If you are a ghost hunter, or you have seen paranormal TV shows such as Ghost Adventures or Help my House is Haunted you are likely to have heard of Electronic Voice Phenomena (EVP). EVP is a phenomenon where unexplained voices are captured on recording devices, but are they really voices from beyond, or is there a logical explanation?.
What Is a EVP?
An EVP is an unexplained sound or voice that is captured during an investigation on an audio recording device. These voices or noises can range from quiet whispers to loud shouts and can be of any pitch or language. They may even sound non-human! The sounds are rarely heard by investigators during a vigil and are usually only picked up on the recording when the audio is analysed with headphones at a later date.
EVPs can be recorded on a variety of different devices including tape recorders, digital recorders, camcorders and even the latest smartphones. It is important to note that not all unexplained noises on recordings are EVPs. Some noises can easily be caused by natural phenomena, such as wind or animal sounds or dismissed as a fault with the device, however some people truly believe that they are communicating with spirits.
What Are EVP Recorders?
EVP recorders are specialised devices that are used to detect and record these spooky voices. The devices are designed to be sensitive to sound frequencies outside of the human hearing range, so even if the human ear cannot hear the voices in real time, the recorder may have picked something up.
The most common type of EVP recorder is a digital recorder. This type of recorder uses digital technology to record and store the audio meaning the audio can be analysed almost instantly after the clip has been recorded. Digital recorders are often used in conjunction with other types of recording devices, such as EMF meters or thermal imaging cameras which detect any changes in the environment. It is likely that if a spirit is present and their voice is coming through on an audio recorder, that other paranormal activity may also be witnessed.
How to capture Electronic Voice Phenomena (EVP)
EVP recordings are usually done in dark and quiet environments. This is because these voices are usually heard in the background and need to be isolated from other sounds.
EVPs are usually recorded in short bursts, usually lasting between 10 and 30 seconds. In our experience, it is often best to ask one question of the spirit and leave a gap of silence in order for the spirit to have time to be able to communicate or speak.
If you are using a digital recorder, it is easy to rewind and listen back to the audio for any signs of paranormal activity. Whilst it is always good to re-listen to the audio post event for anything you may have missed, we recommend taking a portable speaker or headphones on the investigation so you can listen back straight away! Perhaps the spirit is trying to tell you something, or giving answers to your questions and any responses can help direct the rest of the investigation.
Another cool way to try and record an EVP is to leave an audio device recording in a certain room of a haunted location whilst your vigils are taking place. Lock the room, if possible, to rule out any interference from a member of your group and review when you get home!
Best EVP Recorders
If you’re interested in recording EVPs, there are a few different types of recorders you can use.
When looking for an EVP recorder, it is important to look for one that is sensitive to frequencies outside of the human hearing range. This will help ensure that you are able to capture any potential EVPs. It is also important to look for a recorder that has noise-reduction technology to help reduce background noise.
If you don’t want to splash out on digital recorder, it is also possible to record excellent quality EVPs on your mobile phone!
The Yorkshire Ghost Guy, who investigates haunted locations armed with a Philips Voice Tracer, told GhostMag: “A lot of my early and favourite EVP captures are ‘natural’ EVPs recorded on a Philips Voice Tracer but I’m finding that lately I’m actually capturing some decent audio on my phone”.
It is something Ghost Mag can certainly agree with, having recorded some equally excellent evidence on an iPhone and a VoiceTracer.
Whilst trying to stir paranormal activity, a disembodied voice can clearly be heard whispering ‘no’ into the microphone of a VoiceTracer which was recording during a vigil in the caves below the Galleries of Justice in Nottingham.
The location was incredibly active and during the same vigil a number of objects were thrown towards our group, including a stone that hit me on the back!
The Philips Voicetracer is a tried and tested best seller and we believe it is the best EVP recorder on the market, but we’ve also featured some other options below.
Philips DVT6110 Voicetracer Digital
Philips DVT6110 Voicetracer DigitalITC and EVP
ITC stands for Instrumental Transcommunication. This relatively new form of communication uses technological devices to bridge the gap between the living and the dead and is often used in conjunction with recording for Electronic Voice Phenomena on an investigation.
ITC devices are usually sophisticated computer programs or apps and have risen in popularity in recent years due to their use on televised ghost hunting shows such as Help my House is Haunted.
Whilst there are physical (and expensive!) handheld devices such as the Ovilus or HexCom available, the most accessible type of ITC come in the form of mobile apps. Echovox, Paratek and Necrophonic are three such apps that are widely used by investigators, including Barri Ghai from Help my House is Haunted.
These apps generally include a bank of words, phonics or sounds that a spirit is said to be able to manipulate to deliver a message to the investigator.
Barri, who is the technical expert on the show, claims on his website that Echovox in particular produces “incredible results on any investigation”.
There is no doubt that ITC has become an important and much used tool in the paranormal community, however I remain slightly sceptical of such apps and would always find an EVP on a digital recorder to be a more credible piece of evidence.
Spirit Boxes and EVP?
The world of paranormal investigation is full of controversial devices and the spirit box is another piece of equipment that certainly falls into that category. These devices are said to allow you to communicate with spirits by broadcasting radio waves and allowing the spirits to respond through the speakers.
The most popular type of spirit box is called a “Frank’s box” and uses radio frequency sweeps to allow spirits to communicate, however there are many other similar devices available.
The Best Spirit Box on the market is the P-SB7 Spirit Box and is used regularly by experts such as Barri Ghai and Zak Bagans.
The S-BOX runs the SB7 a close second and gives you the ability to record the entire Spirit Box session, whilst an in built microphone will also pick up any EVPs!
Using a mixture of ITC, Spirit Box and recording for Electronic Voice Phenomena on a ghost hunt will cover all bases and if the responses begin to corroborate, it would certainly begin to strengthen your evidence!
Is Electronic Voice Phenomena Real?
The existence of EVP is still largely debated. While some people believe that these voices are truly from spirits trying to communicate with us, there is still no scientific evidence to back up these claims.
That said, it is incredibly difficult to ignore some of the amazing evidence that has been captured by ghost hunters across the world and for the GhostMag team, a Grade A EVP should come second only to capturing a full blown apparition on camera as the holy grail for any ghost hunter!
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