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  #1  
Old 11-14-2011, 08:46 PM
petersb petersb is offline
 
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Toronto
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Default Should I buy Skyview or MGL or any other EFIS?

Need to order my panel shortly. Favouring the Skyview although I like the idea of the MGL iEFIS touch screen. Comments please

Peter
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  #2  
Old 11-15-2011, 06:29 AM
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rleffler rleffler is offline
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by petersb View Post
Need to order my panel shortly. Favouring the Skyview although I like the idea of the MGL iEFIS touch screen. Comments please

Peter
Nobody can answer your question. You question is similiar to asking, I need a car, should it be a Ford, GM, or Chrysler? You haven't shared your mission and/or requirements that the EFIS needs to meet.

Otherwise all you are going to receive are opinions of what other builder's favorite EFIS may be. Their requirements may be different than yours.

All the various popular vendors products work fine. Understand what each is is capable of doing today. Don't bet on future enhancements coming down the road. Some have better track records than others delivering on their promises.

Dynon, GRT, AFS, MGL all seem to provide great support.

I personally like the AFS 5500/5600, but that may be overkill for your needs. If you just need basic VFR instrumentation, then one of the entry level Dynon, GRT Sport, or AFS 3400/3500 may provide more bang for the buck. I'm not familiar enough with the MGL models, or I would have mentioned them.

Unfortunately, there isn't a one size fits all solution.

Sorry I couldn't provide more specific advice.

bob
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  #3  
Old 11-15-2011, 06:38 AM
RV8R999 RV8R999 is offline
 
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a small nit -

There is nothing about the first gen Dynon units which precludes safe and effective IFR flight - been there done that for years.
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  #4  
Old 11-15-2011, 08:07 AM
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rleffler rleffler is offline
 
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Originally Posted by RV8R999 View Post
a small nit -

There is nothing about the first gen Dynon units which precludes safe and effective IFR flight - been there done that for years.
Who said they weren't? I didn't even mention IFR.

EFIS selection is slowly turning into a religious debate like the primer wars. There is no one size fits all answer, but people seem to feel a need to defend their decisions regardless of knowing the requirements of others.

The units I mentioned are all great as a six pack replacements, which are perfectly acceptable for basic VFR operations. As you start to add other requirements, some may remain as satifactory choices, others may not.

IFR means too many different things to too many different people.

I take a more systems approach to IFR. There is the equipment you need to be legal with the FAA. That's the simple part to evaluate. Then there are the system attributes that allow me to sleep well at night. Again, this is highly subjective. We all have different risk factors that are acceptable to us.

For example, would you want your autopilot to run the same code base from the same vendor as the EFIS? What if there is a software bug or a system hang in the EFIS? What would action would your AP take? Or would you like your AP to run a different code base from a different vendor? This would allow the AP to run indepently of the EFIS, should an EFIS fail for whatever reason. Can the AP keep the aircraft wings level, flying upright, and on the same course in either of these scenarios?

Is an AP required for IFR, of course not, but it sure makes things significantly easier and reduces work load. The different EFIS vendors have different strategies on how their systems work. All I'm recommending is that you understand this before you select a vendor and/or a particular product. There is more than just checking off whether or not it meets the minimum requires for IFR, or VFR for that matter.

bob
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  #5  
Old 11-15-2011, 08:57 AM
RV8R999 RV8R999 is offline
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by rleffler View Post
If you just need basic VFR instrumentation, then one of the entry level Dynon, GRT Sport, or AFS 3400/3500 may provide more bang for the buck.
No but you unintentionally infered it..

No wars being waged here. All the systems mentioned get the job done to the level of experience of the person flying and their requirements.
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  #6  
Old 11-15-2011, 10:24 AM
Bavafa Bavafa is offline
 
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I think it will be a good exercise to first think and establish what is your mission and would like to get out of the EIFS.

They are all good, some are more advanced and capable then others.

A simple list of type of flying (VFR, IFR), integration with other systems and which one supports it now vs. promises of supporting it in the future and perhaps redundancy if that is required.

Finally, if you get a chance to fly behind each of the final candidate, it will help a great deal as user friendliness of it can be a factor.
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  #7  
Old 11-15-2011, 04:01 PM
Inverted Inverted is offline
 
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I can't tell you which unit to buy, but I can tell you that the guys at MGL are absolutely top notch. I had some unopened components that I got with a project and they are willing to accept them as full price trade in on the correct components I need for monitoring a different engine.
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  #8  
Old 11-15-2011, 04:03 PM
John Courte John Courte is offline
 
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Another +1 for MGL. Support is great, and the ability to design your own custom screens is awesome.
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  #9  
Old 11-15-2011, 04:20 PM
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Ironflight Ironflight is offline
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Let's be honest - the guys at GRT, Dynon, AFS, MGL, TT, and Garmin are all top notch - I have seen them go WAY BEYOND in the support of their customers. (Yes, occasionally they slip up....everyone is human). SO that isn't really a selection criteria anymore.

As has been said - develop your requirements, then start thumbing through the many hundreds of threads here on the Glass Cockpit forum to find out what folks have already said about the systems available. Then see what questions you have left!

Paul
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  #10  
Old 11-15-2011, 05:22 PM
Sig600 Sig600 is offline
 
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Went with G3X simply because they had a killer rebate and the GX integration, as well as VP-X. Plus I just think the graphic display is stellar.

Honestly, I think you could base your decision soley on mission, price, and asthetics... And never regret whatever you go with. I've yet to find a single person that says their setup sucks or they wish they would've gone with XXXX.

Youtube has some great videos on all the choices too. How's that for help?
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Last edited by Sig600 : 11-15-2011 at 05:25 PM.
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