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Questions about the Klaxon CS8 sirens in UK

Posted: Sun Dec 12, 2010 1:47 am
by 3t22fan
1. How come the Klaxon sirens sound in Hi-Lo sounds different from a THunderbolt 1003 or a 3t22, a siren in Hi-Lo sounds like this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zH5ZjMWN_zw

But a Klaxon in Hi-Lo sounds like this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dkBUi5wLzSY

2. Why do the dampers on a Klaxon close, when there is a mesh screen?

3. How come Klaxon stopped making the CS8 siren?

4.Why are the dampers so loud? You can even here them while the siren is running.

5. Why are the solenoid boxes so big?

6. How come there are no Klaxon CS8 siren that is pole mounted? All of the Klaxon CS8 pictures and videos i've seen are tower mounted.

7. Why is there an 8 in CS8?

Thanks, Johnathan

Posted: Sun Dec 12, 2010 3:36 am
by Daniel
1. Because it's a different siren.
2. The screens keep birds out.
3. People weren't buying enough of them.
4. Because the people at Klaxon love the sound of loud dampers.
5. The boxes are big because the English have no fashion sense. In Scotland, the sirens have skirts above the rotors.
6. It is illegal to mount sirens on Poles in England. However, you can mount them on Frenchmen.
7. The 8 stands for the noble eight-fold path of the Buddha, who once asked his followers, "What is the sound of one rotor spinning?"

Posted: Sun Dec 12, 2010 6:21 am
by System 7000
Okay, Daniel, I'll admit that that response made me laugh. Being semi-serious, however:
  1. It sounds different to a Thunderbolt 1003 because it is a completely different type of siren. It sounds different to a 3T22 because of differing design, because it is running on 50Hz power rather than 60Hz power, and because the solenoid operated shutters alternate much more slowly.
  2. It is just wired that way, so that the solenoids open when energized and default to a closed position.
  3. They stopped making it (and the other CS sirens) because there wasn't enough demand for them. Klaxon views electronic sirens as the future of warning sirens.
  4. They just are.
  5. Because, obviously, the solenoid mechanisms are also large.
  6. That is because the only pictures of Klaxon CS8 sirens that you will have seen are from the same system - the Broadmoor Hospital Escape Siren Network. It was Broadmoor's choice to mount them in that way, I presume for ease of service.
  7. It is simply a model hierarchy. It does not refer to motor power, as the CS8 had a 3kW (4HP) motor. There was also the GP1, GP3, GP6, GP8, GP10 and GP12, as well as the coded variants, the CS3, CS6, CS8, CS10 and CS12 (GP = General Purpose, CS = Coded Shutter).
Regards,
Jerry.

Posted: Sun Dec 12, 2010 10:21 pm
by Mac
Daniel that had me in stitches! :lol: !

Posted: Mon Dec 13, 2010 1:12 pm
by SirenMadness
The dampers are probably spring-loaded like all others, so they snap right back when the solenoid is not energized, which is why they're so loud.

Posted: Mon Dec 13, 2010 10:49 pm
by cauberallies
I remember reading that the hi-lo cycle is as slow as it is so it isn't mistaken for a vehicle siren.

Posted: Tue Dec 14, 2010 4:59 am
by System 7000
cauberallies wrote:I remember reading that the hi-lo cycle is as slow as it is so it isn't mistaken for a vehicle siren.
That was my theory, and I'm fairly confident that it is the case, but I haven't received confirmation that that is the official reason.

Regards,
Jerry.

Posted: Tue Dec 14, 2010 5:36 am
by Daniel
System 7000 wrote:
cauberallies wrote:I remember reading that the hi-lo cycle is as slow as it is so it isn't mistaken for a vehicle siren.
That was my theory, and I'm fairly confident that it is the case, but I haven't received confirmation that that is the official reason.

Regards,
Jerry.
In a related note, while emergency services in the UK have used American-style vehicle sirens for years, the hi-lo "Martinshorn" siren prevails in much of the European continent, partially to avoid confusion with civil defence sirens. The French have refined the hi-lo siren to an art, with different musical intervals for different agencies.

Posted: Wed Dec 15, 2010 6:23 pm
by SirenMadness
I can't stand the European hi-lo on vehicles. I didn't think much of it as a little kid living in Germany, but now it annoys the living crap out of me. :lol:
They should just use an air horn noise like firetrucks sometimes do along with their sirens in America.

Re: Questions about the Klaxon CS8 sirens in UK

Posted: Sat Jul 19, 2014 2:41 pm
by FedSigFTW
The main reason I can think of why Broadmoor's Klaxon CS8s are tower mounted is probably because of either weight distribution, or for easier maintenance or just because at the time they thought it was stronger and more practical.
Klaxon stopped manufacturing these sirens after the Cold War.
They are planning to remove some of the sirens in the outer communities surrounding Broadmoor hospital due to ageing sirens and the expense of repairing them but are still going to leave the sirens in the closer communities to the hospital which would be effected by an escapee before other communities.