Informed decisions
Selecting, installing,troubleshooting, programing and maintaining a modern suite of all glass electronic instruments is one of the more complicated and expensive tasks for the average homebuilder since there is no standard template to work from. There are a number of well represented avionic system equipment manufacturers to choose from for the experimental market. The quality of the hardware, software, functionality, documentation, support, upgradability and cost are quite varied. When considering cost one has to include the monthly or annual fees for databases, tech support, out of warranty repair, etc. Those suppliers that also produce TSO’d equipment are more likely to support the design and construction of their products with software that meets DO 178 and electronic hardware that meets DO254 standards and documentation that meets industry standards. For a day/night VFR aircraft you have a lot of viable choices other than Garmin.
Other areas to take a good look at are switches and circuit breakers. I would recommend taking a look at the NKK switch - particularly the S series. There are TE manufactured circuit breakers (approved by Cessna) from their industrial range of products that are reasonably priced and very acceptable. In my view there is no good reason to install an electronic circuit breaker system in a single engine aircraft - based on functionality and cost considerations alone, before considering, integrity and reliability. Of course if you just want to throw money at the problem………………………..
KT