EVP

CAN THE DEAD TALK??????

Many people believe that ghosts can communicate with us, while others are skeptical of such claims. A common tool used by paranormal investigators is EVP - also known electronic voice phenomena. 

What is EVP?  

EVP is speech (or speech-like sounds) heard on electronic devices, but usually not heard in the environment at the time they are recorded. Human-sounding voices will actually respond to questions posed by investigators, comment on situations, and will sometimes address paranormal investigators by name.

These voices have been recorded on a variety of electronic media such as tape recorders, digital voice recorders, video recorders and other such devices. Strangely, the voices are normally not heard at the time of the recording; it is only when the recording is played back that the voices are heard.

There are thousands of these voices documented.  Researchers all over the world are capturing EVP's, and many of these voices have accents, and show strong emotion. These voices can respond to investigators, answer questions, and even ask questions of their own. 

Tips to Capture EVP Recordings

EVP recordings can sometimes be difficult to capture clearly on tape. Here are some useful tips to help capture the best possible recording.

1. Only use one side of any cassette tape, and only use that side once. Evidence from paranormal investigations is highly scrutinized, and not just by the skeptics, but also by other paranormal investigators. To reduce the chances of "bleed through" (a recording made on one side of the tape playing on the other side) only use one side. This will add technical credibility to your EVP recordings.

2. When you first begin to record at a location, make note of the date, time and location. Also, if you are going to be moving from room to room, or floor to floor be sure to mention it aloud. This will help you remember where you were when you process your recordings later.

3. If you are using an analog audio recorder, be sure to use a separate microphone. Recorders with built-in microphones create unwanted sounds from the internal motor etc. However when using a digital recorder, I have found that an external microphone actually INCREASES the amount of static recorded.

4. Keep conversation between yourself and other members of your team to a minimum. When you talk, speak clearly and in a normal tone of voice. Never whisper. This will help you distinguish between human voices, and a real EVP audio recording.

5. Do NOT use the voice activation feature available on some models of recorders. Voice activation starts recording AFTER sound begins, which means an EVP can be cut off, or completely missed.  Many EVP's are too quiet to be picked up by the voice activation feature.