DIY Horn Upgrade Mod - Updated Jan 12

[thankyouOB]

I am not versed in the EE tricks.
Can any of you gentlemen tell me if I can buy a pigtail that fits Orientespress' description of two power lines with a male lead?
I assume that the hot ends to the double Fiamm get female leads?

 

[gasmiser1]

I am not versed in the EE tricks.
Can any of you gentlemen tell me if I can buy a pigtail that fits Orientespress' description of two power lines with a male lead?
I assume that the hot ends to the double Fiamm get female leads?

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You can make you own, from over the counter parts at HomeDepot, any hardware store, or even Radio Shack. They have all the wire and fitting, plus the crimp tool for the fittings. It's really a simple thing to make.

You could even take a xerox of OrientExpress' photos to the store with you to show a clerk what you'll need to buy :idea:

 

[thankyouOB]

I am not versed in the EE tricks.
Can any of you gentlemen tell me if I can buy a pigtail that fits Orientespress' description of two power lines with a male lead?
I assume that the hot ends to the double Fiamm get female leads?

--------------------------------
You can make you own, from over the counter parts at HomeDepot, any hardware store, or even Radio Shack. They have all the wire and fitting, plus the crimp tool for the fittings. It's really a simple thing to make.

You could even take a xerox of OrientExpress' photos to the store with you to show a clerk what you'll need to buy :idea:

thanks, very much.

 

[thankyouOB]

are the connections on the pigtail to the Fiamm horns male or female connectors?
I get it that the new connection to the Leaf's disconnected wire is a male blade.

 

[gasmiser1]

are the connections on the pigtail to the Fiamm horns male or female connectors?
I get it that the new connection to the Leaf's disconnected wire is a male blade.

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Refer to the 1st entry for pictures in this thread--

My install was just a bit different:

When I installed the Fiamm horns, I used the original ground tab (from the original Leaf horn) already on the Leaf wiring harness for the ground, then pushed it onto the male tab taken from the Leaf horn.

I cut off the "hot" wire Leaf female plug. Then just used a splice connector and crimped it onto the newly made pigtail "hot". The two wires (on your pigtail) that have the female ends just push onto the Fiamm "hot" tabs.

It's really an easy deal to install.

 

[garygid]

The horns generally have the "male" tabs, that mate with push-on connectors suitable for that size male tab. But, caution, these connectors come in several sizes (standard color coded), meant for different wire sizes, but also fitting different sized tabs. Buy the correct size. What color (size) works with these automobile horns?

 

[aqn]

FYI: the stock horn mounting bracket's bolt is 12 mm and is torqued to 13 ft-lbs.

 

[aqn]

I recorded the stock horn and the Fiamm El Grande with my Android phone. (Shoulda used my camcorder.)

Here are the two sound samples as viewed in AVS Audio Editor:

I don't quite understand the dB scale on the right, why it's in negative numbers, but regardless, the difference is about 3 dB, which means the Fiamms sounds about twice as loud as the stock horn.

 

[TomT]

Not to be a nit-picker but since human hearing is logarithmic, 6db sounds twice as loud...

I don't quite understand the dB scale on the right, why it's in negative numbers, but regardless, the difference is about 3 dB, which means the Fiamms sounds about twice as loud as the stock horn.

 

[aqn]

Not to be a nit-picker...

That's cool: information is worthless if not accurate. I appreciate your input. But.

I don't quite understand the dB scale on the right, why it's in negative numbers, but regardless, the difference is about 3 dB, which means the Fiamms sounds about twice as loud as the stock horn.

but since human hearing is logarithmic, 6db sounds twice as loud...

According to http://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/sound-intensity-d_712.html:
"The logarithmic sound intensity level scale match the human sense of hearing. Doubling the intensity increases the sound level with 3 dB (10 log (2))."

It also says:
"Note! Since the sound intensity level may be difficult to measure, it is common to use sound pressure level measured in decibels instead. Doubling the Sound Pressure raises the Sound Pressure Level with 6 dB."

The question is, what does the dB scale in AVS Audio Editor measure, sound pressure or sound intensity? BTW, Audacity has the same values for its dB scale.

 

[TomT]

I can't say what it is specifically measuring since I am not familiar with that software but in the professional audio world of Pro Tools, a 6 db increase as measured on a VU meter, for example, is considered to produce an audio level change that sounds twice as loud to the human ear.

The question is, what does the dB scale in AVS Audio Editor measure, sound pressure or sound intensity? BTW, Audacity has the same values for its dB scale.

 

[thimel]

The dB scale is actually unambiguous when it comes to measuring differences. By definition, 20 dB is a change in power of a factor of 100 and a change in amplitude of a factor of 10. The power goes as the square of the amplitude, so these are both true. In a similar fashion, 6 dB is roughly a factor of 4 in power and a factor of 2 in amplitude.

What it means to say something is perceived by the ear to be twice as loud, I'm not sure.

 

[Volusiano]

I wear hearing aids and my licensed dispenser says that a 3db difference is clear perception of sound level difference. Usually when I want her to adjust the volume loudness, she would increase it 3db at a time.

But at high volume like with a horn, I'm not sure if the loudness is perceived in the same scale like at normal hearing level anymore.

 

[awiegel]

I put in a new set of horns. I chose a PIAA set because I really like the note. I went in through the bottom.

In the Service Manual, at HRN-4, there is a wiring diagram which clearly depicts a horn relay downstream from a 10 amp fuse. Does anybody know where these are located??

 

[TomT]

Yes, 3 db is generally accepted to be the audio level difference that an untrained ear can detect. Some audio mixers I know can detect 2db and, one, even 1db in difference...

I wear hearing aids and my licensed dispenser says that a 3db difference is clear perception of sound level difference. Usually when I want her to adjust the volume loudness, she would increase it 3db at a time.

 

[gascant]

We did the FIAMM El Grande horn upgrade as a demo at yesterday's SF BayLEAFs gathering in Cupertino. We went in from the top and it took under 30 minutes--would have been shorter but for the ineptitude of the author (me) in removing the 12 mm bolt that holds the original horn bracket in place. OrientExpress was a great coach and we agreed that we will offer the upgrade installation at every LEAF enthusiast meeting going forward. This is an easy and informative thing to at the meetings and hopefully the clubs can do something similar. It can be done for under $25 and the best part was that I intentionally wore a white polo shirt that didn't get a lick of dirt or grease during the process.

 

[TonyWilliams]

In the Service Manual, at HRN-4, there is a wiring diagram which clearly depicts a horn relay downstream from a 10 amp fuse. Does anybody know where these are located??

Both the 10 amp fuse and the relay are in the black "box" in front of the 12 volt lead-acid battery.

 

[mxp]

We did the FIAMM El Grande horn upgrade as a demo at yesterday's SF BayLEAFs gathering in Cupertino. We went in from the top and it took under 30 minutes--would have been shorter but for the ineptitude of the author (me) in removing the 12 mm bolt that holds the original horn bracket in place. OrientExpress was a great coach and we agreed that we will offer the upgrade installation at every LEAF enthusiast meeting going forward. This is an easy and informative thing to at the meetings and hopefully the clubs can do something similar. It can be done for under $25 and the best part was that I intentionally wore a white polo shirt that didn't get a lick of dirt or grease during the process.

Don't forget to mention that the folks who wish to do the horn upgrade at a future Leaf meeting should also supply one of those pigtail wire harness with the correct wire gauge and male/female connector ends. It wasn't obvious unless you have read the threads properly.

Did you fabricate one of those pigtail yourself prior to coming out for the meet?

Better yet: Where can we buy the proper pigtail wire harness? I rather not make them from Home depot parts.

 

[OrientExpress]

Don't forget to mention that the folks who wish to do the horn upgrade at a future Leaf meeting should also supply one of those pigtail wire harness with the correct wire gauge and male/female connector ends. It wasn't obvious unless you have read the threads properly.

If I can get a general idea of how many want to do this mod at the next meeting, I will fabricate some pigtails, and bring them.

 

[Ready2plugin]

Don't forget to mention that the folks who wish to do the horn upgrade at a future Leaf meeting should also supply one of those pigtail wire harness with the correct wire gauge and male/female connector ends. It wasn't obvious unless you have read the threads properly.

If I can get a general idea of how many want to do this mod at the next meeting, I will fabricate some pigtails, and bring them.

I just ordered the horns and plan on being at the next meeting. Look forward to the upgrade!

Thanks for doing this... :!: