The Siren Board

coastalsyrolover wrote:

holler wrote:Getting 130 out of a 1000T is very hard. I'm not sure if the 5M blowers are actually louder or if it's the buzz they have that makes them seem louder.

A 1000, a Vortex R-4, and a RM-127 are all pretty much equal.

I hear that. On a 1000T they do have quite a buzz. I have an interesting thought though: As much as the Youtube "experts" disagree with this, a hurricane 130 actually doesn't seem louder to me than the 5M single tone 1000 at close range. I am sure it has a further 70DB but it just didn't seem louder. Maybe it's the thunderbolts adjustable chopper level? Or perhaps ACA like FS inflated the 130 Db rating a bit eh?

Well I have heard a ACA Hurricane in person and I think it is 130 Db, it is also louder than any Thunderbolt I have ever heard in person.

FSThunderboltfan1000 wrote:Well I have heard a ACA Hurricane in person and I think it is 130 Db, it is also louder than any Thunderbolt I have ever heard in person.

Hey it could be the way I am hearing it too. That or the soft tone they have make them seem quieter. But I don't know you know... I haven't heard as many hurricanes as thunderbolts. It seemed like The thunderbolt was a bit louder if not as loud. But I would like to ask though if the hurricane actually does have a further 70DB range and maybe get a ballpark of how much more or less?

Here is a video of the Milwaukee Hurricane I took three years ago. I rechorded the siren from around 175' .

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IZuBq2oG24E



The only Thunderbolt that I heard that could be more potent than the Hurricane was This Thunderbolt That I recorded.
This siren also has a lot of smooth surfaces for the sound to bounce off of because it is downtown unlike the Hurricane.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ai3-tpGvA9s

Here is a map showing the area around the two sirens.
https://www.google.com/maps/ms?msid=202 ... 03,0.00066

Like Jeb said, squeezing 130dB out of a Thunderbolt is really hard. The 5M Thunderbolts are a bit louder, but no more than 2dB (I have a dB meter, but it's hard to tell from the ground). I can't speak much for a Hurricane since I've never heard one. I can say that they are quite a bit bigger than a Thunderbolt, so 130dB isn't out of the question.

Antiwhoknows wrote:Like Jeb said, squeezing 130dB out of a Thunderbolt is really hard. The 5M Thunderbolts are a bit louder, but no more than 2dB (I have a dB meter, but it's hard to tell from the ground). I can't speak much for a Hurricane since I've never heard one. I can say that they are quite a bit bigger than a Thunderbolt, so 130dB isn't out of the question.

And I agree to those points. A thunderbolt (ESPECIALLY the 1000Ts) is most likely not 130. Even at a higher HP's. I was just curious about the single tone ones as they (I believe) push 1 DB higher than a T. And the 5M single tones ones I heard were pretty loud. And there could have been the, as Jason mentioned, The geography, weather, the height (I didn't install them so I can't really say how high up they were... Lol) and the way the certain tones carried away from the siren. Or perhaps the hurricane blower wasn't getting full power to it either. Or it could have just been the way I heard it. A lot of factors... So I was trying to ask for the numbers to see if the way I heard them was right... That's all.

EDIT: @FSThunderboltfan1000: Do you happen to have any single tone 1000s and or 5M blower thunderbolts out there or all they all 4M/1000T?

coastalsyrolover wrote:

Antiwhoknows wrote:Like Jeb said, squeezing 130dB out of a Thunderbolt is really hard. The 5M Thunderbolts are a bit louder, but no more than 2dB (I have a dB meter, but it's hard to tell from the ground). I can't speak much for a Hurricane since I've never heard one. I can say that they are quite a bit bigger than a Thunderbolt, so 130dB isn't out of the question.

And I agree to those points. A thunderbolt (ESPECIALLY the 1000Ts) is most likely not 130. Even at a higher HP's. I was just curious about the single tone ones as they (I believe) push 1 DB higher than a T. And the 5M single tones ones I heard were pretty loud. And there could have been the, as Jason mentioned, The geography, weather, the height (I didn't install them so I can't really say how high up they were... Lol) and the way the certain tones carried away from the siren. Or perhaps the hurricane blower wasn't getting full power to it either. Or it could have just been the way I heard it. A lot of factors... So I was trying to ask for the numbers to see if the way I heard them was right... That's all.

EDIT: @FSThunderboltfan1000: Do you happen to have any single tone 1000s and or 5M blower thunderbolts out there or all they all 4M/1000T?

They are all 1000T But I think we have at least 1 5m blower

Wow, I remember this. I haven't added to this thread in a long time, but I do have an updated list somewhere on my computer. I'll see if I can find it and bring the list in this topic up to speed.

As for Thunderbolts, I just used the ratings I found in the manuals, haha. (As with most sirens on this list.) Obviously in the real world results will vary quite a bit.

What I think is funny: A lot of the Thunderbolts with 5Ms we hear is a dual tone. Some speculation is that the 1000T is quieter than the 1000 which I guess makes sense... I'll tell you guys what... As soon as I get this deal worked out with a 5M blower and my RCM re worked I will test my thunderbolt in all conditions (It's single tone). Chopper lvl 1, 5 and 7. I will be in line with the horn on the ground at exactly 100 feet away. Perhaps both the outside and an inside test (controlled climate etc etc.) and post pics of what the DB reader reads maybe in a new thread. I know I have been obsessive about it and it makes for good conversation but I don't want to tie up the threads with my over curiosity anymore.

Why are we not talking about:

*The lack of scientific testing of the T-Bolts for Federal's literature.
*Testing that was done with marketing in mind (recording highest output v. average output)
*Instrumentation that is not as specific and precise as it is today doing the work on T-Bolts
*That having a dual tone unit will reduce output due to cancelation of the waves (college physics concept...look it up)
*That the T-Bolt should have a consistent output (or nearly so) over its entire frequency range because of the blower (its propagation that will be affected by the tone frequency).

Basically, what I'm saying is throw all the quibbling over a decibel or two on the T-Bolt out the window. We don't have enough information to reach any conclusions based on what is out there.

uncommonsense wrote:Why are we not talking about:

*The lack of scientific testing of the T-Bolts for Federal's literature.
*Testing that was done with marketing in mind (recording highest output v. average output)
*Instrumentation that is not as specific and precise as it is today doing the work on T-Bolts
*That having a dual tone unit will reduce output due to cancelation of the waves (college physics concept...look it up)
*That the T-Bolt should have a consistent output (or nearly so) over its entire frequency range because of the blower (its propagation that will be affected by the tone frequency).

Basically, what I'm saying is throw all the quibbling over a decibel or two on the T-Bolt out the window. We don't have enough information to reach any conclusions based on what is out there.

Oh yea... That's right. I left the blower part of it out... No but I agree. I will put a DB meter to mine (A single tone 5M bolt.) in multiple locations and see what I can find in terms of just a raw (ish) DB rating. Thank you uncommon.