West Allis, WI P-50 Alert & Attack in Stereo

[RamFett]

The Milwaukee County EM Office decided to test today, so I went to Greenfield Park in West Allis to make a second recording of the P-50 there. I wasn't satisfied with my first recording and wanted to record a P-50 in stereo. After winding down from the Alert test, I was about to shut off my camera when the siren fired up again to test in attack. That made my day.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z-4a6nxLx68&fmt=18

It may take a little while for the stereo version to load on Youtube.

[ACAP10]

IMO, the best P50 video up on youtube so far. Great recording!!!!

[RamFett]

IMO, the best P50 video up on youtube so far. Great recording!!!!

Thanks. The end got cut off when my camera's batteries (rechargable ones that I just charged last night) died on me. I also wish there was a better spot without all the trees in the way to record from. But all things considered, I'm happy with how it turned out.

[E712]

How did it get that hole in the horn?

[RamFett]

How did it get that hole in the horn?

My guess is that it's just wear and tear from exposure to the elements. Fiberglass gets very brittle after a while, and any combination of freezing/thawing, hail, wind, and heat from sun exposure could compromise old fiberglass. Errors or weak spots inadvertently left during the manufacturing process may also have exacerbated the holes.

My old camera wouldn't zoom in close enough to capture it, but I did see a small piece fall out while the siren was active the first time I recorded it. The moving air and sound vibration created by the siren can't be helping the matter.

UPDATE: If you watch in full screen you can see two things: The fiberglass ripples as the siren reaches its full volume, so the sound vibration really does wear on the shroud. At around 42 seconds, a small piece of fiberglass falls out of one of the lower holes. The siren is likely destroying its own shroud further with each activation.

[SirenMadness]

What a beast! Sounds astounding in attack mode!

[T135AC]

Excellent video!!! Interesting how the fiberglass ripples. I never noticed that before. I like the echo during the attack cycle, also.

Keep the great videos coming!

[bellyjae]

Wow, I watched it 4 times before I saw your response, it really does ripple!!!