Zenith Aircraft Builders and Flyers
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Overwhelmed by Avionics
I'm building a 701 and trying to figure out what avionics to get.
Looking for a glass display for AS / ALT / ATT and color/annunciator flashing engine monitor display (if that makes sense, not sure what the technical term for that is).
I believe I have narrowed it down to 3 companies Dynon, MGL, GRT. Are there any others I should consider?
Anyone have a setup they love?
Update: Really appreciate all the advice and comments!
I ended up going with a Dynon system, it was the name that kept coming up from vendors, and seems to have the best quality and, importantly for me as a first time builder, ease of install.
The cost was definitely steep, things like the AHRS computer are a separate $1,300, but I've spent so much on tools etc that I've resigned to this not being a budget build anyway.
SteinAir has been very helpful and patient walking me though electrical systems and has been a much better vendor for those components than Aircraft Spruce.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Bob Simmons on
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But a human can answer a question much more than once, and there's tons of questions. That was one of my points. The variables create multiple possible answers for a single question, and there isn't even any way to know all the variables. I didn't say it was impossible. I said nearly impossible, so much so to the point of not being feasible, if that term sounds more palatable. I was an avionics technician for twenty years, and in IT after that. There's no way I'd want to tackle this. Now, a simplified list of features, not unlike what you saw in the Kitplanes article, would be another story. It wouldn't answer all the questions obviously, but could help guide the process into more in-depth research in suitable areas. It would still require constant updating though, and it's a project I wouldn't mind seeing at all. Not something I could devote time to though.
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Permalink Reply by Matt Pope on
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You may not have meant it literally, but you did write, "It would be an impossible undertaking."
I wasn't suggesting that you should be the one to take it on, but since neither of us is interested in doing it ourselves, there wouldn't be much point in continuing to debate exactly how difficult it would be.
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Permalink Reply by Carl Orton on
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Garmin and Dynon are great if you want to spend >$13,000 on a panel. As Bob Simmons noted above, Garmin at least is getting a bit closed in their architecture approach.
I used MGL in my Sonex. Great support, and it did what I asked of it. Had to send my display off to them for repair due to crossed power lines, but I got it back within 2 wks from ship date working just fine. I did not use them for my Cruzer because they seemed a bit $$$ compared to GRT after all the additions were added in.
I've installed the GRT Sport 7" in my plane. I also added their EIS 2004 (unsure of number) because I really only wanted to monitor 2 cylinders instead of all 4. Saved me several hundred dollars. Aside from the 2 cyls, it functions identical to the full-up models. I flew for decades without either CHT or EGT, so I'm not too concerned.
My complete panel is the GRT Sport, GRT EIS, GRT Skyfix/uAvionics ADS-B in/out, along with a used comm ($100) and a used Garmin 327 ($400). Total price was somewhere around $5500. Not yet flying, but I'm tracking ADSB targets sitting in my garage, so I'm assuming it will be fine.
As others have said, the GRT documentation is extensive, but not the easiest to figure out. Phone/email support, though, has been top-notch and clear as a bell. Go figure.... Never had to wait more than overnight for a response. Same day if I contact early enough. I also like their open approach. You can connect just about ANYthing to their buss.
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Permalink Reply by Jonathan Fay on
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Love my Dynon!
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Nice. Wish I could fit that setup in my STOL. I know I can opt for the wider Cruzer panel if I want, but I really hate to lose all that extra STOL visibility.
Are those defrost vents?
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The top vents are for defroster and avionics cooling (the best defroster!) the Eyeball vents on the panel come from a SR-22 whos owner pulled the CAPS handle and all the parts went on EBAY!
Half the strips I land on are back country grass strips, gravel bars or other tree canyon striips and for 6'1" me visibility is great.
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Permalink Reply by Timothy Aanerud on
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I couldn't easily fit what I wanted in my STOL 750 instrument panel so I changed the shape the instrument panel to my own shape and remade the forward top (fuselage) skin.
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Get to an airshow with avionics vendors and poke buttons.
Paul Dye (Kitplanes) and Stein Bruch (StienAir) say this. Buy the brand that thinks the way you think. Stein says if you buy the exact same feature set the price will be within tens of dollars regardless of what brand you buy.
Don't like the "database" costs make or break the deal. Some brands have a one time "map fee" and other have an annual subscription. $500 on time fee v. $50/year. Over ten years, it's wash.
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It's not the database costs that worries me, though admittedly I'd sure love it if they were free. What concerns me right now is the major difficulties with map and chart updates for Dynon, and the total lack of support from the only vendor that currently offers them, Seattle Avionics.
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I have had nothing but good luck with my Seattle Avionics subscriptions, but I spend the first two years flying with only the Dynon database update, and using my iPad for Approach charts and Sectional data, so I only recently started paying the $100.yr for database updates so I could use the VFR/IFR/Plates on the Dynon maps. With the Ipad I don't find the Dynon as useful for plates/sectionals, just because Foreflight is so good at it and the iPad is a in-panel MFD, so I use simple map on Dynon and Sectional/Enroute IFR or iPad.
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