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Avidyne IFD 440

RFazio

RFazio

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I’m am currently using a Garmin GSN 430 in my 6. I am IFR current and plan on staying that way. I fly RNAV approaches almost exclusively. I am considering changing out my Garmin 430 for an Avidyne IFD 440. It is an easy swap out, supposedly. I figured i’d ask here of those who have done it. Any surprises? What is the cost of updates and who do you get them from. Thanks in advance for any advice.
 
RFazio said:
I’m am currently using a Garmin GSN 430 in my 6. I am IFR current and plan on staying that way. I fly RNAV approaches almost exclusively. I am considering changing out my Garmin 430 for an Avidyne IFD 440. It is an easy swap out, supposedly. I figured i’d ask here of those who have done it. Any surprises? What is the cost of updates and who do you get them from. Thanks in advance for any advice.
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I’ll be interested to learn about this since a 440 is likely in my future at some point (hopefully many years away…).

Garmin’s refusal to produce a slide-in replacement for the 430 has long mystified me.
 
It was an easy swap-out from 430 to IFD 440. It took me about half an hour, and I am absolutely no avionics expert. I took photos of every configuration screen in the 430 before doing the switch. Avidyne provides you with a step-by-step comparison template on how to enter those configuration values to match the 430 that came out. Mine won’t do a standby radio channel (monitor two frequencies) because of my legacy Garmin audio panel, which I knew was going to be the case. Map updates are through Jeppeson, so expensive.

The IFD 440 really simplified entering destinations and approaches. It also functions as a flight management system which was likewise very useful. It interfaces perfectly with my legacy Garmin GPS antenna and manages the ARINC429 auto pilot interface exactly the way the Garmin did. My EFIS is aa couple of AFS 5400s and there were no issues with the displays on that.

One very valuable feature is the IFD 100 app. The viewing panel on the IFD 440 is small but with your Jeppesen account you can use that app separately to get the entire IFD440 screen to display all the data full-screen on your iPad. I bought an iPad Mini for that purpose alone simply to avoid having to switch wifi networks in flight. Another plus is the remote keypad which makes entering data much easier in a bumpy cockpit. I also like the seamless upload of flight plans from Foreflight.

In short, I found the swap to be as easy as predicted and completely functional. The IFD 440 is a vast improvement on the Garmin 430 and brings much greater functionality and many additional features. I dont know what they cost these days...I bought mine from Stein literally the day they announced a big price increase back during COVID when they couldn't get chips.
 
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Just to add on the installation - If you have the legacy 430 and do not have a WAAS antenna, you will need to replace your current antenna with a WAAS antenna which tend to be pricey as well. While you're at it, might as well ensure your antenna coax cable is RG-400, if not, probably should replace that too.
 
I haven’t swapped one personally, but I have an IFD 550 in my Beech. A friend told me the avionics shop only had to wire one additional thing to get it working, so he said it should be quick and relatively inexpensive.

I can’t say enough good things about the Avidyne units. They are extremely capable. In my experience they’re more capable than Garmin in a lot of ways, but they can be a bit tricky when you start mixing them with other avionics. I had no issues getting mine to work with G5s.

Avidyne also has an iPad trainer that I highly recommend using. It’s also worth watching a few videos on how to get ADS-B weather and traffic to display properly on the unit. You’ll need a receiver that supports the Capstone protocol, like a Stratus 3 or 4, or a Stratux.

Like others have mentioned, the IFD100 app is excellent. It gives you almost full functionality on your iPad as if you had a second IFD in the cockpit. The only limitation is that you can’t switch comm frequencies from the app, but you can still load them easily.

As I say all of this, I have a Garmin GPS 175 in the mail to make my -8 IFR. I’m looking forward to being able to punch through clouds, but I will miss my Avidyne dearly
 
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