I am new to the forum and flying. I have been a private pilot for about 16 months, and I fly a '75 Cessna 172. It's pretty "bare bones" in the way of modern electronics. It has the original VOR, the comms system only has one headset jack with a separate mic, and needs an ADS-B upgrade. Also when using the VOR I pick up local radio stations which seems like it shouldn't happen.... I'm using a portable intercom and push-to-talk cable, but I want to clean up the cockpit and get rid off all the unnecessary cables. I would like to update the comms, add ADS-B, and replace the radio to get rid of the problem with the VOR. I don't need anything super-sophisticated. There seems to be so many different options out there it is a little overwhelming to a newbie on a budget. I am looking for suggestions on a simple, clean way to do these upgrades as inexpensively as possible. Thoughts?
umm... well not exactly the right place for this advice. As an airplane owner, however, I will tell you nothing is cheap in aviation, and you'll only get back about 50% of what you put in avionics (if you are lucky). Finding a good A&P that won't rape you on the install and maintenance. Stratus ESG is a good $4000-$5000 install for 2020 US ADS-B out. $3000+tax for hardware and $2000+ for install. As for radios, gps, etc. Good luck. This new 375 seems nice but it's Garmin so they will find ways to bleed every penny from your bank account. https://buy.garmin.com/en-US/US/p/577174 GDL 82 ADSB for existing transponders https://buy.garmin.com/en-US/US/p/540911 You are likely better off selling it and getting an experimental or a plane that has the avionics you want.
James, As a non-tech savvy person I have no idea if there's a better way to reach you than replying to a thread that no one else cares about but it struck me as a good option and you strike me as the guy who knows the most around here. I want to build an ADSBx receiver from scratch and can't find good a to z instructions here. I'm a pilot and and enthusiast but not a computer expert. I can run a Garmin 540 no problem but the code on the "getting started" page is already way over my head and that's the "getting started" page... Would you be willing to point me to or publish a real how to page? Start to finish, for dummies. Buy this antenna, this SD card, upload this software, push this button.. That basic. I live in an area with limited coverage and would love to contribute but honestly I'm baffled. Thanks.
I have a page with a small selection of required hardware: https://github.com/wiedehopf/adsb-wiki/wiki/Useful-items-for-purchase I've linked the appropriate coax cable for each antenna, but you still should check that the connectors match up. James may have different hardware recommendations, but until he gets around to it you can take a look at the different antenna/dongle options. The ADSB exchange sd-card image is being worked on right now but should be available again soon. If you are planning to feed, this is also a good read to know what kind of range you can expect with optimal gear and an antenna location overlooking closeby houses and trees: https://discussions.flightaware.com/t/what-is-the-maximum-range-i-can-get/17248
If you want concrete products, one needs to know how much money you want to spend. Mostly in regards to the antenna and cable, there can be quite big differences. With a short 2m cable and the ebay antenna, you are looking at $20 for that. And FA antenna plus cable will run you $60 to $80 depending on cable length. Are you gonna place the RPi in the attic and have the antenna on the roof? An alternative is placing both the antenna and the RPi in the attic. Depending on roof material and insulation, that can make reception very difficult though. You can't really go wrong with the Flightaware ProStick Plus or the rtl-sdr v3. External LNAs are not necessary, but the uputronics one is easy to use and can significantly increase range if that is important for you. Let me know what price range you are looking for, how you want to install the antenna and which country you are in, then i can give you a list of links to buy. Even without the ADSBX image being available, i can easily guide you through using the piaware sd-card image and installing the adsb exchange feed script.
https://www.adsbexchange.com/downloads/adsbx-v1.28vlan.zip Here is the PI image for 1.28 ... 1.29 has a few fixes and supports more stable 978 with the ADSBx antenna. The upgrade is prettty easy - so if you get 1.28 working then we can upgrade it later. https://store.adsbexchange.com/products/5-5dbi-1090-978-antenna I'm also almost done with the dual 1090/978 case that has cooling fan. If you are in the US, I can build it and send it to you - if you want to pay for the costs.
Thank you! I live in an area with mountains and no other receivers so I do plan to feed and I do want to achieve maximum range. I have a tower that used to provide backhaul for microwave internet (no longer in use) that is about 30 feet tall and attaches to my shop - I thought I'd put an antenna on there... If that's not practical or there's a better solution I'll do otherwise. I can keep the coax relatively short by running from the tower into the attic (aprox 15 feet).
perfect. sub 50Ft will work nice with good quality coax like LMR-400. You should be 250 miles of range, if unblocked by mountains etc with antenna on a pole.
https://discussions.flightaware.com/t/what-is-the-maximum-range-i-can-get/17248 Putting the antenna up on the tower works great, just be aware that you can't look through the mountains, you can create an outline following the thread i linked. I'll just make a list and maybe James will approve or comment on it as you want a shopping list: The ADSB-X antenna mentioned by James: https://store.adsbexchange.com/products/5-5dbi-1090-978-antenna coax cable options (both 25 feet): https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07RG7NPLD https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07P4JCRNG With such a quite elaborate setup, i wouldn't cut costs now and go with the uputronics LNA and rtl-sdr v3 dongle: https://store.uputronics.com/index.php?route=product/product&path=59&product_id=50 https://www.amazon.com/RTL-SDR-Blog-RTL2832U-Software-Defined/dp/B0129EBDS2 A small jumper coax to connect the dongle and LNA: https://www.amazon.com/DZS-Elec-Connecting-Coaxial-Extender/dp/B072FS4WMK Raspberry Pi: https://www.amazon.com/CanaKit-Raspberry-Premium-Clear-Supply/dp/B07BC7BMHY sd-card: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XX29S9Q This should be all that you need. The LNA is just connected with the USB cable to the Pi to supply it with power. The coax cable connections goes as follows: Antenna --- 25 ft coax --- LNA --- jumper --- rtl-sdr v3 dongle As an alternative that is a little simpler and cheaper, use the FlightAware ProStick+ instead of LNA+rtl-sdr v3: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01M7REJJW Or would you choose a different setup, @James ?
LNA + RTL-SDR or FA Bluestick https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01M7REJJW both very good choices. If you are US based ... then might as well do 978 and 1090 ... with ADSBx antenna So get FA orange stick (no built in filter) AND FA Bluestick https://www.amazon.com/FlightAware-Pro-Stick-ADS-B-Receiver/dp/B01D1ZAP3C/ Custom cases for ADSBx only fits FA sticks, and LNA needs special setup on ADSBx to enable bias-t ... nothing too hard... 2 SDR case ... https://imgur.com/a/qQ1KNUm
Do you mean two antennas? Or would you use a splitter? Both options are quite the additional hassle / cost. Not to mention setting up the software for that.
978 only US .. tho UK is testing .. 26" ADSBx antenna -> 25 ft coax -> SMA Y splitter -> 2 FA SDR Roof mounted.
To be fair it works so well that I have to turn the gain down to balance out the close and far traffic.
Near theoretical for me. I have large power lines to the SE, so they seem to block the faint signals past Tucson.
