Give Me Some Proof - Part 2
Recording Their Voices

Some of the creepiest evidence of paranormal activity are
EVP's or "Electronic Voice Phenomena". This is the
mysterious and often disturbing act of capturing the voices
of spirits on an audio tape.

Much like photos of the paranormal, there are hundreds of
examples of EVP's to scrutinize. They range from
unrecognizable groans and mumbles to three hour long
conversations.

Many scientists have studied this phenomenon and have
not been able to explain it. I can't explain it other than this
is yet another way for spirits to communicate with us.
Frankly, I don't care how it works, I just know that it does
and here is not only how to do it, but how to remain credible
at the same time.

How do you do it?

Set down your recorder and relax. Settle down into your
chair and get comfortable. Clear your mind and just sit still
for a few minutes. You can say some sort of prayer if you
feel like it, but it doesn't seem to affect the outcome at all.

Turn on some kind of background noise. Keep it pretty low,
you don't want it to overpower the recording. Some
suggestions are white noise (you know that fuzz you get
when there's nothing on the TV or a particular radio
station.), running water or even a vacuum cleaner. Anything
that will give you a steady stream of jumble.

This may sound wierd but the spirits have a hard time
creating any sound that makes sense. This is why people
usually hear moans or groans. This takes a lot of energy to
do. The background noise allows them to piece together
sounds from the static to more easily form words. Plus, the
recorders are more sensative than our ears. So, essentially,
we are making it easier for them to talk.

Ok, now that you're comfortable and you've got some noise
going, you can either just sit there, you can leave and see
what turns up later or, you can start asking questions. Be
sure to ask simple straight forward questions such as,
"What is your name?". And don't forget to leave a long
pause between questions so that the spirit has time to
answer. Give them about three times as long as you would
give a living person to answer.

When you're done with the recording, politely thank the
spirit if you want to, once again this has no effect on the
outcome of the recording. Then you can go home and listen
to it.

How do you remain credible?

Just doing a few simple things can save you a lot of grief
when trying to prove your recording.

Unplug anything you don't need to do the EVP. Almost
everything that can be plugged in will make noise that will
turn up on your tape, possibly fooling you into believing it is
a ghost.

WHILE THE TAPE IS RECORDING, do the following:

When you first get to where you want to record, make every
sound possible that could be mistaken for a spirit. Cough,
breathe, scoot around, etc.

Next, have someone go into all of the surrounding rooms
and talk at various volumes. Also, have them bang on the
walls etc.

Announce that you are done with your comparative noises
and begin your EVP.

Some general rules to follow when creating an EVP:

Don't use a crappy little recorder.
Try to use something better. This isn't always possible. Even
a portable stereo has better recording capabilities than a
walkman sized unit.

Use an external microphone.
Any unit, no matter how nice it is, will put off somekind of
internal sound that will be picked up by the microphone.
Stear clear of using the microphone that is mounted on the
actual unit or you'll pick up the gears inside the unit that are
moving the tape. This kind of interferance makes it VERY
difficult to make out the voices.

Spend the extra two bucks and buy some high-quality tapes.
Remember, this is what holds the valuable recordings. The
better the tape, the clearer the sound.

Don't whisper.
When you talk or ask questions speak loudly and clearly.
Don't speak directly into the microphone because when you
play back the tape you'll most likely have the volume
cranked up so that you can hear every little sound. If you
come cranking over the speaker at 50,000 decibles, your
chances of ever hearing anything else again are slim.

Ask simple questions.
Don't ask "How often did you think about going to your
mother's house, and if it was often which days did you not
do it?"

Use some background noise.
Running water, white noise, vacuum cleaner... just make
sure it doesn't dominate the recording. Remember, it's
called BACKGROUND noise.
.
Get comfortable.
The less noise YOU make the better.

Respect the dead.
Be courteous to the spirits. Thank them for their help and
try to help them once you've heard what they have to say.

Most of all, try and do it where there is spiritual activity, this
will always increase your odds. Good luck, and happy
hunting!

- Grant