The LX 10K was developed to replace the older generation of LX vario-navigation systems — the LX 4000, LX 5000, LX 7000 and LX 7007 pro IGC — with the same user logic and the same operating simplicity, so that a club fleet can be modernised without retraining anybody for a weekend. This article is the practical retrofit guide: what carries over, what is genuinely new behind the panel, how to choose the indicator, and what to check on the first flight.
What the system is
The LX 10K always ships in pair with a vario indicator. The main unit occupies an 80 mm cutout; the indicator occupies a 57 or 80 mm one. Between them runs a single CAN bus.
Headline features:
- The biggest digital display ever fitted to an 80 mm navigation instrument, transflective, so it becomes more readable in direct sunlight
- Full moving-map navigation with 3D terrain, airspace and task support
- IGC-approved flight recorder with ENL for combustion engines
- Internal backup battery keeping system and recorder alive for 3–5 hours
- WiFi and Bluetooth for declarations, flight downloads and database updates
- SD card, CAN, FLARM and user ports on the back
What carries over from your old LX
The cutouts. The 80 mm main unit and the vario indicator drop into the openings your old LX system already occupies. In the overwhelming majority of installations there is no cutting and no drilling, and the job is done in well under half an hour of panel time.
The user logic. The knob-and-button flow follows the classic LX systems. A pilot who flew an LX 5000 finds the LX 10K familiar on the first flight — which is the entire reason the interface was kept deliberately conservative.
Your habits. MacCready, bugs, ballast, task handling and final glide behave the way LX pilots expect them to behave.
What is new behind the panel
| New | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| One CAN bus between the units | Replaces the older inter-unit wiring. Both units are fed and connected over the same cable. |
| GPS antenna | An SMA connector on the back, and an antenna that needs a clear view upward, away from carbon. |
| Bluetooth/WiFi antenna | Second SMA connector. Do not coil it behind a metal panel. |
| SD card | Databases, flights and updates. |
| Backup battery | Internal, keeps the recorder alive through a loss of ship power. |
| Harness | Your dealer supplies the right harness for your airframe. Old-system looms are not reused as-is. |
That last row is the one to plan around. Harness details depend on the aircraft and on which legacy system is coming out, and they belong in a conversation with your dealer rather than in a web page.
Choosing the vario indicator
The analog 57 is the default and ships with the system unless you specify otherwise.
| Analog 57 (default) | Digital 57 | Digital 80 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Screen | 1.8″ + needle | 2.5″ | 3.5″ |
| Size | 136 × 83 × 52 mm | 146 × 106 × 52 mm | 190 × 110 × 52 mm |
| Weight | 218 g | 215 g | 279 g |
| Own backup battery | No | Yes | Yes |
| Power | 150 mA @ 12 V | 150 mA @ 12 V | 200 mA @ 12 V |
How to choose:
- Analog 57 — the classic needle over an LCD window, zero-lag mechanical feel, powered and fed through one CAN cable. The choice for pilots who fly by the needle and for club gliders where familiarity wins.
- Digital 57 — a fully digital dial in the same 57 mm cutout, with its own backup battery and the same transflective readability as the main unit.
- Digital 80 — the big one. A 3.5″ transflective dial readable from anywhere in the cockpit, and the natural choice if the panel already has an 80 mm hole free.
Note the depth: all three are 52 mm deep before connectors. In a tight panel, measure before you order.
In the box
LX 10K main unit · vario indicator (analog 57 by default) · 16 GB micro SD card · OAT probe with 2.5 mm jack · audio speaker with 3.5 mm jack · inputs interface with RJ12 connector · 40 cm CAN-BUS cable · Bluetooth/WiFi antenna with SMA connector · GPS antenna with SMA connector.
Ports on the back
RJ12 SD CARD · RJ45 CAN · RJ12 INPUTS · RJ12 USER · RJ12 FLARM · 2.5 mm jack OAT · 3.5 mm jack AUDIO · 12 V power cable with connector · SMA Bluetooth/WiFi antenna connector · SMA GPS antenna connector.
Two rules that prevent most support calls: the RJ45 CAN port is not an Ethernet port, and the three RJ12 ports are not interchangeable even though they look identical.
Planning the retrofit
- Photograph the existing panel front and back before anything comes out. It is the cheapest documentation you will ever produce.
- Confirm the cutouts — 80 mm for the main unit, 57 or 80 mm for the indicator.
- Measure the depth available, including connectors and a service loop.
- Order the harness with the system, telling the dealer which legacy system is coming out and what aircraft it is in.
- Plan the antennas: where the GPS antenna will sit with a clear view of the sky, and where the Bluetooth/WiFi antenna can lie uncoiled.
- Plan the CAN run between the two units, with a terminator at each physical end of the bus.
- Check the supply: fuse each run at the battery end, sized for the wire.
- Keep the old system until the new one has flown. Nobody has ever regretted this.
Data: what to bring across
There is no automatic transfer from a legacy system. Plan on rebuilding, which is quick over WiFi or an SD card:
- Turnpoint and airport databases — current files, not the ones your old system has carried since 2011.
- Airspace — the international AIRAC cycle republishes every 28 days. Load a current file and get into the habit.
- Tasks — recreate them, or import from your usual planning software.
- Polar and reference mass for the glider, plus your usual ballast handling.
- Pilot data — name, glider, competition ID and registration, which end up in the header of every IGC file.
First flight checks
- GPS acquires and holds a fix with the canopy closed
- Vario indicator agrees with the main unit
- Audio at a usable level, in both vario and speed-command modes
- FLARM traffic appears on the display, if a FLARM is connected
- Airspace drawn, with warning classes filtered to what you actually need
- Wind calculation settles after a full circle
- OAT plausible
- Supply voltage steady during a radio transmit — measure at the instrument, not at the battery
- After landing: the IGC file downloads and validates
Frequently asked
Do I need to cut a new panel opening? No. The main unit uses the 80 mm cutout and the vario indicator a 57 or 80 mm one — installed in less than half an hour.
Is a vario indicator included? Yes. The LX 10K always ships in pair with one; the analog 57 is the default, and digital 57 and 80 mm indicators are available instead.
Does it record IGC flights? Yes — an IGC-approved recorder with ENL for combustion engines, kept alive by the internal backup battery for 3–5 hours.
Which old systems does it replace? LX 4000, LX 5000, LX 7000 and LX 7007 pro IGC.
Will club pilots need retraining? Minutes, not weekends. That was the design brief.
Where to go next
- Manuals and firmware: the LX download center, under the LX 10K device page.
- Comparison with Era and the NAVIA platform: the compare page on lxnavigation.com.
- Theory behind what the system computes: the LX Academy articles on the polar and MacCready, final glide, airspace and the CAN bus.