BendixKing’s venerable KX155 remains a gold-plated standard for navcomms, but it’s long overdue for replacement. At Sun ‘n Fun 2018, TKM announced its MX155 digital navcomm, a pin-for-pin replacement for the KX155 that owners can slide right into the tray. TKM’s Vic Casebolt told AVweb this week in this video that the MX155 has been in development for three years and will be ready to ship in May. Price has not been fixed, but Casebolt cited a target of around $4,000.
The Scottsdale, Arizona-based company is well known for its line of drop-in replacements for geriatric Narcos and BendixKing KX170s. Casebolt said the MX155 continues the tradition, and takes advantage of 21st-century digital technology that’s software based and easily upgraded. It has a high-visibility alphanumeric touchscreen, an easy-to-use menu system, and active and standby flip-flop displays.
The MX155 navcomm is designed to be mechanically and electrically interchangeable with both the KX155 and KX165, popular radios that are still widely in use. It’s available in both 14- and 28-volt versions and has 8.33 kHz or 25 kHz channel spacing selectivity. Since it uses the existing tray, an owner can slide the radio into the mount in a few minutes.
