Hi,
We are looking at upgrading one of the radios to 8.33KHz in our Archer III. We’ve received a quote to upgrade to KX165a (5750$ each + work).
Reading the previous threads suggest that the Garmin GNC255 might be a better choice, but does anyone have an idea how much extra work it takes? (since it’s not a slide-in replacement). We are looking at switching COM 1 only atm.
Best regards,
Martin
A GNC255 will be about a days work, and always more economical then the KX-165A even when you include 8 hours of labour to do the refit. Be sure to get the A model, as the GNC-255 without letter doesn’t do 8,33 kHz!
The installation of a GTN or GNS is quite some more work, but can be interesting depending on your operation.
Thanks for your replies.
I got a new quote of $7495 including the installation for the GNC 255A 10W ($4495). Does it sound like a reasonable price?
I’m not sure that the KX165a is ancient technology, I would like to see the justification for such a statement.
As to the Garmin always being the most economic replacement, I think that depends on the current installation in the aircraft, after all to get 8.33 the 165a might just be a slide in replacement with no other changes, this has to be the lowest labour cost option available.
Having owned two KX165a units for some time they have shown them selfs to be as reliable as most GA Avionic kit and far better than some I could mention, ( but not as good as the reliability shown by the KN62 & 64 I have yet to have one of these fail )
As to the Garmin always being the most economic replacement, I think that depends on the current installation in the aircraft, after all to get 8.33 the 165a might just be a slide in replacement with no other changes, this has to be the lowest labour cost option available
In our quote, the Garmin option is 3000$ cheaper than the KX165a.
The KX165A is a very nice radio, and it is a slide-in replacement for a KX155A (“A”, not the KX155).
Martin
It may well be, it is not the cost of the unit, it is the labour and installation costs that drive the total price, if you have a KX165 installed and are just looking to upgrade to 8.33 fitting a KX165A is the way to go, the other options depend on how much work has to be done at the back of the radio rack.
Peter
That is not necessarily the case, the KX165A is not fitted with an audio amp so normally needs an audio panel to get the RX audio to work properly so slide in replacement of a KX155a with a KX165A in single nav/com installations requires more investigation depending on how the KX155A was interfaced with the aircraft audio system.
So the KX165A will be a slide in replacement for any KX155A/165/155 that are 28v if you have a KX155/165 you will not get the backlighting for the unit without modification of the wiring. The KX155/165A units can also have a remote frequency selection facility enabled if you ( like Peter ) have a compatable GPS.
All that having been said I have Two 8.33 KX165A units for sale (with EASA form 1’s).
The KX165A is a very nice radio, and it is a slide-in replacement for a KX155A (“A”, not the KX155).
Would you prefer it over the Garmin GNC255a?
Never used the GNC255a.
It looks nice on the spec.
Remember that there is another database you will need to subscribe to, to keep its station name feature going (if you want to keep it going).
One point I would check, with any 8.33 radio, is just how easily one can dial both 25kHz and 8.33kHz frequencies. The amount of knob twiddling is a frequent criticism of the GNS boxes. On the KX165A it is easy.
That is not necessarily the case, the KX165A is not fitted with an audio amp so normally needs an audio panel to get the RX audio to work properly so slide in replacement of a KX155a with a KX165A in single nav/com installations requires more investigation depending on how the KX155A was interfaced with the aircraft audio system.
So the KX165A will be a slide in replacement for any KX155A/165/155 that are 28v if you have a KX155/165 you will not get the backlighting for the unit without modification of the wiring. The KX155/165A units can also have a remote frequency selection facility enabled if you ( like Peter ) have a compatable GPS.
This is news to me, but I am no expert. I thought a KX165A was a direct replacement for a KX155A, but any non-A radios require fairly extensive connector rewiring. The 165A contains a KN72 NAV decoder (in effect, not literally) but you don’t need to make use of it. We have done this here before, and the answer is non-trivial for some scenarios.
This
So the KX165A will be a slide in replacement for any KX155A/165/155 that are 28v
is IMHO definitely not correct – the connectors are different on the “A”.
KX165A vs Garmin GNC255A
For the basic task of communication and navigation there is little to choose between the units as they both for fill the basic role.
The Garmin has a few nice to have things in terms of audio selection and interface with Garmin GPS units to select frequencys remotely.
I suspect that the extra functions that the Garmin offers are likely to not be used by most GA pilots and are irrelevant in terms of normal use of the unit.
The Garmin is the best for basic one radio installations as it has an internal intercom system. The KX165A as intended for the dual radio type of insulation an so no intercom was fitted as it was intended for this function to be done by the audio panel.
If I was doing a new clean sheet installation I would probably go for the Garmin, if you have a KIng installation the decision is a lot more complicated and depends on the cost of the changes behind the panel but in this case the KX 165A is likely to be the most economic option.
This is not a simple question and so there are a lot of " if’s & but’s " however it should be said that both these units are reliable and perform the role that they are primarily designed for very well.
