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I'm disgusted with my radio...

pierre smith

pierre smith

Well Known Member
.....since it goes out on me every three months or so...the VAL. I was going to buy an SL40 but a friend says that the Icom A210 is a great, TSO'd radio for half the cost. I want dependability and a rep told me that the Icom is trouble free and very dependable.

What say you guys?

Thanks,
 
I've used a few of them, and the seem to be pretty much as dead simple and reliable as it gets. Mostly used them in ground support vehicles not aircraft, but it's the same radio.
 
The Val has had a history of problems. The Icom A200 is a great radio. Can't speak for the A210. A200 is probably the best bang for the buck right now. No vox ic or scan so if you don't need that go for it.
 
A200....

A200 is also cheap. If it were to give trouble, you just throw it away and get another. It doesn't cost enough to get you sucked into that recurring trips to the radio shop syndrome.

That said. Mine has never had a problem in 8 years or so.

John

P.S. If I get to the hangar tonight and my radio doesn't work, Pierre is in a lot of trouble :).
 
A210

I would go with the A210. Not much more money and a lot more functions. The built in intercom and the ability to monitor both freqs is a bonus. I got mine through Pacific Coast Avionics and it was 999 after all of the rebates. Plus, the screen is really easy to read for the more experienced pilots!:eek:
 
A200

I have 700 hours behind two of them.

400 in my old Zodiac VFR
300 in the RV where I use it as my Com 1...(GNS 430 as com 2..Don't ask..:)..)

Apart form the rubber knob covers disintegrating they have both been rock solid reliable.

Frank
 
Icom is a good radio

My RV6A is 1994, Builder put A200 in (very low serial number), When I bought it there were 490 hours, now 534. I noticed the demo pilot was turning off squelch to listen to traffic, he said it had been that way since they bought it at 404 hours. I sent radio to icom factory, the reciever side was replaced, new knobs, the bill was right at 200.00, it took two weeks. It works perfectly now, thats 14years, and the aircraft spent many years in Arizona.
 
I understand the Icom A210 is a good radio... however... if I recall from past threads... the "scan" feature is not all it was hoped to be. It doesn't have what is called a priority scan... in that it won't interrupt the secondary channel to return to your primary. Thus you'll miss radio traffic. IE: if you are listening to ATIS on one channel - while monitoring for traffic on your primary... you won't hear anything but the ATIS as long as you have it tuned. So... if my understanding of the previous discussion is true... yes... it does scan... but like an old cheap Bearcat scanner... you just listen to which ever channel it stops on first. This poor design has probably removed it from my choices when I build my plane. I want to be able to bring up the ASOS on the field... WITHOUT missing location calls from the students as I approach my field.

Your needs may differ of course... so this may be a non-issue for you. There are other features that are nicer than the A200... so it may be worth the extra cash... even if the dual scan feature is poorly designed. I'm considering just going with two A200's for complete redundancy despite the weight penalty.

DJ
 
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I have SL-30 & A210

I have an SL-30 as #1 and an A210 as #2.

Both are great radios and I would recommend either.

For what it's worth, given my own personal taste, but if I had to do it over again I would spend the extra bucks to install an SL-40 as my number 2. It is more readable in direct sunlight, and the installation is nicer. To remove the A210, you need to pull off the front faceplate, then remove a small flat ribbon style cable, then unscrew the radio. The SL-30 tray is top notch.

I have the A210 on autodim, and in some sunlight conditions, it has been a bit hard to read, even with the max setting. The SL-30 is always clearly visible. This is really a consideration if you have a single radio.

My opinion for what it's worth
 
When I talked to them at SNF they told me that they were testing a change to the firmware to address the customer complaints regarding the override of the standby monitor when something comes in on the primary frequency. You have to send in the radio to get the firmware update. Not sure if they completed their testing, but I do know they were working on it.
 
The SL40 is bullet proof!

I have years of experiece with an SL-40 that I had in my old plane, a 1951 Aeronca Sedan. I had that plane and radio for 6 years. I flew it for over 400 hours and the SL-40 NEVER had an issue. Even the built in intercom was decent. After years flying rental planes with substandard radios, I vowed that I'd buy an SL-40 for my RV project, which I did.

The really nice feature of the radio is the fact that you can monitor a second frequency while on a different one. I've used that feature in the Sedan on almost every flight. It may not sound like an earth shattering feature but believe me, once you have it, you'll love it and use it all the time.

The Icom A210 came out after I purchased my SL-40. At half the price and what appeared to be all the same features, I was kicking myself...until I started to read about people's experience here on the this forum. Apparently the monitor feature doesn't work exactly the same as the SL-40 making it less desirable. I can't remember the details but I do remember after reading all the posts that I was very happy with my decision to buy a tried and true product.

Now I don't know if Icom has improved their product so search the forums and see what the buzz is all about.
 
Uses King tray

From what I've read, the A210 can also use the tray/harness from a King KY-97A installation. I'm considering swapping out my King and sliding an A210 in it's place. That way I can monitor the standby freq, which I can't do with the King right now. Anyone have any experience with this sort of swapout?
 
Go with the SL-40

I have the SL-40 and have absolutly no complaints with it. Does everything it's supposed to do. Garmin is a great company and stands behind their product.

For the difference in price it's not worth the gamble of potential issues being reported by A210 owners. I fly in bravo and charlie airspace and don't want to deal with radio problems. Been there and done that!! ATC doesn't like it when there are radio issues and I don't blame them.

My two cents.

Ted
 
Don't forget

one of the REALLY cool features is to take the serial out of a 396/496 to the serial in of an SL-40 or SL-30 and it puts all the frequencies (ATIS, Ground, Tower, Approach, Departure, etc.) of the current or destination airport in the standby list to scroll thru. Or you can just highlight any frequency on the 396/496 and press Enter and it goes to the standby on the SL-40/30. Very handy. Example, flying close to an airport, you hit Nearest, scroll to the airport, Enter, Up (to the frequency box), Enter on the 396 and it transfers to the standby on the SL-40. Then press Monitor and voila, you are listening to the traffic on the airport below. Never had to look up the freq.
 
Yes, it's true..

Joe Blank said:
From what I've read, the A210 can also use the tray/harness from a King KY-97A installation. I'm considering swapping out my King and sliding an A210 in it's place. That way I can monitor the standby freq, which I can't do with the King right now. Anyone have any experience with this sort of swapout?
Click to expand...

....I was told that by a dealer for them this morning.

BTW, all you guys rock! Ten or more responses in no time...thanks guys.

Regards,
 
SL40

I'm a proponent of "one brand," consistency. So, I went with all Garmin. I have the SL40 and love it. I usually have my next ATIS dialed up and then monitor 121.5. No problems what so ever.

As Rusty noted, you can import frequencies across if you have the 396/496.

Nothing against the Icom 210 but in reviewing the posts, no problems with the SL40, several noted with the Icom.

For me the extra $$$ are worth the reliability and company support.
 
hecilopter said:
one of the REALLY cool features is to take the serial out of a 396/496 to the serial in of an SL-40 or SL-30 and it puts all the frequencies (ATIS, Ground, Tower, Approach, Departure, etc.) of the current or destination airport in the standby list to scroll thru. Or you can just highlight any frequency on the 396/496 and press Enter and it goes to the standby on the SL-40/30. Very handy. Example, flying close to an airport, you hit Nearest, scroll to the airport, Enter, Up (to the frequency box), Enter on the 396 and it transfers to the standby on the SL-40. Then press Monitor and voila, you are listening to the traffic on the airport below. Never had to look up the freq.
Click to expand...

Yeah, this is one the neatest features of the SL-40 that I don't believe (correct me if I'm wrong) the A-210 has. You can just hit the 'recall' button on the SL-40, which will show you the airport identifier that you're going to OR the one you're at...it's intelligent that way. Then you turn the small knob to scroll through the frequencies which are labeled nicely. From here you can hit the monitor function to immediately monitor that frequency and not change the primary frequency, or you can simply hit the swap button to make it the primary frequency. I'm driving this with my 496 and I know that other GPS units behave differently (for example I have to send the frequencies manually on my GX-50).

I think this method is way faster than going through the GPS and going to com tab and looking for the frequency, although of course this remains an option.
 
ICOM A210

I have the ia210 and it works great for me. the dual frequency monitoring works great.Visibility is great .Intercom is great.and.........the price is great.
Thanks john:)
 
I have an Icom and like it. It is my preferred radio over the Garmin 250XL that is also in my panel. The reception sounds better and it has a stronger transmitter. The weakness are the little tires that it has over the tuning knobs which rot, crack and fall off in two seasons. My plane has been hangered since finished and when parked overnight always gets a cover installed. The knobs are set for the next set of rubber to be installed any day since I can fell the splits now when tuning the radio. If you order the ICOM, order several of those tires and seal them up real good and keep them in your glovebox.
 
The Garmin units are great but I like the cost factor of the ICOM.

A couple of other data points to consider...

The Garmin units all have a 5 watt transmitter (if I remember correctly).
The A200 (and probably the A210 but I don't know for sure) has an 8 watt transmitter. Have you ever been at a very busy controlled airport where everybody is stepping on top of everyone else's transmissions and you can't get a word in edge wise? The guy with the most transmit power is the one who gets answered by the tower, the other guy has to try again. More power is also good for long distance.

Another point is the great customer/repair service turnaround that Icom has.
I know someone who damaged the transmission output section of his radio (his fault, ant. connection problem). They had it repaired and on the way back to him in about three days
 
pay no attention to whether the transmitter is 5 watts or 8 watts. It makes no difference other than making more heat and drawing more power. You would not be able to tell the difference between the two.
 
210 review

Pierre...
I installed a new 210 in my soon to fly 9A. I have found it to work well in ground testing, and I like the display legibility. What I don't like are the squelch adjustments that must be accessed through the setup menu. Liked the 200 front panel squelch better. It is a bit like my cellphone...does a bunch of stuff I don't need to do, and I find it a bit complex to set up. That being said, I don't really have enough time on it to really give it a review in that respect. What I do like about it was the ease of connecting and balancing the aux. audio input levels from my IPOD and Dynons, and Val INS422, without an auxilliary gain bus of any kind. Audio level outputs are a breeze to adjust. Also, Icom has a superb reputation for reliability, and service if ever needed. One of my best friends is an FCC licensed transmitter tech, and says from a quality standpoint, they can't be beat. He says the 200 is one of the best aviation tranceivers ever built, and a real bargain. I flew a 200 for a couple of years, and it was a pleasure to use.
Also.... My friend Jan Scearce (CFI) will be training with you next Thursday, I understand. He is taking my new 9A through phase 1 testing, and will be transition training me when testing is over. Major Scearce is really looking forward to meeting and flying with you. He's a hoot, you'll like him.

All the best Pierre!!
Chris
 
I stand corrected...

Brantel said:
The SL30 & 40 are both 8watt, some of the GPS coms are rated at 5watt minimum.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the clarification. I should remember that since I have installed a 1/2 dozen or so in different airplanes. I now remember that it is the King KY97 and the King 135 series (based on the 97 I think) that are only 5 watts.

Norman CYYJ said:
pay no attention to whether the transmitter is 5 watts or 8 watts. It makes no difference other than making more heat and drawing more power. You would not be able to tell the difference between the two.
Click to expand...

Norm, I respectfully, but strongly disagree.
There are situations that the difference is very apparent.
My first RV had a King KX-155 which is rated at 10 watts.
I agree that you would not be able to tell much difference comparing it to a radio rated at 8 watts, but you would be able to tell a big difference compared to one only rated at 5 watts.
 
The difference between 5 watts and 8 watts is very little. If you want to double the range of your transmitter then you would have to square the power output. If you change radios from one model or type to another with more power with the same antenna feedline and the both receivers have the same sensitivity and noise reduction factors and squelch threshold and transmitter modulation method and levels I would argue that you or anyone on the other end could tell the difference. The kx155 is also a top end GA radio and it is not a fair comparison.
 
Can the -200/210 sync with the 396/496 like the SL30/40? Does anyone know if the AvMap EKP IV syncs with either?
 
cnpeters said:
Can the -200/210 sync with the 396/496 like the SL30/40? Does anyone know if the AvMap EKP IV syncs with either?
Click to expand...
The 200 cannot but I'm not sure about the 210.

BTW the 200 is a grea radio and I have spoken clearly to pillots over 100 miles away.
 
Pwr out, antennas, placement, etc...

Who "wins" on a busy frequency is primarily a function of pwr output, antenna placement and type, orientation/distance to other station, antenna radiation pattern, and transmit audio characteristics. On the latter, I realize this is AM, but usually the station with more highs in the xmt audio will be heard better thru the distortion of two competing AM signals. I hear this effect all the time at the day job. All other factors being equal, 5 vs 8 watts also matters.

But back to the 1st post. Many radios do not have protection for antenna mismatch. Val? Broken cable, connector, antenna, = broken radio eventually. Ditto for older transponders.

Besides experimental airplanes, I have another affliction, ham radio.
 
So Now What?

Pierre,

So now that you have all this input I'm curious which way you're going to go.

Two more points. I don't believe the A210 is TSO'd, at least it wasn't when first released. Maybe it is now.

Also the price of the Garmin SL40 is not twice as much as the A210.

A210 $1195, SL40 $1595. Per Pacific Coast Avionics. I believe Gulf Coast Avionics is a sister company and has the same prices.

Let us know your decision.

Ted
 
SL40...

Ted RV8 said:
Pierre,

So now that you have all this input I'm curious which way you're going to go.

Let us know your decision.

Ted
Click to expand...

.......it is. A great avionics guy on this site called me and told me that in order to remove the Icom from the panel, you first remove the front cover plate....then you unplug a ribbon tape...and so on. That is not my idea of a good installation, so the SL40 it is.

Besides, you really get what you pay for,

Thanks much everybody,
 
Icom A210 / Flight Com 403 Intercom Interface

I am just finshing up an RV7
Have installed an ICOM A210 radio and a Flight Com 403 Intercom and have wired them per prints.
However I cannot transmit voice .....the carrier tone goes out but not the voice....an avionics shop told me the carrier tone is not being modulated.

So I sent the radio back to Aircraft Spruce/Icom for inspection/repair, got it back (they repaired the ribbon wire) and re-installed....still cannot transmit voice, just the carrier tone.

The radio/intercom receives fine, pilot/co-pilot can talk back and forth just fine.

Has anybody out there had similar problems???
What is the fix??? How do you wire this thing???

[email protected]
 
Dollar Dollar Bill

pierre smith said:
.....since it goes out on me every three months or so...the VAL. I was going to buy an SL40 but a friend says that the Icom A210 is a great, TSO'd radio for half the cost. I want dependability and a rep told me that the Icom is trouble free and very dependable.

What say you guys?

Thanks,
Click to expand...
If you have the cash SL40, if not Icom 210. Cost is not trivial but I do think you get what you pay for. Also I think (?) both will take remote tuning if you have a GPS that will do that; however I recall reading the steps to remote tune the Icom are cumbersome to transfer than just dial it manually, ie more effort than it's worth (from one PIREP I read). I think Garmin's remote tune feature is more streamlined (ie works well). Check all the Icom 210 threads, Pros and Cons and folks who have used both. They both have 8W TX power, plenty. Any more is just a drain on your electrical system.

You are aware of the Icom 210's dual watch is a poor mans version of the Garmin SL40's true two reciver design, which allow you to listen to two channels simultaneously. The Icom 210 scans between two freqs (one at a time). On face value that seems like a good compromise, unless it locks onto the secondary channel, keeping you from hearing the primary channel, like ATC, which you need to hear for example. To Icom's credit they apparently updated to software so the secondary "dual watched" freq doesn't over-ride the primary freq. This was after half a year or so of pilots complaining. Still the dual watch is not close to the SL40's dual reciver, but you have to pay for it.

I have the A200 Icom and have no complaints, basic, solid, receive, transmit with memory features and flip-flop. Unlike the Val you can see both active and standby freqs. The 210 is a better radio then the 200 feature wise for sure, but there is a price difference. The A200 can sometimes be had at the bargain price of $700 (normally $800). The A210 is about $1,200 or $400 more. The A200 lets you TALKIE on the radio, what more do you want? If you are not going to use remote tune (which some say is a pain) and don't care about the scan feature (which some say they don't get any use out of), you could save $400. The A210 has a better display.
 
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Pins??

pburf said:
I am just finshing up an RV7
Have installed an ICOM A210 radio and a Flight Com 403 Intercom and have wired them per prints.
However I cannot transmit voice .....the carrier tone goes out but not the voice....an avionics shop told me the carrier tone is not being modulated.

So I sent the radio back to Aircraft Spruce/Icom for inspection/repair, got it back (they repaired the ribbon wire) and re-installed....still cannot transmit voice, just the carrier tone.

The radio/intercom receives fine, pilot/co-pilot can talk back and forth just fine.

Has anybody out there had similar problems???
What is the fix??? How do you wire this thing???


[email protected]
Click to expand...

Are you sure that the pins in the back are in fact making contact with the radio when you slide it into the tray? We had a similar problem and couldn't transmit from the pilot's side....turned out to be a pin not making contact until we closed the female up a bit,

Regards,
 
I would go with the SL40. Had an SL30 installed in a Bonanza and it was rock solid for the time I owned the airplane. I used this radio for 5 years until the Bo was sold. Most any product produced by UPSAT is a gem. The MX20 left a little to be desired (crash prone), but the replacement GMX-200 is a beauty.
 
Remote tuning of Icom 210 works great - mostly

Hi George,
I find the remote tuning for destination airport freqs on the Icom 210 easy, fast and convenient to use. The freqs show with an identifer such as TWR, etc to make it easy to select from with just a few keystrokes.

What doesnt work:
If you bring up the airport database on a Garmin 396/496 and select a freq on the Garmin and press the enter key on the Garmin, the freq wont transfer to the Icom 210 like it would to a Garmin SL-30/40..

However, the automatic download of the freqs from the Garmin to the Icom works so well I dont use this feature anyway.

Dual scan is almost unusable to me in the original firmware. Will be sending mine in soon to get it upgraded to the new firmware.
 
Thanks for the correction

rvator51 said:
Hi George,
I find the remote tuning for destination airport freqs on the Icom 210 easy, fast and convenient to use. The freqs show with an identifer such as TWR, etc to make it easy to select from with just a few keystrokes.

What doesnt work:
If you bring up the airport database on a Garmin 396/496 and select a freq on the Garmin and press the enter key on the Garmin, the freq wont transfer to the Icom 210 like it would to a Garmin SL-30/40..

However, the automatic download of the freqs from the Garmin to the Icom works so well I dont use this feature anyway.

Dual scan is almost unusable to me in the original firmware. Will be sending mine in soon to get it upgraded to the new firmware.
Click to expand...
THANKS for the info, again I credit a web post for the complaint, not personal experience. Good to know it works well. I was hoping some one would chime in. Cheers
 
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