Electronic voice phenomena, or EVPs,
are voices or sounds picked up by recording equipment
that were not heard the human ear at the time. The most
common theory is that they operate on a
frequency outside the detection range of human hearing,
but inside that of recording equipment. The
frequency is then normalized by the recorder into a
range we can hear. Some also
believe an entity can use the background noise of a
recorder to imprint their voice onto it, but this would
not necessarily apply to EVPs detected by multiple recorders
and would only apply to intelligent hauntings. Our
own testing has shown that voice recorders do not
convert unheard frequencies. In fact, many of the
recorders we tested had an even lower frequency range
than the human ear. We do think the imprinting
theory has some merit but believe there are other
methods which we simply cannot understand. The
majority of EVPs are unintelligible but even when quality
EVPs are discovered they often have a mechanical or
whisper sound to them.
An EVP might not necessarily
mean an entity is trying to make contact. Something like
humming or an apparent conversation could be residual,
or be an intelligent haunting that is not aware of your
presence at that time. Occasionally, music that was not
heard at the time will be picked up on recording
devices. While not being voices, they still fall under
the EVP category. While it is possible an entity may be
trying to communicate by using music from their time
period, it is most likely residual.
Any sound heard by human ears is not a true EVP but may
still be paranormal. Spirits can sometimes manifest
themselves enough to produce a voice that can be heard
by human ears. These are called disembodied voices and
are very rare. Another audible phenomenon is
phantom footsteps. These are usually heard as footsteps
on a wooden floor. Interestingly enough, they are even
heard in areas with carpet, or in an area that is
completely void of floors in the present but did have
them in the past. This leads us to believe that they
are typically residual in nature. |