Traffic warning devices

[AK]

Does anyone have any experience with one of these devices?

PCAS XRX $1795
PCAS MRX $549

Is there enough value in XRX's ability to show direction?

Last year I flew a plane from NH to PA. I had a Garmin 430 with
traffic. I was at 8,000 feet and about 80 nm west of New York City
when the instrument warned me about a potential collision with a fast
moving aircraft. I had to dive to avoid collision and with my family
on board it was not a good experience. The worst part was that I was
assigned a transponder code and I used flight following. It seems our
ATC is quite broken these days.

Anyway, I am looking for traffic warning device for my glider. If XRX
is worth the price I will buy it, but in a glider I am not sure it
makes a difference, especially while circling. Please share your
experience.

AK

[Darryl Ramm]

Search the archives and you should find quite a few favorable mentions
of the MRX. I'm not sure how practical the XRX would be in a
sailplane. It is relatively large/cumbersome - where would you put it?
has a cooling fan etc. and draws considerably more power than the MRX.
With the MRX warning induced scanning for traffic sees to work well,
false positives are not an issue.

Darryl

On Jan 22, 7:02 pm, AK > wrote:
> Does anyone have any experience with one of these devices?
>
> PCAS XRX $1795
> PCAS MRX $549
>
> Is there enough value in XRX's ability to show direction?
>
> Last year I flew a plane from NH to PA. I had a Garmin 430 with
> traffic. I was at 8,000 feet and about 80 nm west of New York City
> when the instrument warned me about a potential collision with a fast
> moving aircraft. I had to dive to avoid collision and with my family
> on board it was not a good experience. The worst part was that I was
> assigned a transponder code and I used flight following. It seems our
> ATC is quite broken these days.
>
> Anyway, I am looking for traffic warning device for my glider. If XRX
> is worth the price I will buy it, but in a glider I am not sure it
> makes a difference, especially while circling. Please share your
> experience.
>
> AK

[Randy[_2_]]

AK,
I have been using the PCAS MRX for almost 2 years and am really
pleased with this product.
Since I purchased my MRX, I have had to send it back because it had
stopped working (Bad
Filter??). I had it fixed/replace within a weeks time. Two members
have also purchased this item
and have not had any problems.

Randy

N304RS

www.tulsasoaring.com

[[email protected]]

We have installed several MRX devices in gliders, and I have one top
center on my Duo instrument panel. They really work!

Understand they only detect other aircraft with a working transponder,
however these fast movers are the aircraft I am most concerned about.

Many aircraft also have devices to detect other aircraft with
transponders, so my Duo also has a transponder.

Tom Knauff
Knauff & Grove Soaring Supplies
www.eglider.org

[jeplane]

I have been using the MRX for over a year now.
Yes it has been a good equipment to have.
My only gripe however, is about the rate it finds a traffic. There has
been a few times where I saw a target well before the MRX picked it
up. Also, I found the altitude where it shows the traffic not entirely
reliable. But then, it must be because of the target's transponder,
which could differ by a few hundred feet itself, and also the rate of
climb or descent you get while circling.
For example, if the unit tells you that a traffic is 300 feet above
you, you better start scanning +-200 feet from that.
I also used it in airplanes in busy areas like in the Los Angeles
basin and Phoenix airspace, and it is nearly useless, as it picks up
too many targets!...:-)
However, it is largely compensated by the fact that it did pick up
traffics when I had no clue they were there, 98% of the time.


Richard Depinay
Phoenix, AZ

[Andy[_1_]]

On Jan 22, 8:02*pm, AK > wrote:
> Does anyone have any experience with one of these devices?
>
> PCAS XRX $1795
> PCAS MRX $549

I use the MRX in my PA28-180 and in my sailplane. I am pleased with
the performance of the MRX and would not hesitate to recommend it.

The only issue I am aware of with using the MRX in a sailplane is that
it will continuously alarm if you thermal with a transponder equipped
glider. This means you have no protection from other traffic. Zaon
was requested to add intelligent muting capability but says the
processor is not powerful enough to implement that.

I would not consider an XRX for sailplane use. It's too big.

To answer jeplane's comment - I also fly in the Phoenix area (DVT
based) and, with the alerting volume set small, I find it very useful.

Andy

[Mike Schumann]

If you are going to the SSA Convention, join us at 4PM on Wed, 2/13 for a
session on FLARM / ADS-B and Collision Avoidance.

Mike Schumann

"AK" > wrote in message
...
> Does anyone have any experience with one of these devices?
>
> PCAS XRX $1795
> PCAS MRX $549
>
> Is there enough value in XRX's ability to show direction?
>
> Last year I flew a plane from NH to PA. I had a Garmin 430 with
> traffic. I was at 8,000 feet and about 80 nm west of New York City
> when the instrument warned me about a potential collision with a fast
> moving aircraft. I had to dive to avoid collision and with my family
> on board it was not a good experience. The worst part was that I was
> assigned a transponder code and I used flight following. It seems our
> ATC is quite broken these days.
>
> Anyway, I am looking for traffic warning device for my glider. If XRX
> is worth the price I will buy it, but in a glider I am not sure it
> makes a difference, especially while circling. Please share your
> experience.
>
> AK
>



--
Posted via a free Usenet account from http://www.teranews.com

[Vaughn Simon]

"AK" > wrote in message
...
> Does anyone have any experience with one of these devices?
>
> PCAS XRX $1795
> PCAS MRX $549

Thanks for bringing up this subject. I see that they have finally added an
audio output jack/headset cable to the MRX. Without that feature, I considered
the MRX to be useless for any powered aircraft. Now I guess I have to spend my
money.

Vaughn

[Tom Nau]

On Jan 23, 3:51*pm, "Vaughn Simon" >
wrote:
> "AK" > wrote in message
>
> ...
>
> > Does anyone have any experience with one of these devices?
>
> > PCAS XRX $1795
> > PCAS MRX $549
>
> * *Thanks for bringing up this subject. *I see that they have finally added an
> audio output jack/headset cable to the MRX. *Without that feature, I considered
> the MRX to be useless for any powered aircraft. *Now I guess I have to spend my
> money.
>
> Vaughn

I fly a Bonanza with Bose NR headsets and can hear the MRX alerts with
it mounted on the glareshield (without a headset cable).

Tom

[Andy[_1_]]

On Jan 23, 2:51*pm, "Vaughn Simon" >
wrote:
> *I see that they have finally added an
> audio output jack/headset cable to the MRX. *Without that feature, I considered
> the MRX to be useless for any powered aircraft. *

The alarm is easily audible in my PA-28 when wearing my passive DC
13.4S headset. ANR headsets typical have no active cancelling in the
higher fequencies so I think it would also be easily audible wearing
ANRs. Having said that, mine is going in for a firmware update this
week and I decided to pay to add the audio jack in case I need it in
the future. I'm not sure it would be loud enough in a Husky for
example.

Andy

[AK]

Thank you to all who replied.

[Darryl Ramm]

On Jan 23, 1:51 pm, "Vaughn Simon" >
wrote:
> "AK" > wrote in message
>
> ...
>
> > Does anyone have any experience with one of these devices?
>
> > PCAS XRX $1795
> > PCAS MRX $549
>
> Thanks for bringing up this subject. I see that they have finally added an
> audio output jack/headset cable to the MRX. Without that feature, I considered
> the MRX to be useless for any powered aircraft. Now I guess I have to spend my
> money.
>
> Vaughn

They have had this for a year or more I believe. And Zaon will
retrofit existing units with the audio out jack for about $50 and with
pretty fast turnaround (few days plus shipping for mine).

Darryl