Defintion provided by The Skeptics Dictionary
electronic voice phenomenon (EVP)
Electronic voice phenomenon refers to the alleged communication by
spirits through tape recorders and other electronic devices. The belief
in EVP seems to have begun with Sarah Estep, who claims that in the
1970s she started picking up voices on her husband's Teac reel-to-reel
recorder. Estep is sure that the voices are those of spirits and prove
that there is life after death. In short, no one every really gives up the
ghost.
The Basics
All that EVPs are, are the recordings of ghosts speaking. I know I am simplifying it a bit, but that's pretty much all it is.
When dealing with the paranormal, you can't always trust your eyes and ears to catch everything. You can almost count
on things not being revealed to you in an obvious way. That's where recording devices come in handy, they will pick up all
sounds indiscriminantly, and usually more efficiently then the human ear can.
Equiptment
You really don't need a high-tech recording device to capture EVPs. A simple portable, battery opperated recorder will do just fine.
I say battery opperated because occasionaly the electrical cord will produce static when the connections are not good, and you may find yourself in
places without electricity or conventient outlets.Also, try to use an external microphone placed
a distance away from the recording device. Internal microphones tend to pick up sounds of the
device recording.
How It's Done
EVPs can be made several different ways. Your best bet in getting results is to put
the recorder in a specific place that has had some paranormal activity before. Just
leave it there for a couple hours. You don't need to be present, unless from your experiences
the activity usually occurs when people are around.
You can also remain during the recording, and try to ask questions. I have read about people doing
this, only to play back the tape and find that some of their questions have been answered.
*if you are curious about this, and don't know where to begin, you can always try your local
cemetery.*
Playing Back Your Recording
The best way to listen to your recording is to use headphones. The sounds may be very faint
or difficult to distinguish. Toy with the volume. Loading your recording into your computer
can give you many more options. You can slow down areas with questionable sounds,and perhaps
most importantly you can filter out static to increase understandablility. It can be
boring work to listen to hours of quiet/static filled recordings, but patience and focus
could reveal something very interesting and worthwhile.
The Trained Ear
On the technical side, it does take a lot of practice to distinguish paranormal sounds,
from other sounds you may have recorded. It might be a good idea to submit your findings to
places that study EVPs.
