Best Stand alone Vario

On Tuesday, March 3, 2015 at 2:38:37 PM UTC-5, wrote:
Any thoughts on the best stand alone Vario on the market? What is most accurate?

I think you'll have a hard time finding someone with extensive experience with all of the current offerings. Note that performance will be very heavily dependent upon proper installation (e.g. don't share the TE with a mechanical vario, don't share the static port with anything that adds volume or leaks) and configuration.

Accuracy is easy. Filtering is the interesting bit.

Butterfly seems to have the best wind info at the moment based on user reports. We hope to change that before too long.

Evan Ludeman (moonlighting with CNi)

On Tuesday, March 3, 2015 at 2:49:51 PM UTC-5, Tango Eight wrote:
On Tuesday, March 3, 2015 at 2:38:37 PM UTC-5, wrote:
Any thoughts on the best stand alone Vario on the market? What is most accurate?

I think you'll have a hard time finding someone with extensive experience with all of the current offerings. Note that performance will be very heavily dependent upon proper installation (e.g. don't share the TE with a mechanical vario, don't share the static port with anything that adds volume or leaks) and configuration.

Accuracy is easy. Filtering is the interesting bit.

Butterfly seems to have the best wind info at the moment based on user reports. We hope to change that before too long.

Evan Ludeman (moonlighting with CNi)

Evan, is right. It would be very difficult to name the best. I flew with V9 from LX (not stand alone) and CNv. They performed identically, although the User Interface bonus points go to LX. In my new glider I am putting Butterfly and V9 but if I had to choose one it would probably be Butterfly. The only problem with Butterfly is price so if real time wind is not your requirement I would consider CNv or S8/S80.
On another note I would not buy any instrument hoping that a feature shows up later. I made that mistake in the past. It can be frustrating and costly so whatever your criteria is evaluate available instruments based on what they offer now.

Also the last point. Even though I am spending quite a bit of money on new instruments it is not because I think they are so much better. I hope my wife does not read this. I think C302 (used to fly with one) and SN10 have very nice variometers and the new variometers are not hugely better.