Car Radio in the Panel

[Timothy]

I am about to have a complete avionics refit, including a Garmin GMA 340 audio panel which is capable of accepting audio in.

At the moment I tend to listen to Radio 4 on the ADF (well, on 200kHz, on the grounds that ADFs don't go down to 198kHz, but that is good enough.)

I would prefer to listen to either FM/RDS or DAB, and have a choice of station, and wonder, therefore, if it is reasonable to fit a car radio to the panel and link it into the audio in.

My avionics supplier is a bit dubious. Above all he thinks that reception will be poor, whereas I can't see why it would be anything except excellent.

He is also concerned that the fit will have to be authorised by the CAA.

The aircraft is 12v.

Does anyone have any relevant experience?

W

[ed69]

hi mate,

ummm without sounding too nanny-stat-ish u sure thats a wise idea, i mean one thing dumping cash into ur car sound system is one thing, but ensuring u have some top quality sound from DAB stations at 3000feet while transiting a zone wouldnt be at the top of my priority list-but hey like the idea any how!:ok: (bear in mind this is mearly my opinion lol-i simply need as much concentration as poss!)

all the best..
Ed

[tacpot]

How about taking a portable FM radio up in the air with you and trying it out. I'm sure Dixons sell one for less than a fiver, if you don't have one already.

[andrewc]

Take a look as guest at the Cirrus Pilots forum,
www.cirruspilots.org, there are a number of threads
relating to adding MP3 players, CD players, radios
etc into the Garmin 327 panel.

In the UK with our complex airspace this is something
best listened to by the passengers but in the US it
is quite common to have the pilots listening to an audio
feed on top of a monitored circuit, set up so the audio
drops out when the monitored circuit is active,

-- Andrew

[Andrew M]

Did anyone watch "A Plane is Born" on Discovery Channel (UK) ?

I'm the Europa they built had a CD player (installed in panel), and when the PTT button was pressed, or a transmission was received, the CD was paused (therefore muting the sound) and then the CD was un-paused after the transmission.

Did anyone else see this programme ?

[down&out]

I've rented a PA-32 that had a CD radio in the "glove" box. Would plug it into the cigar lighter & audio panel when wanted, and could switch it so just the pax heard it, or pax & crew with auto fade as described. I assume the fact it wasn’t permanently connected got round the CAA requirements, but can’t be sure. I don't recall that the radio could be tuned (due to no aerial), but did try out the CD & it seemed to work out OK.

As Andrew said, flying in the SE was to busy to use it, but once in quieter areas it was interesting to have a go and nice for the pax.

[Timothy]

Ed

Yes, a little nanny state-ish for me. Allow me to decide under what circumstances it would be appropriate to listen to the radio. Going through Brum zone during the morning rush might require my ears' undivided attention, but flying to the south of France in Class G or E, COM tuned to 121.5, flying in a straight line for 3 hours can be a little like sensory deprivation, somewhat akin to driving the length of the M1/M6 at five in the morning.

Tacpot

Yes, I could do that, but I don't know how much information I get from an experiment with a non-RDS set with its aerial inside the Faraday cage, when looking at fitting RDS or DAB with an external aerial. I can imagine that the results from the plumbed in set could be better or worse, unpredictably. But it's certainly worth a go.

Andrewc

Ta, I'll have a look.

Andrew M

Yes, it is this very functionality of the audio panel that I am planning to exploit.

down&out

Yes, I am happy about the CD/MP3/Cassette side of things, but I want to listen to the Today Program at 7.30am, not Sting or Mahler ;)

break break

It does seem a little odd that listening to the radio is seen as the norm when driving, but a strange quirk when flying. I spend a lot of my flying life with very little COM contact. I think that this is partly because much of my flying on business is early morning out, followed by early evening home, mostly "talking" to LARS who are nearly entirely silent, or crossing France where nobody wants to talk to a VFR transit, or crossing the North Sea, where there is no-one to talk to anyway.

Let's not assume we all fly the same routes, eh!?

W

[Genghis the Engineer]

There a set of CAA requirements for entertainment systems in cockpits. I've not read them for a while, but in essence they say...

- There must be no entertainment display screen visible to aircrew

- The system must be designed so that it silences itself when transmitting or receiving on RT.

- Whatever's fitted must be crashworthy and be shown not to interfere with anything else on the aircraft.


The first is blindingly obvious, the second is fairly easy to achieve. The latter is going to be reasonably straightforward to approve on a permit aircraft such a Europa, but for a CofA aircraft the method of proof will be so burdensome that you'll wish you'd never tried.

G

[FlyingForFun]

My Europa has a socket into which you can plug any audio equipment - so I could take with a portable CD player, or portable radio, or whatever. So I'm sure it wouldn't be a problem.

Personally, I've never used it, though - just doesn't seem right. I'm always far busier when flying than I am when driving (and when I get busy in the car I usually turn the radio down, or off, anyway). Of course that's my personal preference - if you want to listen to a car radio, and it's appropriate in the airspace you're flying in and with your workload, then go for it! :ok:

FFF
--------------

[Timothy]

There must be no entertainment display screen visible to aircrew Damn! The 530 and SkyForce Tracker III will have to go then ;)

W

[Andrew M]

of course, with a radio you must take into account of channel interferance.

With the LW band you don't have a problem, but if you plan to use MW remember - you might get either 1) two signals coming from the same transmitter, causing poor reception 2) two seperate radio stations that share the same frequency going over the top of each other.

Hell, I have a large MW antenna and I suffer this problem - on the ground. At night I get French and German services drowning out weak UK stations, so this problem may increase in the air, as your reception range would be further than a radio in the house/car.

Also, if your buying DAB - if you fly outwithin the UK a lot then you may need a radio with a special tuner. Most standard DAB sets sold in the UK receive different frequencies as compared to DAB systems in Europe.

[A and C]

These people should sort out your problem and with an STC on the way even the CAA wont make to much trouble !.

www.ps-engineering.com

[Flash0710]

Just got the Ipod.

With the new garmin and a lead im going to loop that Yak to massive attack..........

Flying deserves good music not that 70s porn rubbish we normally hear on aviation videos.......:ok:

[Hairyplane]

Yep, a good idea if you feel trapped in a pretty boring conversation on a long flight with the Mehme Sahib (you know - vacuum cleaners, cooking and stuff), or indeed if you end up flying alone on those long legs.

I suppose the younger Pilots amongst us could really turn up the wick on the headbanging modern boxxocks they listen to - and maybe synch the panel, nav and strobe lights in too - whilst us old gits would simply bang our heads on the revolving mirror ball...

Seriously though (yes - HP is capable of being serious occasionaly) if your aircraft is on a CofA - forget it. I can well understand Cirrus owners wanting one next to their big telly but then - they aint on the G Reg are they?

I have failed to even get my EDM 700 with Fuel Flow certified -it sits there flashing 'fill?' at me, mainly because the transducer gizmo that fits in the fuel line is still in its cardboard box...

Any ideas?

Anyway - inflight entertainment - I have sampled this. My mate with his Mooney put some very soothing music on over the North Sea (non-permanent CD installation). I think he did it in anticipation of my shock horror at the ice build up on the wings and the thought of the cold grey February oggin below.

I don't think Handels Water Music was the wisest choice......!

Have a good weekend everybody!

HP

[BEagle]

Bored in the back of a Vickers SuperFunBus, I once tuned my wide band receiver to the UHF TV channels and listened to the news..... Did the same in the USA - and played the wailing noises of Radio Riyadh at prayer time over the PA to amuse our passengers once! A mate of mine once tuned his Hunter F(GA) Mk 9's ADF to Radio Three when it was one Medium Wave - then went rocketing at Pembrey whilst listening to 'Ride of the Valkyries'......

But it's probably Not A Good Thing to turn on anything with a local oscillator which might interfere with the reception of VHF communications or navigation frequencies.