berettaman,
I will try to answer your questions:
Question 1
“Just wondering if the 12v gel battery would enhance the sound of the FX5?”
By connecting an external gel-cell the big advantage to the increased run times not so much the louder volume. There is simply more capacity in a large gel cell (7-8 amp hour). With the internal batteries you can expect to get 4-5 hours with very loud calling and with a gel cell I would suspect this time to more then double.
Yes you will get some additional voltage available at the power amplifier that will increase the output power.
Here is an article we wrote that will be up on the Technical Newsletter section of our forum shortly that pertains to this.
About Loudness and Battery Life:
FOXPRO products are designed to generate high levels of audio power. This energy comes from the internal batteries. The battery capacity is determined by the physical size of the battery, which is determined by the physical size of the caller. We can use batteries with higher energy capacities by making the caller physically larger in order to fit larger batteries. Nobody wants that . . . the market demands a small caller. So . . . in order to have a small caller that will play loud, some compromises are in order. The first thing you must understand is that if you constantly demand that the caller generates the maximum amount of power that it can, the price you will pay is short battery run-time. This can be explained with a brief lesson on the physics of sound pressure levels (SPL). We can do this without a lot of math . . . In order to double the apparent loudness, the SPL must be increased by 10 decibels. A 3 decibel increase in speaker SPL is just about a third of that amount. It is just a SLIGHT increase in loudness. In order to increase the SPL from the speaker by just 3 decibels, the power amplifier must generate TWICE the power into the loudspeaker, and will demand TWICE as much energy from the battery. Think about that. By increasing the loudness of your caller by just a small amount, your battery life will be cut in half. And it gets worse. If you have your caller playing at a reasonable volume level and decide to play it twice that loud, your battery life will be reduced by a factor of about EIGHT! Welcome to the sometimes unpopular world of physics. While it’s true that we as a manufacturer could limit the power delivered to the speaker in order to guarantee a reasonable battery run-time, there’s a real good reason we don’t . . . there may be times when you absolutely need every last ounce of loudness to get the job done, and are willing to trade off battery life for a little extra loudness. If we limited the SPL to say 90 decibels, your battery run-time would be excellent, but you might not be able to increase the loudness as far as you would like, on those occasions when you really need it. By allowing the caller to play "really loud" when you need it to, battery run-time is directly dependent on how loud you make the caller play. Here’s what you should remember: If you turn the volume down even just a little bit, your battery will last much longer. And always remember that animals can hear much better than we can. You will rarely need to call with the volume at maximum! But, if you feel you need to do this, be prepared for short battery life. As much as we sometimes hate it, we’re all subject to the laws of physics
Another good resource to read is here:
http://www.toaelectronics.com/manuals/TOA_Speaker_Guide.pdf
Chapter 4 Audio Basics on page 17
Question #2
“I know battery life would be greatly increased but got to thinking that the sound would be enhanced as well??”
I don’t know if enhanced is the term but you will have additional voltage available for the amplifier that can lead to less distortion at the higher volume numbers.
Question #3
“Along the same line, would an external speaker enhance the sounds?”
It really depends on the speaker...
If you choose a speaker that is not as sensitive or does not have better frequecy response then the internal speakers then you will not see any advantage.
If you choose a speaker that is more sensitive or has better frequency response you will hear a difference provided the sound you are playing has frequencies that can take advantage of the broader response.
Here is list of 3 speakers we offer that I would recomend for our small portable callers:
The SP-FR1 speaker system is for those that demand broad frequency response. This horn based 15 watt system consists of a cone speaker for the main driver and a built in Mylar cone tweeter for high end response. This results in a very efficient and broad spectral speaker system. However, if you want maximum volume with an external speaker, the SP-108 would better suit those needs as the SP-108 is more efficient in the midrange, but it does not have the low or high end frequency response of the SP-FR1. The SP-FR1 is for those who want very accurate sound reproduction from the lows to the highs of the audio spectrum. This reflex speaker system really brings many vocalizations to life! The dimensions of the SP-FR1 is 9.25” x 9.25” x 6” deep and it weighs 3.6lbs. This speaker is perfect for the sounds in the Mark II Sound Library!
The SP108Z is for those who demand extreme volume. This speaker is highly efficient and will produce the most volume off all of the speakers we offer. This like all re-entrant horn speakers does exceedingly well at frequencies above 400Hz.
The SP-55 is a small 15 watt re-entrant horn that is very efficient and loud! It has picked up the nickname the “Little Beast” around here. This speaker compares very favorably to other re-entrant horn speakers in its power range, even those that are twice its size! This speaker is perfect for those who want more volume then the internal speakers can provide but still want to maintain portability. The size on this speaker 5.5” x 5.5” x 4.5” deep and weighs in at around 2.2lbs.
I hope I answered your questions.
Best Regards,
Steve Dillon
