SMA PLT LOSES CONTACT WITH APCH CTLR DURING IFR VECTOR FOR AN ILS APCH RESULTING IN DECLARING AN EMER VIA HIS XPONDER AND DSNDING INTO VFR CONDITIONS. HE SUBSEQUENTLY WAS CLRED TO LAND BY TWR LIGHT SIGNAL.

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I WAS RECEIVING RADAR VECTORS TO THE ILS RWY 18R APCH AT MEM. I HAD BEEN CLRED TO DSND TO 2000 FT ON A DOWNWIND LEG AND HAD HAD BRIEF GLIMPSES OF THE GND NOTING THAT I WAS AT THE BOTTOM OF A RAGGED CLOUD DECK. IN REVIEWING THE APCH PLATES; I HAD NOTED THAT THE HIGHEST POINT WAS ABOUT 1500 FT MSL WITH SEVERAL OTHER TWRS TO THE E OF THE APCH. I WAS OPERATING IN RAIN WITH APCH VECTORING ME AROUND SOME OF THE WORST WX; BUT A LINE OF HEAVIER RAIN/TSTMS WAS COMING IN FROM THE W AND WAS VISIBLE ON MY STORM SCOPE. I WAS VECTORED TO A HDG 070 DEGS AND THE APCH CTLR BEGAN ASKING ME TO CONFIRM MY CLRNC. I RESPONDED BUT HE DID NOT SEEM TO HEAR. I RESPONDED TO SEVERAL INQUIRIES FROM ATC AND DETERMINED THAT I HAD LOST RADIO COM. MY RADIO WAS BLINKING. I ALSO HAD NOT RECEIVED THE LOC FOR RWY 18R 109.9. I TRIED THE RADIOS AGAIN AND MADE CONTACT AND RECEIVED A NEW VECTOR OF 110 DEGS FOR A R BASE. AGAIN I LOST RADIO CONTACT. I COULD INTERMITTENTLY HEAR THE CTLR WHO WAS INDICATING I MIGHT HAVE A STUCK MIKE. I UNPLUGGED MY HEADSETS AND THAT OF MY COPLT (A PVT PLT PAX). I TRIED TO USE THE HAND MIKE AND STILL DID NOT COMMUNICATE. I BECAME CONCERNED ABOUT THE RAIN; THE APCHING RAIN; THE LOSS OF RADIO COM AND I HAD NOT PICKED UP THE LOC. I BELIEVED I COULD DSND IN MY PRESENT POS IN SAFETY BUT SHORTLY MIGHT BE E OF THE APCH AND INTO THE HIGH OBSTACLE AREA. SO I DECLARED AN EMER VIA MY XPONDER AND DSNDED TO 1000 FT RAPIDLY AND WITHOUT CLRNC. I WAS THEN VFR AND FLEW DIRECTLY S TO MEM; NOTED THE GREEN LIGHT FROM THE TWR AND THAT RWY 18C WAS ON HIGH INTENSITY LIGHTING AND LANDED ON RWY 18C WITHOUT FURTHER DELAY. UPON LNDG; WE CHKED FOR STUCK MIKES ON ALL HEADPHONES INCLUDING THOSE IN THE PAX SEATS BY UNPLUGGING EVERYTHING AND ESTABLISHED GND COM. I TAXIED TO RAMP AND CALLED APCH VIA LANDLINE AND WE REVIEWED THE PROC FOR STUCK MIKE. APCH INDICATED WE HAD NOT CAUSED A SIGNIFICANT TFC SNARL; BUT THEY WERE CONCERNED FOR MY SAFETY WHEN I HAD RAPIDLY DSNDED. I THINK I SHOULD HAVE DONE SEVERAL THINGS DIFFERENTLY. FIRST; LET THE WX AND THE TWRS AND THE LACK OF LOC INTERFERE WITH CLR THINKING. I HAD A HANDHELD RADIO IN MY FLT BAG BUT FORGOT TO USE IT. SECONDLY; I SHOULD HAVE HAD ALL MY PAX UNPLUG THEIR HEADSETS. IT MIGHT HAVE BEEN SOMETHING RELATED TO A REAR PAX HEADSET. THIRDLY; I SHOULD HAVE FOLLOWED REGULAR RADIO OUT PROCS. I DID NOT BECAUSE I BECAME CONCERNED I ABOUT THE APCHING WX AND THAT I WAS NOT RECEIVING THE LOC; SO I DECIDED TO DECLARE AN EMER. AFTER I MADE THE DECISION TO DECLARE AN EMER AND TO DSND TO GET TO VFR; I SHOULD HAVE DONE SO WITH MORE OF A PATTERN RATHER THAN A SUDDEN DROP SO I WOULD HAVE CONVEYED MY INTENTIONS MORE DELIBERATELY AND NOT CREATED ALARM FROM BOTH MY PAX AND ATC. FINALLY; I SHOULD HAVE LANDED ON RWY 18R BECAUSE THAT WAS WHAT I HAD BEEN TOLD TO EXPECT. (ATC DID CONFIRM THEY WEREN'T SURE WHICH RWY I WOULD USE SO THEY TURNED UP THE RWY 18C INTENSITY LIGHTS AND HAD CLRED BOTH FOR ME. THEY SAID THEY COULD HEAR WHAT I WAS SAYING; BUT I COULDN'T HEAR THEM BECAUSE OF A STUCK MIKE.) I DID HAVE THE RADIOS CHKED BEFORE THE NEXT FLT AND THEY APPEARED TO BE IN WORKING ORDER.