Digital Voice Recorders and Ghost Investigating
One question I am asked a lot is “What digital voice recorder is best to use when trying to capture EVP’s?”
Any basic recorder will capture EVP’s—this even includes analog recorders. But if you want a good quality recording a digital recorder is your best bet. That said, some of the best EVP’s I have recorded have been on my phones voice recorder. It’s that simple.
Analog recorders often pick up their own internal workings so the sound quality of the recordings you capture on this type of equipment often is contaminated. A digital voice recorder that has a UBS port allows the user to upload their recordings to a computer.
Another type of voice recorder you should avoid using is a “voice activated” one. The reason for this is because since they don’t turn on until noise occurs they miss the first few seconds of the occurrence. Considering EVP’s are often short in duration this can mean not picking up an important part.
But I have to admit here that the Class A EVP’s I have captured I tend to keep on the original recorder as well—so I have proof I have not enhanced them in some way.
Another reason a UBS port is handy is because it allows the user to upload interesting recordings they capture onto a computer so they can put them into a program like Audacity or Cakewalk.
A sound editor allows the user to clip out parts of their recording without keeping hours of recordings that have nothing of interest on them. Sound editors also allow the user to turn the volume up etc., which helps the investigator determine what is actually being said.
Two good digital voice recorders on the market are Sony and Olympus.
The investigator can’t go wrong using these two brands—they come in a variety of models. Look for ones that have buttons, for off/on, volume etc. that can be easily found and seen in the dark.
