Looking to upgrade the fit in my Robin DR400/180 not very keen on Garmin kit does anyone have any experience of the King Kns770 which I am presuming is .833 compatible not easy to deduce from the online brochure.Current kit Is pure 1980s Narco 2x 760 navcom ,Dme,A/C txpdr. Which have served me very well but time to move on.I ditched the ADF two years ago and manage very well with Skydemon.I keep a full SEP/IR current but only operate IFR in class G if circumstances require.I never plan to operate prolonged IFR intentionally.Regards Stampe
Shame you don’t want a Garmin fit – we’ve just certified a G500 EFIS with GTN750/650 options. It’s fully IFR-cleared including LPV. It had to be a stand-alone STC as the Robin isn’t on Garmin’s FAA AML.
I was a very big fan of King avionics until I had to get very nasty with them over the fact they would not fix a KX165A, because they said it was BER and gave me a delivery time on a new unit that was light years in the future.
Following me jumping up and down with promises of getting this appalling customer service into the flying press they managed to fix the box at reasonable cost.
Support of the KLN89B has been dropped a few years back because the screens ( the biggest problem ) started failing and became unavailable.
So with my BRNAV unit unsupported and the support for the KX165A being lacklustre and despite liking the way the King kit works the only way to get into the next generation of Avionic kit is to go for the Garmin.
There will be too few KNS770’s in the marketplace for any reliable product support and due to the few that they might sell the product support may well get pulled early ( like the KLN89B ).
I very much regret saying this as another manufacturer on the block might keep Garmin honest but the way King abandoned their dominant position in the GA Avionic market in the early 90’s when the Honeywell bean counters showed up gives me no confidence in them to support a product long term, the shear volume of Garmin boxes in service assures a living in product support for someone into the foreseeable future.
My advice would be the Garmin GTN, I’m currently going that way with my Robin DR400 as I won’t gamble on ending up with unsupported equipment for the second time.
Thanks for that gentlemen.I,ve used KNS430 occasionally since they came out.My experience is that after a month or so of absence I forget how to operate the kit and manage on direct to and basic com/vor selection.I don,t want to invest large sums of money on such unintuitive equipment.I fly middle aged Boeings for a living and am bemused by how complex GA avionics are compared to the necessarily idiot proof kit fitted in modern airliners.I would share your concerns about the longevity of support for alternative products.Ideally simplicity of operation and a large clear navigation display? Stampe
There is no such product – KNS770.
There is a KSN770 but it has not seen much market acceptance as far as anyone can tell. Do a search here on KSN770 and there are a number of threads on it.
Also Bendix/King is just an empty shell of a company. As far as anybody can tell, everybody inside with any tech expertise left years ago. They are reselling others’ products. Sadly Garmin is what most people are installing.
Shame you don’t want a Garmin fit – we’ve just certified a G500 EFIS with GTN750/650 options. It’s fully IFR-cleared including LPV. It had to be a stand-alone STC as the Robin isn’t on Garmin’s FAA AML.
What is the installed price, on average, @wigglyamp?
I too come from the background of the Boeing and found the King equipments architecture very like that in the Boeing, having not yet got the GTN fitted to my DR400 I have yet to get the thing into the air but when using the simulator the GTN seems much more intuitive that earlier Garmin kit.
Perhaps investment in the GTN simulator for your iPad might be the best way to decide if the GTN units are for you.
What is the installed price, on average, @wigglyamp?
There are so many options available. However, a G500 with a single GTN650 and standby instruments will probably be around £30K (plus the dreaded VAT).
This is the crucial question do I spend £40k+ upgrading the current fit which has worked relatively trouble free for 34 years with a complex modern system which will most probably last only 10 years by current trends.The aircraft is in lovely condition flies beautifully recently recovered wings and tail with a fully documented history.It should as a wooden airframe be good out to 70 years old.Value at present £35 – 40k at best good modern avionics might add 10k at best.Or I can decide just a VFR fit, put in one .833 nav/com a mode S txpdr (£5k)and leave the dme .In reality the Ipad mini with skydemon provides true capability at low cost and easily upgradeable! regards Stampe
Why do you think it will last 10 years?
Peter seems to me that modern manufacturers don,t look to support rapidly changing technology as much as in the past.I was flying a warrior yesterday fitted with one of the earliest KN430 at least ten years old if I remember correctly I,m told its no longer repairable.Happy to be told otherwise! Stampe
