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jglazener
Joined: 14 Apr 2010
Posts: 76
Location: Schoonhoven, Netherlands
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 Posted: Mon Dec 16, 2013 3:06 am Post subject: FlightDEK D180 |
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Many moons ago, when I was young and thinking I could build a plane in two years, I looked at the instrument options, guided by the excellent articles by Stein Bruch in Kitplanes magazine.
Then, the no brainer solution seemed to be the Dynon FlightDEK D180. Relatively inexpensive, lots of features and it could be connected to the Rotax as well. No other company offered that combination.
Five or so years on it is still on offer, and even cheaper. And that worries me, particularly since I need to make a choice very soon for my panel. There could be three reasons nothing has changed:
1) It was the very best then, and still is now.
2) It's old and outdated, but the company is using it as a cash cow.
3) It's old and outdated but Dynon is planning a fantastic update, though they are not saying so because they want suckers like me to continue buying the existing stuff and then shell out again later.
Yes, I know they have introduced the SkyView in the meantime but to me that is another category, and way outside my needs as well as budget.
I would be interested to know what others think. Is the D180 the way to go or should I wait and / or consider other options?
| | - The Matronics Europa-List Email Forum - | | | Use the List Feature Navigator to browse the many List utilities available such as the Email Subscriptions page, Archive Search & Download, 7-Day Browse, Chat, FAQ, Photoshare, and much more:
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_________________
Jeroen
http://www.europaowners.org/main.php?g2_itemId=44165 |
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rlborger(at)mac.com
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| Posted: Mon Dec 16, 2013 5:30 am Post subject: FlightDEK D180 |
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Jeroen,
Just for comparison, you might want to look at the Grand Rapids Sport SX + the EIS4000 for Rotax engines.
I had the EIS4000 in my Europa from my build. When I upgraded my instrument panel it was an easy choice to go to the Sport SX for my EFIS as you just run a serial line from the EIS4000 to the Sport SX to get engine data displayed on the SX. The package has been working quite well for me. Since I am familiar with the Sport SX & 4000 I plan to install them in the Little Toot I’m building.
Price of the SX + 4000 + all probes and harness will probably be about the same as the Dynon + probes + harness.
Since you are starting from scratch, you have a much larger field of instruments to evaluate. Tru-Trak also has a nice EFIS at a reasonable price. And there are probably others as well.
If you have the time and can afford to go to Oshkosh or Sun ’n’ Fun, go visit all the various vendors and check them out in person. See what best fits your needs.
Blue skies & tailwinds,
Bob Borger
Europa XS Tri, Rotax 914, Airmaster C/S Prop (50 hrs).
Little Toot Sport Biplane, Lycoming Thunderbolt AEIO-320 EXP
3705 Lynchburg Dr.
Corinth, TX 76208-5331
Cel: 817-992-1117
rlborger(at)mac.com
On Dec 16, 2013, at 5:06 AM, jglazener <j.glazener(at)planet.nl> wrote:
Many moons ago, when I was young and thinking I could build a plane in two years, I looked at the instrument options, guided by the excellent articles by Stein Bruch in Kitplanes magazine.
Then, the no brainer solution seemed to be the Dynon FlightDEK D180. Relatively inexpensive, lots of features and it could be connected to the Rotax as well. No other company offered that combination.
Five or so years on it is still on offer, and even cheaper. And that worries me, particularly since I need to make a choice very soon for my panel. There could be three reasons nothing has changed:
1) It was the very best then, and still is now.
2) It's old and outdated, but the company is using it as a cash cow.
3) It's old and outdated but Dynon is planning a fantastic update, though they are not saying so because they want suckers like me to continue buying the existing stuff and then shell out again later.
Yes, I know they have introduced the SkyView in the meantime but to me that is another category, and way outside my needs as well as budget.
I would be interested to know what others think. Is the D180 the way to go or should I wait and / or consider other options?
--------
Jeroen
| | - The Matronics Europa-List Email Forum - | | | Use the List Feature Navigator to browse the many List utilities available such as the Email Subscriptions page, Archive Search & Download, 7-Day Browse, Chat, FAQ, Photoshare, and much more:
http://www.matronics.com/Navigator?Europa-List |
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ploucandco
Joined: 16 Sep 2007
Posts: 69
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| Posted: Thu Dec 19, 2013 2:10 pm Post subject: Re: FlightDEK D180 |
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Jeroen, the D180 is certainly a very relevant choice as EFIS/EMS. It is still produced in quantities and I see plenty of planes (typically being produced in Central/East Europe) being sold with this one. So you can't be wrong in installing one.
At the same time, it is based on a 10 years old product architecture. For sure, Dynon will still support it for many years as it is still a very popular product. But don't expect anymore updates as they fixed their last annoying bug some months ago.
If you could afford the price difference, you should go with Skyview. It is a completely modern system with capabilities being expanded on regular basis (e.g. recently they added European VFR approach plates). Also, you could have the benefit of a cheaper mode S transponder and an advanced autopilot with an integrated gps map. The only item that Dynon is missing today for European pilots is a 8.33Mhz radio at a good price. I am sure that Dynon understands that and will come with a solution in a reasonable timeframe.
Bob is right that Grand Rapid also produce very good piece of equipment. But these are being sold for the huge majority on the US market. And you want to have a EU local dealer if you want to ship any equipment back (and that will certainly happen if you consider a lifetime of more than 10 years). Dynon has 2 major dealers in EU who can provide local support or ship your equipment back to the US for the price of sending it to the UK or to CZ.
There are other players in this market, like MGL or TL-elektronic. The MGL system has certainly tremendous capabilities but this company seems to lack the level of customer orientation (e.g. draft manuals) that is required to become a real market leader. TL-elektronic and some others are marginal in terms of quantities being sold.
Then there is the Garmin gorilla who recently entered the experimental market with a dump on the prices for their G3X system. It is Garmin quality with Garmin certified products as base. You can't go wrong with going with them. But Garmin is a gorilla that has partnership with other gorillas like Jeppesen. Look at the price difference between a yearly subscription for skyview with a pocketfms database and a Garmin G3X with Jeppesen. Not sure if that is inline with the Europa philosophy.
Good luck with your decision. This is a crucial one as you will spend all your Europa flying time behind this system.
| | - The Matronics Europa-List Email Forum - | | | Use the List Feature Navigator to browse the many List utilities available such as the Email Subscriptions page, Archive Search & Download, 7-Day Browse, Chat, FAQ, Photoshare, and much more:
http://www.matronics.com/Navigator?Europa-List |
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