Bendini Sound System

[James Hindle]

After reading an old article in one of the mags left in our club hut I couldn't help thinking I'd like to try this sound thingy stuff in my recently acquired H&M FW190 (cheers Scott !)

 

After looking about I opted for the Bendini mini system from http://www.benedini.de/ together with a USB programming dongle and amp. A few days later the goodies arrived in a very small box and I thought some chance of getting a large sound out of this thing but oh how wrong I was ....

 

After doing more research on the wibbly wobbly I found a very knowledgeable chap called John Ransom who advised me to speak with impact audio for some speakers.

 

The H&M FW190 suffers like most electric warbirds from stumpy nose syndrome and Scott had loaded the cowl with a lot of lead which gave me an idea to stick the speakers in the cowl rather that in the wings, doing some quick measurements I found that I could only fit 3" speakers in the cowl but Neil at impact audio found me just the ones to fit that were the correct spec for the amp.

 

When the speakers arrived I couldn't help myself and had to do a dummy run, this was easier said than done as although I could fire them up no probs to get everything working how I wanted it took a little longer, the software is techie with lots of settings to play with, most of which meant nothing to me and if I'd just wanted an engine noise to play it would have been easy but easy generally doesn't figure in my nature so after a couple of ling nights the penny dropped and hey presto engine and guns !

 

The typically poor english weather meant she has been sat for a month in the garage but this afternoon she took to the sky, unfortunately the wind drowned the sound but its still good enough for you to get a feel for what's possible for little cash.....

 

The sound card (before eat shrink applied)

The 3" speakers and amp (connected to the frame for cooling)

 

The yellow mesh sits in front of the speakers

 

In flight action ....

 

 

 

[andy watson]

That's pretty good- have you measured the volume you get out, and how much did the full set up run to including speakers and the like?

[James Hindle]

Andy, on the ground its 80dB, but the speakers are small and on the limit.

 

The TBS mini was £80

The speakers were £20

The amp was £40 (there are cheaper avaialble)

The USB dongle was £22

 

 

 

 

[David Ashby - Moderator]

I like that James , first Tim's Camel and now your '190.....might have to look at one of those soon me thinks. 

[James Hindle]

It is interesting David, very time consuming as to do it properly you need to consider a number of variables and although it was easy to retrofit in the canopy if I had built the model I would have opted for an install in the wings using larger speakers.

[Andy Murdoch]

Nice work James.

 

I've been playing with sound for a while now, mostly with my Seagull SpaceWalker as a testbed. I too have a Benedini system and have tried various types of 4" speaker with varying degrees of success. At best I was getting 92dB @1m on the ground but with one speaker it was very directional and the sound dissipates very quickly in the air. If nothing else was flying then it was very pleasing and probably quite a scale sound level when pottering overhead.

 

My latest attempt will be a Macchi 200-a- like I picked up cheap at Hastings show last year from those lovely Ashford models people.

I test flew it at the back end of last year without sound to check the power system (biggest I've tried at 1killowatt). It's a 4 Kilo beast and flew very well for 1min 30s. I fought it from takeoff with massive random pitch changes and it finally turned on it's back and went striaght in on my second attempt to bring it in. Post mortem revealed an old Futabs servo was to blame.

 

It's mostly rebuilt now, and encouraged by the more than adequate power available I've built a 2 speaker box/motor mount. (Thanks go to Pete Nicholson for the idea behind this. It looks remarkably similar to his H9 Corsair installation.). Total weight of this is about the same as the lead I had in to balance so the only extra weight will be the 3s Lipo I'm going to run the sound module from.

 

Sound level is up considerably at around the 96dB mark, again at 1m. I won't get too excited till it's in the air though, I thought the old one was loud in the workshop.

 

I'll insert a picture if anyone is interested.

[winchweight]

Any more development on this thread?

[Andy Murdoch]

Well, the Macchi is a hideous flyer,but the sound is the best I've managed so far.

You can still hear it with a couple of I.C models in the air but it's best enjoyed solo.

 

It turns out the servo probably was not to blame, it's just a heavy warbird with no washout and a small tail. Even with the cg well forward, slow it down and it bites, hard. Now it noses over  really easily too! If it didn't sound so good I'd bin it, I hate flying it that much.

 

I'll keep it alive for a couple of weeks till our club's Family Day then retire it. The kiddies will love the machine guns  

[winchweight]

No real refinements then?

 

Is it really worth the effort and expense?

[Andy Murdoch]

Yup, sure is.

[Kelly]

If you fly scale then I think sound systems are the way to go .

 

Looking at the photos in the 2010 photo comp thread shows how the looks of a scale model can be spoiled by bits of engine  poking out of the cowl.

 

Well worth the extra money if you fly scale . 

[Danny Fenton]

I have flown with John and the sound from his Spitfire is fabulous, still not quite loud enough but very nice all the same. I have yet to hear the Corsair in the flesh but by all accounts it is the best by far.

John has tested nearly every brand of speaker going, in his quest for the best ones and Visatons he recomends have the highest outputs. I sent him some Blaupunkts to try and though they were good still not up to visatons.

 

Here is my Hurricane with a single 4" in the wing, inside the Radiator, if I can afford the weight then there is sufficient room in the bottom of the fuselage exiting out through the gaps in the wheel wells. I too am using Thomas Benedini stuff.

 

 

 

Its not a cheap option but the sound is well worth it. If you fly with IC you will be pretty much drowned out I am afraid.....

 

Cheers

Danny

[Danny Fenton]

and just to show the Blaupunkt speaker that is in my BT P-51 (must finish a model one of these days ) With the P-51 I have made a very large sealed sound box (most of the fuselage from the cockpit bach to the rear of the radiator which should really help bring out the deeper notes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The sound of a the Merlin is uncomfortably loud in the workshop, but glorious at the same time.

 

 

[Tim Mackey]

I second most of this...especially the opinion that if you are flying with other IC aircraft at the same time....you are drowned out. I used the Model Solutions of Canada system in my Sopwith Camel - single visatron speaker under the belly, fus as sound box, and static it was great, sole flying.... very good, but twin speakers and huge wattag amps are the way to go - trouble is this means large and consequently heavy loudspeakers.

If you havent seen /heard the camel... here's a link, and video.