an "autopilot" and let the car run this way until the battery dumped. This sort of partial- throttle, high-load abuse definitely warmed up the Streak, although its performance was unaffected and the heat sinks did not become too hot to handle.

FINAL THOUGHTS
Given the Streak's low cost, excellent performance and useful features, it's a hard unit to find fault with. True, compared by specs alone, the Streak is at a disadvantage to racing ESC's in the on- resistance department T 0.004 ohm, but I wouldn't be too concerned about it; the unit's performance belies the numbers on the spec chart, and let's be honest: price counts for a lot, and the Streak is quite affordable. This is DuraTrax's best speedo to date and well worth a took if you're in the market for a high-quality, affordable ESC.

Reprinted with permission.
April, 1998 Radio Control Car Action
Editor: Peter Vieira