Primarily for general aviation discussion, but other aviation topics are also welcome.
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By MikeW
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1723638
In the same price ballpark you can get a new Avmap Ultra, Dynon D3, Kanardia Horis, MGL Xtreme, Garmin G5 (OK, that's somewhat dearer), or a used Dynon D10A.

Interested in comments on their advantages/drawbacks (and any other models I've overlooked). I think the Ultra is the only one to have a built in magnetometer for compass heading, but how successful is compensation of that in an instrument panel location with a lump of engine (912) just in front and wiring near it?

Not considering serious IMC use BTW, and will retain necessary existing instruments for backup.

Thanks.
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By Rob P
#1723643
We had the MGL Extreme fitted as an EMS. Close to three years down the road it's nearly all working now (we made a huge mistake choosing the company who installed it) but have had some good support from the Irish agent, though that's tailed off and we are pretty much left to sort it on our own.

Rob P
Last edited by Rob P on Sun Oct 06, 2019 12:51 pm, edited 3 times in total.
By User72
#1723645
MikeW wrote:In the same price ballpark you can get a new Avmap Ultra, Dynon D3, Kanardia Horis, MGL Xtreme, Garmin G5 (OK, that's somewhat dearer), or a used Dynon D10A.


D10A is rather old now, is very deep and screen is cluttered. D3 only gives GPS speed and altitude. Horis works well must must have a good OAT input to provide accurate information (OAT probe provided). G5 is the standard by which others should be judged, just works, easy to install and link to other (Garmin) boxes and has a back-up battery available. You missed the GRT Mini which does more than the G5 and is straight forward to use, I like it a lot. Don't know anything of Avmap Ultra - is it as well developed as Garmin & GRT boxes?

I'm not a great fan of anything from MGL, usually more difficult than other makes to install.

I would steer away from an internal magnetometer as they can be quite unreliable. With all the other devices in the panel, and near-by wires, it is difficult to make them work well. If you really want a stable magnetic heading a remote magnetometer is a must.
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By mikehallam
#1723658
AVMap EFIS working fine after three years and a little 'life-saver' e.g.when crossing the Channel on days with poor sky/sea definition.

Very easy to 'install' - They supply evrything you need, including the neat little harness to plug in the GPS aerial also included. Just provide + 12volts and a tee connection to pitot & static.
Read-outs of true & GPS speed plus indication of true wind and its direction: climb/descend. And a VOR and NDB data base plus plus for those so inclined.
Excellent articles on it and others in the recent LAA magazine if you wish to mug up on it.
By Maxthelion
#1723659
We have a small Dynon (D10 I believe) in our RV8. It's terrific, and despite being fairly old now, it's still supported by the manufacturer. It's easy to use and set for what you want and has pitot inputs so you can have real airspeed and pressure altitude rather than just GPS.
By riverrock
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1723663
Just in the process of installing a G5.
When I compared the competition a few years ago, its screen was by far the clearest. Will install a remote magnetometer also (having fun trying to work out a suitable place to wire it). Will also display VOR/LOC/Glideslope info from a NAV source, so none of the pseudo VOR stuff.
We're going for non-certified which saves a bit and allows use of internal GPS antenna (in our case to drive the auto COM lookup in GNC255 Nav/Com and provide ground speed).
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By PaulSS
#1723664
If it's only going to be used as a back-up then I think the Levil-type of boxes are a good idea. I specifically say 'type' because there are plenty of similar bits of kit that send AHARS info to iPads etc and I reckon anything like that is a good backup.

As a real 'get you home' app you could do worse than have something like A-EFIS on your phone or tablet. It only uses the internal gubbins on your phone etc but the basics are all there and for very few $$$s (even free of black & white is good enough).

I'm really quite an anti-magnetic heading person and far too outspoken with that view. Suffice to say, in my view it adds complication and, for a lot of GA flying, really only one decent benefit......wind info on the EFIS. I've never been given a heading to fly by ATC in any of my GA flying and think there are few of us that need to have magnetometers fitted in order to be able to do this. Apart from that, heading is just a means to an end to achieve a track i.e. where you want to go. I'm only saying all of this because, in my opinion, it wouldn't be a consideration in a back-up instrument and I reckon GPS track is more than sufficient.

(I do actually own the MGL magnetometer but when I found that a magnetic compass is not required in a microlight (only recommended) I decided it was superfluous and the 4 indications I have of GPS track are enough to keep me out of trouble.......and I can do without having the W/V pointed out to me).
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By Ben Twings
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1723676
You missed out the GRT mini, which was one of the first of that generation and a very high quality unit. It has a built in magnetometer or can use an external.
I found the internal one to work very well with easy calibration. Several versions available depending on functions required (autopilot, mapping etc).
By MikeW
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1723738
Thank you, some useful points. Will study carefully.
At the moment I feel heart says G5, head/wallet says Avmap!
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By ls8pilot
#1723772
In the gliding world the Kanardia Horis and EMSIS are very popular. AFAIK they dont have magnetic heading (GPS track only) , but otherwise make a great stand-alone, compact instrument.

Good for standby purposes I would have thought. I've had one or other installed (2 different aircraft) for the past 6 years, seem to work very well, they come up very quickly if they need to be switched on in flight (even if you are already turning), and show pretty much everything you need on one screen.

The Horis is available in 57mm to save panel space and is perfectly readable at that size.
By MikeW
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1723780
Thanks ls8. The HORIS seems to have a smaller display than Avmap or G5, and I would prefer to have mag heading available - but not sure how well the Avmap does that.
This would be my primary device with existing traditional instruments for backup (and SkyDemon for nav).
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By Dave W
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1723784
I fitted a Garmin G5 to our LAA Permit aircraft earlier this year, and we are very happy with it.

It replaces a Dynon D1 (which was fine as a backup but required rather too much pre-flight prep - remembering to charge it! - so we wanted something permanently powered and plumbed into the pneumatics. The prompt for fitting it was an adventure planned by my syndicate partner but it has proven its value many times since on trips long and short.

The cost was extremely reasonable, it was very easy to fit (main problems were getting behind some of the panel, so hardly a device issue) and the documentation was clear and very well detailed. We chose not to fit the optional (£200) magnetometer, but may change our minds - although having said that, neither of us have missed a magnetic heading display in addition to our wet compass.

Sunlight readability is excellent - this is looking into sun yesterday afternoon.

(For anybody interested in sunlight readability of tablets, that is a Samsung Tab A6 (Model SM-285), with screen brightness set to "Outdoor Mode").
Boswell, Flyin'Dutch' liked this
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