Good day everyone,

Does anyone have any experience, either good or bad with these portable PCAS systems. Looking for input on both the PCAS XRX ($1495) as well as the PCAS MRX ($549). Any input positive or negetive would be helpfull.


Cheers


Macdon221

Due in part to its small size, the MRX is very popular with glider pilots. (I've been using a Proxalert R5 for about 8 years, so don't own a MRX).

Feedback I've seen is that the MRX is reliable and reasonably accurate and free from false alerts. The is an issue with interferance, breaking squelch, on the radio when powering the MRX from ship's power. This is not an issue when operating the MRX from internal batteries. You might want to check with the mfg on this to see if they've resolved this.

I wouldn't bother with getting the more expensive PCAS that gives direction as well, unless you fly in very busy areas and without flight following. My thinking is that the PCAS will be an interim device, replaced by ADS-B at some point.

bumper

I have both the MRX and XRX. I got the MRX while getting my certificate in the bay area and got the XRX two years later when I was flying my plane back from Georgia. For the trip back, I bought a Control Vision system at the Palm Springs AOPA, the XRX, and a WX receiver under the impression that I would be able to show weather and traffic on its little display screen. (9 months later I was able to more often than not do that. After several months of fussing, the equipment sits on a workbench and I have stopped the subscriptions.)

Aviation Consumer had a report a few months ago and my experience matches their conclusions that the MRX is more sensitive than the XRX. (Yes I have the latest XRX firmware and yes I have it mounted and the proper type of plane configured.)

The MRX seems to be useful in terms of warning me I might have missed something, look harder: in the case of the XRX, if I haven't already seen the XRX traffic, it tends to be more "Yikes, how the .... did I miss that"?

I try to use lithium AA batteries in the MRX and I am careful to make sure batteries are well seated.

-Dick