+1 for Haltech and Link ECUs.
Subaru community also has the same feedback Gizmo is providing. You can get a car running, but it will never run well or close to full capability as it can't utilize variable valve timing, knock control, proper open and closed loop fueling and crossover windows etc. Spitronics appears to be a decent option on a budget as many of the 2JZs and scooby builds are running this now. The Scooby ECUs have a great deal of capability built in so it blows my mind that anyone has gone down the Dicktator route. Guys fit it because the car is in limp mode, either because of sensors or something worse. They don't bother to fix the underlying problem. Dictator seems to work fine and then a week or two later its bearings, melted pistons or some other catastrophic failure (which then gets attributed to just being a Subaru problem)
Even on relatively simple cars where it should work in theory, by the time you are on your third Dicktastor (because it got a bit too humid one day and it decided to die), you will be wishing you had spent the money on a Haltech, Link G4, AEM EMS etc. ECU.
Apart from doing the basics very well, IIRC the Link and AEMs can be kitted out with sensors to monitor ethanol content and det, adjusting itself accordingly. They will have extensive boost control options (Boost per gear, TPS and RPM boost maps) as well as launch control, no-lift-to-shift etc. Will you use them all? Probably not... but is it not better to start with a better platform that is also going to potentially cost you less in the long run? The LAST thing you want is to be forking out for retunes, replacements and even if something is covered under warranty, you really don't want to be dealing with the hassle that goes with it.
