by Christina Hayward

Created on: February 04, 2009   Last Updated: February 28, 2009

With the success of the Sci-Fi channel's Ghost Hunters everyone is clamoring to purchase equipment that would allow them to become amateur paranormal investigators. One of the most popular pieces of equipment a person just starting out as a ghost hunter can have is a voice recorder. This allows you to record EVPs or electronic voice phenomenon. According to the American Association of Electronic Voice Phenomenon, "(EVP) is the term traditionally used to describe unexpected sounds or voices sometimes found on recording media."

Which voice recorder is the best for recording EVPs? The answer varies between paranormal investigation groups. Of all the groups interviewed for this article, the majority of them preferred digital instead of tape. This is probably because it is easier to analyze and playback recordings captured on a digital recorder. Polly Gear from the Mountaineer Ghosts Paranormal Investigators says, "After I collect several hundred EVP on my computer, I burn them onto CD for later enjoyment since they are digital and do not have the actual tapes to refer back to." There is also less of a chance of the machine interfering with the recording. "We like digital because there are no tapes to mess with and they don't have moving parts inside that could make noise that could end up on the recordings," says Brenda Shupe of the Ghost Hunters Ohio Search Team. "Sometimes EVPs are very faint so we like to eliminate as much natural noise on our recordings as we can."

In comparing digital voice recorders there are certain questions you must ask yourself. How long do you want it to record for? What types of recording speeds does it have? Does it use voice activation? How big or small do you want the machine? Is it compatible with your computer's operating system? Does it come with any software? What kind of warranty is offered with it? By answering these questions ahead of time you can save yourself from buying a recorder that isn't suitable for the kind of paranormal investigating you want to do. Try to purchase your recorder from a reputable seller and ask if you can return it or exchange it if the recorder isn't quite what you were looking for.

The Olympus VN-960 PC was mentioned often as a recorder serious amateur investigators should start out with. It is small and lightweight, measuring 4" x 1 " and weighing only 2.4 oz. It has three play speeds, which can record over 16 hours in long play and over 8 hours in standard play. It has 125 MB of memory and is compatible

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