LXNAV S80 Pilot Reports?

Would anyone care to comment on their experience with the LXNAV S80 vario? Pro's, con's, likes, dislikes, does it perform per manual specs, etc? On paper it looks like a very nice instrument. Thanks for any feedback.

-Mark

I installed an S8 (same as S80 only 57mm) last Friday and flew a first flight on Saturday. I really like the display. (I have previously flown with its sister V8 in another glider.)

There are many important settings to make. Paul Remde at Cumulus Soaring did the initial / basic setup. I then set more settings to my preferences. I found a couple I missed so will fix them before next flight.

I have the S8 connected to a FLARM and Oudie 2. I will use the S8 as the primary vario, as a FLARM display, and as backup navigation. I probably won't use the task function much as I really like the Oudie2 for that purpose.

Just my $0.02. I hope this helps.

Lou

I am flying with a new S80 for the first time this season. It is a replacement for a Cambridge 302.
My set-up is the S80, Oudie 2 with SeeYou Mobile, Flarm, and transponder.
I have the S80 vario set-up with 100% electronic compensation with my mechanical Winters on the Total Energy Probe.
I was a bit overwhelmed by all the settings that need to be made to configure the unit the way that you like. I am finding that I need to fly with it to decide on what features I use and what information boxes I want to display.
Having said all that, I really enjoy the S80 and am getting comfortable with how to change settings while flying.
The vario seems very good and is less confused by gusts than the C302.
The display is clear and bright in full sunlight.
All the sounds are fully customizable.
The Thermal Assist is very similar to SeeYou Mobile.
The Flarm display and alarms are clear.
The artificial horizon is FANTASTIC. On all the time. Cannot be tumbled. I spent part of yesterday thermalling using just the artificial horizon and it was fairly easy to stay fully coordinated and keep the speed under perfect control.
I am 100% satisfied at this point.

On Monday, July 27, 2015 at 12:16:43 PM UTC-4, wrote:
Would anyone care to comment on their experience with the LXNAV S80 vario? Pro's, con's, likes, dislikes, does it perform per manual specs, etc? On paper it looks like a very nice instrument. Thanks for any feedback.

-Mark

I have the S80 with about 20 flights or so since installing it. My last glider I had the V7 now S7. The S80 is has many more abilities than the already good S7. My S80 is connected to a Power Flarm Core for GPS position and traffic and to an Oudie on the PDA side. I've been switching between XCSoar, Top Hat, and SeeYou Mobile to figure out which software plays best with all the functions.

The display is awesome. There are virtually no sunlight conditions you can't see the display in unless the sun is directly reflected off of the glass into your eyes. (rare if ever) It performs very well as a vario using GPS to auto switch between vario and STF modes. Most of the functions discussed in the manual work well even when interfacing between the Oudie and the various software. The Flarm interface is great with a display that is easier to see than the dedicated Butterfly rectangle display I also use. The alert volumes are also much louder if desired. I like the ability to set a way point to fly to, like the home airport or task finish on the way point page and keep the full task on the task page. Give you a quick reference to see if you can make it back home. There are tons of options some of which I still am not using yet. I just bought all the hardware to utilize the spoiler and gear warning system in the S80. Once I get that installed I will report back. I also plan to add the remote stick.

Some minor nits. I've done two firmware upgrades and both times there were multiple settings that changed after completing the updates. There are so many options available it is easy to miss a setting that may have changed. This last time the auto switch mode from Vario to STF changed from the GPS method I had previously selected. After figuring out what was going on it was an easy fix but flying and fiddling with the menus at the same time is a pain and too much heads down time. I also had some display glitches with Flarm traffic that is displayed having weird lines associated with them. I sent in a copy of the files and they may have fixed it in this last update but I haven't flown with a bunch of Flarm traffic since then. There are many items that the S80 and Oudie will communicate back and forth like MC settings, bugs, etc. It will not however xfill the active way point or task info between the two which would make this an almost perfect "low cost" system. I have been told this capability is on the works however it may be a while.

Overall I'm very happy with it.

On Monday, July 27, 2015 at 2:08:57 PM UTC-4, wrote:

The artificial horizon is FANTASTIC. On all the time. Cannot be tumbled. I spent part of yesterday thermalling using just the artificial horizon and it was fairly easy to stay fully coordinated and keep the speed under perfect control.


I don't have the artificial horizon option yet but plan to at some point. Does it have a 14 day lock out for US contests like the other LXNav systems have? The manual wasn't clear on that point.

On Monday, July 27, 2015 at 11:24:51 AM UTC-7, Greg Delp wrote:
On Monday, July 27, 2015 at 2:08:57 PM UTC-4, wrote:

The artificial horizon is FANTASTIC. On all the time. Cannot be tumbled. I spent part of yesterday thermalling using just the artificial horizon and it was fairly easy to stay fully coordinated and keep the speed under perfect control.


I don't have the artificial horizon option yet but plan to at some point. Does it have a 14 day lock out for US contests like the other LXNav systems have? The manual wasn't clear on that point.

According to the SSA website, the only AHRS with a lockout approved for US competition use is the Air Avionics (Butterfly). Perhaps the list is out of date?

I saw an S80 for the first time a couple of weeks ago, seems like a nice instrument. With the same capability, it is about the same price as the Butterfly. The most obvious differences to me (I have flown with the Butterfly for 2 years now) is that the S80 has a real Flarm screen but lacks the inertial instantaneous wind and Vertical Airmass Movement of the Butterfly. Other capabilities seem similar, if differently implemented. And I guess you don't get an IGC flight recorder as you do in the Butterfly?

On Monday, July 27, 2015 at 2:15:36 PM UTC-7, jfitch wrote:
On Monday, July 27, 2015 at 11:24:51 AM UTC-7, Greg Delp wrote:
On Monday, July 27, 2015 at 2:08:57 PM UTC-4, wrote:

The artificial horizon is FANTASTIC. On all the time. Cannot be tumbled. I spent part of yesterday thermalling using just the artificial horizon and it was fairly easy to stay fully coordinated and keep the speed under perfect control.


I don't have the artificial horizon option yet but plan to at some point. Does it have a 14 day lock out for US contests like the other LXNav systems have? The manual wasn't clear on that point.

According to the SSA website, the only AHRS with a lockout approved for US competition use is the Air Avionics (Butterfly). Perhaps the list is out of date?

I saw an S80 for the first time a couple of weeks ago, seems like a nice instrument. With the same capability, it is about the same price as the Butterfly. The most obvious differences to me (I have flown with the Butterfly for 2 years now) is that the S80 has a real Flarm screen but lacks the inertial instantaneous wind and Vertical Airmass Movement of the Butterfly. Other capabilities seem similar, if differently implemented. And I guess you don't get an IGC flight recorder as you do in the Butterfly?

Am I missing a sale on Butterfly hardware? From what I can find getting set up with the base level Butterfly vario is USD $1,400 for the sensor, $1,400 for the display and $160 for a data conversion port to connect to an Oudie.

The S80 comes in at just over $1,500 for the whole unit. That's a pretty big price difference. I have to admit to lusting after the Butterfly's instantaneous wind data, but it comes at too steep a price.

I got an S7 (V7) a couple years ago and still find it to be a great instrument.

Cheers,
Craig
7Q

On Monday, July 27, 2015 at 3:38:42 PM UTC-7, Craig Funston wrote:
On Monday, July 27, 2015 at 2:15:36 PM UTC-7, jfitch wrote:
On Monday, July 27, 2015 at 11:24:51 AM UTC-7, Greg Delp wrote:
On Monday, July 27, 2015 at 2:08:57 PM UTC-4, wrote:

The artificial horizon is FANTASTIC. On all the time. Cannot be tumbled. I spent part of yesterday thermalling using just the artificial horizon and it was fairly easy to stay fully coordinated and keep the speed under perfect control.


I don't have the artificial horizon option yet but plan to at some point. Does it have a 14 day lock out for US contests like the other LXNav systems have? The manual wasn't clear on that point.

According to the SSA website, the only AHRS with a lockout approved for US competition use is the Air Avionics (Butterfly). Perhaps the list is out of date?

I saw an S80 for the first time a couple of weeks ago, seems like a nice instrument. With the same capability, it is about the same price as the Butterfly. The most obvious differences to me (I have flown with the Butterfly for 2 years now) is that the S80 has a real Flarm screen but lacks the inertial instantaneous wind and Vertical Airmass Movement of the Butterfly. Other capabilities seem similar, if differently implemented. And I guess you don't get an IGC flight recorder as you do in the Butterfly?

Am I missing a sale on Butterfly hardware? From what I can find getting set up with the base level Butterfly vario is USD $1,400 for the sensor, $1,400 for the display and $160 for a data conversion port to connect to an Oudie.

The S80 comes in at just over $1,500 for the whole unit. That's a pretty big price difference. I have to admit to lusting after the Butterfly's instantaneous wind data, but it comes at too steep a price.

I got an S7 (V7) a couple years ago and still find it to be a great instrument.

Cheers,
Craig
7Q

I just saw that the AHRS for the S80 adds over $900 to the price so that makes them closer.

C.

On Monday, July 27, 2015 at 3:40:34 PM UTC-7, Craig Funston wrote:
On Monday, July 27, 2015 at 3:38:42 PM UTC-7, Craig Funston wrote:
On Monday, July 27, 2015 at 2:15:36 PM UTC-7, jfitch wrote:
On Monday, July 27, 2015 at 11:24:51 AM UTC-7, Greg Delp wrote:
On Monday, July 27, 2015 at 2:08:57 PM UTC-4, wrote:

The artificial horizon is FANTASTIC. On all the time. Cannot be tumbled. I spent part of yesterday thermalling using just the artificial horizon and it was fairly easy to stay fully coordinated and keep the speed under perfect control.


I don't have the artificial horizon option yet but plan to at some point. Does it have a 14 day lock out for US contests like the other LXNav systems have? The manual wasn't clear on that point.

According to the SSA website, the only AHRS with a lockout approved for US competition use is the Air Avionics (Butterfly). Perhaps the list is out of date?

I saw an S80 for the first time a couple of weeks ago, seems like a nice instrument. With the same capability, it is about the same price as the Butterfly. The most obvious differences to me (I have flown with the Butterfly for 2 years now) is that the S80 has a real Flarm screen but lacks the inertial instantaneous wind and Vertical Airmass Movement of the Butterfly.. Other capabilities seem similar, if differently implemented. And I guess you don't get an IGC flight recorder as you do in the Butterfly?

Am I missing a sale on Butterfly hardware? From what I can find getting set up with the base level Butterfly vario is USD $1,400 for the sensor, $1,400 for the display and $160 for a data conversion port to connect to an Oudie.

The S80 comes in at just over $1,500 for the whole unit. That's a pretty big price difference. I have to admit to lusting after the Butterfly's instantaneous wind data, but it comes at too steep a price.

I got an S7 (V7) a couple years ago and still find it to be a great instrument.

Cheers,
Craig
7Q

I just saw that the AHRS for the S80 adds over $900 to the price so that makes them closer.

C.

Actually to be exact and get approximately the same features.

S80 1520
AHRS 912
Nano 395
Cables 22
Total $2849

AirAvionics
Display S 1399
ISU 1399
Total $2798

They are both fine systems.

Richard
www.craggyaero.com

I just completed a flying day with the S80.
I set multiple tasks while flying. It was very easy, even in a bumpy cockpit.
Changing tasks during flight is simple.
A screen pops up as soon as you have final glide to the finish...I like that.
When you finish a task a screen pops up congratulating you for completion...I like that.
The Flarm display is very clear for other Flarm aircraft.
The confusion arises when a non-Flarm, but transponder equiped aircraft comes close because it can't give you a direction for traffic. Big Red circle of dots with an alarm screaming at you and you don't know where to look. At least I was looking.

Happy S80 owner.