When I asked about XCOM, it was not because of price. In fact in the US
the cost is on par with a Becker and definitely well above a Microair.
I simply wanted to know if others out there use them and found them to
be reliable.

As for ATR radios, the ATR720C in my Ka6E has worked well. The ATR57 in
my Ka6BR has not been reliable. Now the ATR57 in a friend's Elfe
appears to work well for him. My 57 was an early version and they may
be more problematic. Whenever I get the 57 back from the shop, I will
need to decide whether to keep it or trade it out. I do want to keep
the small package with a circular, panel mount.

...... Neal

Bruce wrote:

ATR600 and ATR833 have a remote head capability.

I understand that if cheap is the requirement then the Microair or XCom
may be worth looking at. Based on what I saw - the eagerness of nearly
every microair owner I met to move their radio on at an attractive
price, caveat emptor...

Personally I find it impossible to remember what all the frequencies are
- given there are 9 of them I program in what I need if I move to a
different location. We have relatively uncomplicated airspace so I have
never felt a need for even the full 9.

Neal Pfeiffer wrote:

Does anyone have any experience with the newer XCOM radio? I had a
demo at Oshkosh and it looked logical with reasonable performance and
power draw. It also has a repeater head, which would be nice for my
two-seater. Given all of the comments in this thread, its obvious
that reliablity is a key concern.

- from someone with an unnamed brand radio in for repair for that last
11 months, but that's another story -

..... Neal

Dixie Sierra wrote:

I've decided to give up on my Avionic Dittel and buy new. It's been a
good radio and has given many years of service, but I'd like some new
functionality.

Functionality is really at the heart of my dilemna. I've kind of
narrowed things down to Becker vs Microair (I've ruled out Walter
Dittel on price... everyone has a limit independent of reason). There
seems to be a broad consensus that the Becker is a more reliable
choice. However, the Microair seems to offer a number of superior
features.

1) Remote operation from a stick mounted toggle.
2) Dual scan beteween the active and standby freqs with the ability to
transmit on the active. (Becker also offers a scan option but it seems
to be cover far more freqs and the freqs covered can only be changed
by turning the radio off and on at least twice. Dual scan seems very
nice when flying XC in the vicinity of an active airport.)
3 Alpha descriptions of saved freqs.
4) Variable squelch (Becker has this, but not without turning the
radio off and on at least twice to make changes.)


So here I am... The Microair costs less and has "better" features. But
who cares if it doesn't work?

What to do? What to do?.. I think I'll fly with the handheld!

What am I missing? I'm sure there are many cosniderations that escape
me.

Doug