New DigiQ II, Digital Competitor by BBQ Guru

[Consiglieri]

Just some follow up after checking out their website.  How does this DigiQ integrate into use with the DBS?  Will it work with the power raptor or is some other configuration available?  didn't see a raptor "Package" option for electrics like they have with the competitor model. 

[Mr Walleye]

Consiglieri

My understanding is yes, the DigiQ does integrate with the Raptor. As far as how it connects wit a DBS I would assume it connects the same way I have my PID connected. The DigiQ/Raptor would be powered directly from an AC outlet and would be plugged into the heater in the tower. The smoke generator would be power separately from an AC outlet as well.

I can't say this is 100% correct but from what I've seen I think this would be correct.

Mike

[Habanero Smoker]

Mike you are 100% correct. All the information is located somewheres in the posts on the forum. Also if your generator takes the standard electrical plug male connector you could plug the Raptor into the back of the generator.

[NePaSmoKer]

I am going to order one too i guess. Going to go with the gold  ;D

nepas

[Habanero Smoker]

I usually wait until a product has been on the market for awhile, but for this I can't wait. I just placed my order by phone, they didn't have pink so I ordered gold. :) They feel that they will be able to ship mine towards the end of next week.

To clear up any confusion, if you have the Raptor, you only need to order the DigiQ, at $159.00 plus $14 S/H. It hooks up to the Raptor the same way as the Competitor. You can now place your order over the web. If you call you have the option of trading you Competitor in for a $25 discount, but I had to agree with the sale person that at a price of $159.00 it would be better to either keep the competitor or sell it on EBay. I'm going to keep mine, because I still have plans to get a wood or charcoal smoker.

[NePaSmoKer]

I am going to keep mine too. I have a wood smoker i am going to hook up my competitor to.

nepas

[Mr Walleye]

Habs & NePas

You guys will have to give us a full report on how well they work with the Bradley.

Mike

[Habanero Smoker]

I sure will. I'm already trying to decide what to hot smoke, and what to cold smoke. For the cold smoke I may smoke some hard cheese and peppers; may through in some hard boiled eggs (recent posts has got me craving them again). I'm planning on doing this early morning, first chilling the box down with ice, and then setting the temperature for 80°F.

If I already had it, I would have plenty of opportunities to check out all of it's features. Either Sunday or Monday, I will be making pastrami's, and the following day I will be smoking bacon.

They have now posted the user's manual:
http://www.thebbqguru.com/kb/kbDownload/bbqDownloads/DigiQ%20USER%20GUIDE%20rev0.96.pdf

[Jimbo]

So how does this DigiQ II work with the OBS?  I have a PID now, but would like more control options such as the ramp feature.  Do you have to have the Rator from the same company for this to work with the OBS?

Thanks.

[carnie1]

I might be a little off subject here but I was down to BBQ Guru back in June to have my raptor /competor setup checked out and let me tell you that Shotgun Fred is one amazing person, he took time out to show me the whole company (they do make other things) and really gave me outstanding service, If any of you get a chance to visit do so you won't regret it, Hey NePa I'll just be working weekends soon in October maybe a road trip is in order. If anybody has any questions about BBQ Guru Call Fred I'm sure he'll be happy to help you.

[Mr Walleye]

So how does this DigiQ II work with the OBS?  I have a PID now, but would like more control options such as the ramp feature.  Do you have to have the Rator from the same company for this to work with the OBS?

Thanks.

You do need both in order for it to work with any electric style smoker.

Mike

[Habanero Smoker]

So how does this DigiQ II work with the OBS?  I have a PID now, but would like more control options such as the ramp feature.  Do you have to have the Rator from the same company for this to work with the OBS?

Thanks.

As Mike stated, you do need the Raptor. The Guru temperature control devices are originally made to control charcoal and/or wood smokers and pits. With the aid of a blower (fan) that it plugs into, the devise senses the temperature then sends a signal to the blower to either increase or reduce the amount of oxygen available to the fuel, which in turn controls the temperature of the fire. When you hook it up to an electrical smoker you need a device to simulate the blower, and that is what the Raptor does. The Raptor receives the signal and either turns on or turns off the heating element, and generally does so in pulses. The Raptor can control a heating element up to 1800 watts, so it is not just limited to the Bradley.

[Habanero Smoker]

I was pleasantly surprised when UPS delivered my DigiQ II. I didn't expect to receive it until early next week. It did come in time for me to test it when I smoke my pastrami this Thursday; if it will ever stop raining.

First impressions are good. I ordered the gold color. It's about the size of the original IPod, and it is quite heavy for its size.  The basic DigiQ II comes with a meat and pit probe; power pack; universal bracket and hardware; Curl-eez (to keep wires neatly stored); blower plug (not needed for electric smokers); and a small scouring pad to clean your probes.

The display is large, and you are supposed to be able to see it from quite a distance. The current weather condition for the past three days has either been overcast or rain. I would like to see how easy it will be to see on a bright sunny day. You can set it to display either the pit or the meat temperature; not both or does it alternate back and forth; but if you leave it on the pit temperature, it will automatically display "Food Done", when the meat reaches the set temperature. For those who have the Competitor, you no longer have to join the pit and meat probes to obtain temperatures lower then 175°F; and you can monitor temperatures as low as 32°F. The wires to the thermocouples are wire braided (like the wiring for the Maverick), so I'm pleased about that. Menu functions are easy to access, and operate. You can set how loud you want to alarms to sound, or disable them.

One feature I want to check out as soon as possible is the "Open Lid Detect", which is the factory default, which can be disabled. This detects when the lid (door) is opened, by the quick drop in temperature. When this occurs the Detector turns off the blower (heating element), then when the door is closed it slowly brings the temperature up to prevent over shooting the set temperature. That would work great for wood/charcoal burners, but not for the Bradley. So I will be checking that feature out to see how it will work with electric smokers.

One mistake I made when I placed my order was I failed to order the magnetic mount. When I read the description on the website, I thought it came with that mount, but that is an optional accessory. So if you do order the DigiQ II, ordering the magnetic mount would make it much easier to mount it on the Bradley. Though I have to state that the universal mount, is rather unique.

After I smoke my pastrami I will post pictures.

[Mr Walleye]

Thanks for the update Habs!

I look forward to your experiences with it.

Mike

[Habanero Smoker]

Sorry Mike.

Due to user stupidity, I wasn't able to use the DigiQ II the way I wanted to while smoking my pastrami's. After getting tech support from Fred, it was discovered that I had not plugged the thermocouples fully in. Which I had assured him, they were fully seated and I had already checked them. :-[

Once it was operating correctly, I did use it to monitor (not control) the cabinet temperature, and used one thermocouple to monitor the internal temperature of one of the pastrami. I had no further problems. I had the Competitor hooked up and didn't want to interfere with it at that time. I plan to smoke some chicken on Saturday, so I will have a pretty good write up either late that day or Sunday morning.