General Information

Serial #

N/A

Part Number

2

Total Parts

6

AKA

N/A

Patents

N/A

General Description

Power supply serving as a conduit to power the hydrophone. Bloc d'alimentation qui agit comme un lien pour alimenter l'hydrophone.

Dimensions

Note: These reflect the general size for storage and are not necessarily representative of the object's true dimensions.

Length

56.0 cm

Width

N/A

Height

N/A

Thickness

N/A

Weight

N/A

Diameter

N/A

Volume

N/A

Lexicon

Group

Communications

Category

Sound

Sub-Category

N/A

Manufacturer

AKA

Beachell

Country

Canada

State/Province

Ontario

City

Ottawa

Context

Country

Canada

State/Province

Quebec

Period

Hydrophone was designed and built between 1970 and 1980. It was subsequently given by Chester Beachell to his niece as a gift in 1994. L'hydrophone a été conçu et construit entre 1970 et 1980. Il a ensuite été donné par Chester Beachell à sa nièce comme cadeau en 1994.

Canada

The hydrophone No. 20 is one of several hydrophones designed and built by Canadian Chester Beachell, at the NFB in Montreal, between 1970 and 1980. No. 20 is one of the two known surviving examples of Beachell hydrophones. Hydrophone No. 20 is believed to be the last hydrophone Beachell built and represents the culmination of his work developing improved technology for underwater listening and recording. Chester Beachell was a Senior Research Officer, Technical Research Division at the National Film Board from 1951 to 1980. He participated in many projects documenting research expeditions for the NFB. Beachell wrote that “the presence of all this sound in the ‘silent world’ convinced him that he should design and build high quality hydrophones, and a recorder, which could be carried by a diver”. He designed his first experimental hydrophone in November 1970 following a request from Bané Jovanovic, the director of NFB film The Sea. He continued to develop improved hydrophone technology, resulting in underwater recordings that were used in a number of films produced by the National Film Board of Canada.

Function

Power supply serving as a conduit to power the hydrophone. Bloc d'alimentation qui agit comme un lien pour alimenter l'hydrophone.

Technical

Early hydrophones were improved for military use, primarily for the purpose of locating submarines and icebergs. Hydrophone arrays, or large groups of hydrophones positioned thousands of miles apart, were also used for navigational purposes and in military tracking and contained pre-amplifiers to limit noise contamination. In addition to military purposes, hydrophones today are used to study marine life and assist in undersea conservation efforts. The ordinary elastic bands, bimorph crystal, and protective grill are indicative of Beachell’s early work and can be seen when looking at Hydrophone No. 20. It is likely made out of “hard duraluminum” which allowed Beachell’s hydrophones to withstand pressures of at least 45atm, a depth of 1500ft and was likely coated in Verithane to protect the silver coating from the salt water.

Area Notes

Unknown

Details

Markings

On the top adhesive label: " CHESTER E. BEACHELL /. (...) BEACONSFIELD BOULEVARD. /. BECONSFIELD, QUEBEC. /. HYDROPHONE " On the bottom adhesive label: " HYDROPHONE POWER SUPPLY NO. 20 /. 9 VOLT BATTERY REQUIRED OR, /. EXTERNAL 9 VOLT SUPPLY, NEG. GND. " Embossed on the small adapter: " ITT /. CANNON /. PAT. /. 2869095 /. XLR - 3 - 12C "

Missing

Appears complete.

Finish

Power supply consisting of mixed metals, electronic components on the interior and adhesive labels on the exterior surface. The head of the power supply is fitted to fit into the bottom extremity of the hydrophone. The other end of the power supply has a three prong adapter to connect to the power adapter. Bloc d'alimentation qui consiste d'un mélange de métal, des composantes électroniques à l'interne et des étiquettes adhésives sur la surface externe. La tête du bloc d'alimentation est conçue pour se lier à l'extrémité du bas de l'hydrophone. L'autre extrémité du bloc a un adapteur à trois fourches pour se lier à l'adaptateur de courant.

Decoration

N/A