Inspired by other posts on the forum I decided to put a Zaon XRX into my Carbon Cub. By way of background I have been flying a Cirrus SR22 since 2003 with a Skywatch 497, an active collision avoidance system. The Skywatch active systems work very well in the Cirrus rarely missing threat traffic around the Cirrus. When I first started flying the Carbon Cub I found my self startled at times to see traffic nearby without any warnings. You get really spoiled having a TCAS watching out for you. In the later model SR22's the traffic is actually called out for by clock position just like a controller when it is a threat.
I decided to install the Zaon XRX myself since my Carbon Cub is an E-LSA. I ordered the PCAS XRX directly from the Zaon website since their price seemed to be the lowest. I also ordered a XRX Bare Wire Power/Data Cable. More about that below.
The installation was not hard though I am concerned with the placement of the unit. The PCAS XRX has a built in magnetometer. The magnetometer is used to keep traffic oriented on display devices when the aircraft turns between successive "paints" of the target. Unfortunately all the good mounting locations for the PCAS XRX are right near steel structural tubes which throw off the magnetometer. I finally placed the unit in the best place to see traffic but the targets are jumping around when I turn because the magnetometer is seeing interference from the structure.
I mounted the PCAS XRX using industrial strength Velcro and one tie wrap for extra insurance. The unit is so light the industrial strength Velcro easily holds the unit securely in place. I have see other installations that use a metal tray to hold the unit in place which is problematic since the PCAS XRX would be shielded from transponder replies in any direction where the metal was in the way.
The Power/Data Cable is simply a set of connectors on one end with bare wire +/- and a RS232 data out wire to carry traffic information to the GDU375. The GDU 375 has a 50 pin connector in the back. I used Pin 29 which is RS232 #3 IN for the GDU375. The only hitch is that the Zaon kit did not include any pins to hook up the data wire to the GDU375. So I took the power/data cable over to the folks at Aircraft Electronic Supply who attached a pin to my data wire that fit the GDU375. By the way AES is a Zaon dealer. They will sell you the PCAS XRX and the power/data cable ready to go. I found this out after ordering the Zaon.
I hooked up the PCAS XRX +12v wire to the GDU375 5 amp circuit breaker and the ground wire to the common ground buss. The data cable pin simply snaps into the GDU375 50 pin connector. No tool needed. That is it for the wiring.
Set up involves putting the PCS XRX into the "GARMIN" mode and setting up the GDU375 serial com port to see "TIS" data "IN" on "RS-232 Port 3". Setup for the PCS XRX is covered in the Zaon manual and setup for the Garmin GDU375 is covered in the Garmin installation manual.
Once everything is setup you can watch the traffic come alive on the Garmin GDU375. When traffic gets close the target is painted on the moving map with vector and altitude information. In addition when the traffic is a threat a box will pop up showing the proximity to the aircraft and amazingly the Garmin lady who lives inside the GDU375 calls out "Traffic, Traffic" through the intercom system.
I am finding the Zaon PCS XRX works just about as well as the $22,000 active Skywatch box in and around the airport. The PCS XRX is a passive traffic system so transponders in your area need to be interrogated by ATC radar or by another airplane with an active TCAS system for the Zaon PCS XRX to see the traffic. So if you are operating somewhere outside of radar coverage and outside the range of other aircraft with active TCAS the Zaon will not see traffic. So many high flying aircraft have active TCAS these days it is rare to be out of coverage.
The only downside so far is that the Zaon PCS XRX will not turn on automatically when you hit the avionics master switch, so you must remember to turn it on at startup. The XRX will shut down automatically when you turn off the master switch.