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Do you want it to act like a pushbutton accessory? If yes, I have used this product with great success on my layout: EZSound Box with 10 inch Extension Play Button

Two Examples from my layout:
Batman & Robin: https://ogrforum.ogaugerr.com/...1#145297443209368241
TARDIS: https://ogrforum.ogaugerr.com/...9#150365708097995319

Its a very easy setup. You connect your phone to the EZSound box, hit record on the EZSound box, play the sound on you phone that you want the device to play back, and you're good to go! The best thing about this is that the sound files can be swapped out when you want.

In your case, you select any recorded church bells you like. If you want, you can easily swap out different church bell sounds when you get bored of the existing one.

Bryce

MP3 Universal Sound Module

Find attached Church Bell Sounds.

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Greetings -

Music teacher and church bell choir director here.  The above answers should set you up nicely.

Your question got me to thinking in a couple of different directions about how to model bells and other environmental sounds.

Church bells may chime on the hour during certain hours, or at weddings/services/emergencies/etc.  There is also a prolonged funeral peel (as in "For whom the bell tolls").   The country church you describe may have one (smaller and cheaper) bell.

As a modeler, you could control the bells via pushbutton.  You could alternatively assume the role of a passerby and have the bells controlled by other means.  While you are at it, you could add other environmental sounds.

Obviously, a small device cannot replicate the frequencies of a real bell, and I'm not sure how I feel about this.  I'm not sure a real bell under the layout is what you would want, even it that was simple to achieve!

Church bells also have a distance component to the sound.  However, if you moved your sound source farther away to add realism, it might not sound like it was coming from the church - does this matter?  Also, the digital sample you use matters.  A bell sounds very different in the belfry vs. several blocks down the road.

Many churches in my area used to play recorded carillon bell music from their bell towers during the day.  If you want more than just a simple ringing bell, check out the album "Bells Only" by Cast in Bronze.  You can listen to sample clips and download  individual tracks if you only find one or two useful.  Most of the tracks on his other albums have other instruments accompanying the carillon, so be sure to listen to the clips before purchase.  The music, if played at an appropriate volume, would lend a lot of atmosphere to a church scene.  I plan to use this album (and some of his others) for the same purpose some day using small speakers and a cheap mp3 player or even my old portable CD player if it still works.

Andy

Last edited by Andy Hummell

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