Dynon SkyView HDX OR Garmin G3X Touch

easik

easik

Pre-takeoff checklist
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easik
This is probably the century old question, but I'm asking again.
Some of you who follow me may already know that I'm building a Sling Tsi and I'm currently discussing with my team on choosing the right IFR panel for the airplane.

My thoughts:
- Most of my hours are behind Garmin avionics (G1000) and I'm very much comfortable with Garmin and their products.
- I've spent 1-2 hours behind the Dynon Skyview and I think it's a superb panel.

Cost and ease of installation will play a factor in choosing the right panel. Since I've asked around, what I generally hear is that Dynon is lighter and easier to install compared to Garmin. There are also several biased opinions from die hard fans of either brands, But no one has really given me a real world scenario on how these work, particularly the "autopilot system" and on "IFR Flights".
If you have any experience with Garmin and or Dynon, can you please tell me what your experience has been in:
- installation
- functionality
- customer service
- overall cost to value.

Thanks.
 
Drop me an email to jesse at saintaviation dot com and I’ll give you my number to talk for a few minutes. I have installed and flown many of both. I think I can answer your questions intelligently.
 
Jesse Saint said:
Drop me an email to jesse at saintaviation dot com and I’ll give you my number to talk for a few minutes. I have installed and flown many of both. I think I can answer your questions intelligently.
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Just sent you an email Jesse. Thanks.
 
Garmin customer service is excellent. One of my G3X units had a screen issue. I called expecting them to ask for more documentation. They heard my description, issued me an RMA and shipped me a new one right away.
 
Cluemeister said:
Garmin customer service is excellent. One of my G3X units had a screen issue. I called expecting them to ask for more documentation. They heard my description, issued me an RMA and shipped me a new one right away.
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Or they are trying to keep quiet a known defect. :devil:
 
asicer said:
Or they are trying to keep quiet a known defect. :devil:
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Yeah, how evil of them to fix a problem quickly and quietly without hassle for the customer.
 
Love my G3X. It has remote comm, remote ads-b txp, and 2 axis autopilot. Installation is all about pinning connectors and there are lots of pins to complete. Customer service is top notch. Updating is easy. My FlyGarmin account costs $149 per year and the G3X prompts me to do updates. If I built another airplane tomorrow I'd use a G3X again. With GP running on my iPhone I have everything I want or need. 83A9C740-6B71-4BDB-A91F-EFA4024AA74F.jpeg
 
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Salty said:
Yeah, how evil of them to fix a problem quickly and quietly without hassle for the customer.
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Actually, I meant that smiley as "devil's advocate".
 
Stewartb said:
Love my G3X. It has remote comm, remote ads-b txp, and 2 axis autopilot. Installation is all about pinning connectors and there are lots of pins to complete. Customer service is top notch. Updating is easy. My FlyGarmin account costs $149 per year and the G3X prompts me to do updates. If I built another airplane tomorrow I'd use a G3X again. With GP running on my iPhone I have everything I want or need. View attachment 78476
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Looks like you fly a bushplane. How often do you use your autopilot? I am building a carbon cub and need to buy my G3X soon and am on the fence about this.
 
Not much yet since I've been without an engine for 11 months. I mostly want a level hold so running it through the touch screen is adequate. It flies so I can look around, eat a sandwich, etc. If you expect to use it for more than that I suggest you get a dedicated control box like a 307.
 
I recently had the HDX installed and it’s amazing. It’s a great value. It plays well with other brands. Support is great. Free nav data. $99/year charts and plates. So many great features.
 
flyingcheesehead said:
You just had it installed, and you already know support is great? :eek:
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I know support is great because right before the install I had a bunch of questions about the AOA feature for certified aircraft and Dynon was quick to respond and very helpful. It has been working flawlessly since installed.
 
FlyingMonkey said:
I know support is great because right before the install I had a bunch of questions about the AOA feature for certified aircraft and Dynon was quick to respond and very helpful. It has been working flawlessly since installed.
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Phew! :)
 
I have to second the Dynon HDX, and their tech support. Just finished helping a friend install the complete system in his Bo, and Dynon always answered the phone promptly and were knowledgeable and willing to walk us through various configurations, etc.

The Dynon equipment is easy to install, presents a world of information and is highly configurable. It also plays with other avionics nicely. I will be doing my plane this winter and did a detailed comparison to the GX3. There really isn't any comparison, either in features or flexibility. The Dynon also comes in at much less cost.

And if that isn't enough of a reason, I stayed away from Garmin ADS-B equipment specifically because they want to lock you into the Garmin Pilot app, and I will always reject this kind of forced loyalty, no matter the brand. The GX3 suite appears to be doing a lot of the same.
 
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Has anyone had the opportunity to compare the Dynon AP with the Garmin? Cost, ease of installation and use?
 
There is a lot of discussion of cost on this and other forums. They are equally easy to use and functionaly very similar. I have not installed any certified GRmin auto pilots, but have installed many experimental units. They are quite similar in installation as well.
 
JohnAJohnson said:
And if that isn't enough of a reason, I stayed away from Garmin ADS-B equipment specifically because they want to lock you into the Garmin Pilot app, and I will always reject this kind of forced loyalty, no matter the brand. The GX3 suite appears to be doing a lot of the same.
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You are very mistaken here. Garmin's ADS-B equipment is fully compatible with foreflight and the other popular flight apps. The opposite is true, Garmin Pilot does not work with non-Garmin ADS-B solutions. If you made your avionics decisions because you don't want to be locked into the Garmin Pilot app, you screwed up.
 
I’ve used G3X, G1000.. SkyView 10 and SkyvView 10 HDX and found that reliability, when it comes to Auto Pilot and the use of the above, the most unreliable is the SV HDX with the SV / Dynon AP.

Problems that I’ve encountered are AP rendered useless and Dynon is blaming the acft / manufacturer for the problem, and vice versa, it’s next to impossible to find any one that knows them and to work on them, it’s difficult to see the screens from the side due to reflection, the system reported 2 Squawk codes, entering data in touch mode is difficult, you touch the screen / button it shows a touch / green LED On, and data does not get entered..

None of the above-mentioned are impossible to fix but at this time they still exist and can make things difficult for the owner / user.
 
I don’t much care for Garmins desire to own the avionics business, especially the strong arming they tried to do on uAvionix. I do have to give credit where credit is due however, they do give good customer and technical service.
 
MBDiagMan said:
I don’t much care for Garmins desire to own the avionics business, especially the strong arming they tried to do on uAvionix. I do have to give credit where credit is due however, they do give good customer and technical service.
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I agree, they know they have such huge sway in the sector. It's like the Apple of the avionics world- their products work great with one another but less so with anyone elses. Dynon, TruTrak, Trig, Avidyne, Aspen etc are all working in conjunction with each other to a certain extent to help improve the integration between them. Yes there are still improvements to be made but its a start. Garmin definitely charge a premium for their products and I'm not denying that they work really well- the G3X is a great EFIS system. Personally I haven't had the greatest experience trying to get tech info out of Garmin, their default response seems to refer you to an authorised dealer.
The Dynon HDX system is equally as good in my opinion (Especially in the experimental world when you don't have to install the D10A as a backup- the g3x/G5 integration is a lot slicker admittedly) and the Dynon AP is pretty powerful- especially with the advanced FD panel and connected to the avidyne GPS navigator.
We've had pretty good success with the Dynon HDX so far- more affordable all round than the comparable G3X.
 
Calum Brown said:
I agree, they know they have such huge sway in the sector. It's like the Apple of the avionics world- their products work great with one another but less so with anyone elses. Dynon, TruTrak, Trig, Avidyne, Aspen etc are all working in conjunction with each other to a certain extent to help improve the integration between them. Yes there are still improvements to be made but its a start. Garmin definitely charge a premium for their products and I'm not denying that they work really well- the G3X is a great EFIS system. Personally I haven't had the greatest experience trying to get tech info out of Garmin, their default response seems to refer you to an authorised dealer.
The Dynon HDX system is equally as good in my opinion (Especially in the experimental world when you don't have to install the D10A as a backup- the g3x/G5 integration is a lot slicker admittedly) and the Dynon AP is pretty powerful- especially with the advanced FD panel and connected to the avidyne GPS navigator.
We've had pretty good success with the Dynon HDX so far- more affordable all round than the comparable G3X.
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I just wish Dynon would accelerate their autopilot STC program, especially to include the PA-28 line as that seems to be a glaring issue IMHO. My panel upgrade/repair dilemmas would be a lot easier if that STC existed, or was at least on the road map.
 
ISU_Radar said:
I just wish Dynon would accelerate their autopilot STC program, especially to include the PA-28 line as that seems to be a glaring issue IMHO. My panel upgrade/repair dilemmas would be a lot easier if that STC existed, or was at least on the road map.
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Agreed, the PA28/32 line would be a great addition to their autopilot STC. Installing autopilots in them is a lot less hassle than other aircraft- the TruTrak goes in really nicely in the pipers. I know they're working on Bonanzas and Mooneys at the moment. The piper autopilot is coming but in all likelihood I would say next year (2021)
In a piper it would be pretty straightforward to add the autopilot at a later date but then it does leave you without an autopilot. The more expensive way is to do the HDX and the TruTrak but that would work pretty nicely- not quite as nice as having a full dynon setup- but would do all the major functions and still be cheaper than a g3x or even a G5/GFC500 autopilot
 
Ravioli said:
Been flying Dynon products (legacy) for 5 years. The support is great. And yes, I know you were kidding.
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Question for ya.....

If you decided that you wanted all new stuff for your RV, and had the money to spare to acquire and install, what would would we see in your airplane once you're done?
 
AggieMike88 said:
Question for ya.....

If you decided that you wanted all new stuff for your RV, and had the money to spare to acquire and install, what would would we see in your airplane once you're done?
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Seems I've had the money to buy my plane and redo the panel. Before and after pictures previously posted.

What's your point?
 
I think the PA-28/32 line is very high on the Dynon list. It seems they are not given nearly as much of a rubber stamp as Garmin is. They have had the A36 flying for months now and still don’t have approval. Also, Garmin is a much bigger company with more engineering staff and more FAA history for easier approval. I still don’t see it as a level playing field as the FAA is concerned.

The Seneca is very close to approval. The Bonanza line expansion is very close behind that. The Cessna 182 (180/182/185 hopefully) is close behind that. Mooney is next as they have acquired one. In my talks with them, I strongly stressed the importance of the PA-28/32 line, as a single bracket design should cover the whole line.
 
@MarkH - GRT has some really good stuff for EXP. IF I were to re-equip they'd be on my list, but I'd probably go Advanced or Dynon.

Fortunately avionics goes so late in the build you've got time for more improvement and options to come to market. Best to follow a forum for what you're building.
 
I have Advanced Flight Systems (owned by Dynon now) 5600 Touch in my plane and am very happy with it.
 
For experimental planes the GRT and AFS systems have been very popular. I no longer install GRT for a number of reasons. I really like the AFS equipment.
 
GRT looks like its a tad above MGL.. I've only seen one aircraft fitted with a GRT system in it (RV7) he had bought the plane with it in but had troubles with the avionics since he had it- he's now considering ripping it all out and replacing with Dynon. It's definitely worth the little extra
 
There is one guy there who knows his stuff for tech support, but he is not there all day. It’s sometimes a day or two to get tech support questions answered. They have a ton of different models, each with different quirky issues, like high and low serial ports and things like that. Some have arinc built in, some have it external. Same for Gps. I have been flying glass since it was new, and for the life of me I couldn’t figure out how to enter a flight plan in a GrT.
 
Jesse Saint said:
There is one guy there who knows his stuff for tech support, but he is not there all day. It’s sometimes a day or two to get tech support questions answered. They have a ton of different models, each with different quirky issues, like high and low serial ports and things like that. Some have arinc built in, some have it external. Same for Gps. I have been flying glass since it was new, and for the life of me I couldn’t figure out how to enter a flight plan in a GrT.
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Thanks, I don't have any time behind glass, but the price and feature set looked promising. I guess that explains why Dynon and Garmin are so much more popular, in spite of the higher price.
 
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