An interview with Karl Pfeiffer, the multitalented photographer, novelist, and ghost hunter. We cover his time on Syfy’s Ghost Hunters Academy, as well as his thoughts on paranormal TV. We bravely tackle the polarizing topic of orbs! Plus his experiences from leading ghost tours at the Stanley Hotel, and the inspiration for his photography!
Amy Bruni and Adam Berry, America’s favorite TV Ghost Hunters, talk with Patrick Keller about their new project, Kindred Spirits on TLC. Plus their favorite paranormal tools, what makes them nerds, and putting a conspiracy theory to rest!
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Are you fascinated by the EVP examples you hear on your favorite paranormal television shows? Have you ever wanted to learn just how to conduct an EVP session? Or maybe you’re already actively involved in an area of spirit communication, but you’d like to learn about someone else’s process and hear a new perspective on EVP. In this episode, I share the techniques that I’ve learned and use in my research on Electronic Voice Phenomena.
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Direct Download Link
There are many many ways of recording for and capturing EVP. For decades, people all over the world have successfully recorded spirit voices in their own individual way. There are basic techniques and there are techniques that are rather complicated, some requiring more equipment and more explanation. There are also techniques that due to times changing and new technology, are just outdated.
My experiences with EVP began as a paranormal investigator, but more recently it comes from research and conducting various experiments and seances, mostly in my home.
I want to make it clear that my intention for this episode is to share how I typically go about recording for EVP during experiments in my own home, specifically. The process might be a bit different during a paranormal investigation, especially if you are investigating with a group.
And before I really get into my process, I have to give some credit to the following researchers/authors who have influenced me in recent years: the late Sarah Estep, one of America’s great EVP pioneers; Tom and Lisa Butler, directors of Association TransCommunication; and Randall Keller, a wise and experienced researcher who has been a great mentor. And he’s also a former guest of the podcast, from Episode #8 from August 14, 2014. A lot of what I know and the “how to” came directly from these folks in one way or another.
Determine your location/recording environment
Recorders and their placement
Advice for saving time and frustration later
Just before the session
The Actual EVP Session
If you experience activity during the session
Before ending a session
I think my sessions are longer than most people prefer. A typical session for me is 15 to 20 minutes. Just remember that depending on how thorough you are during the analysis of your audio recordings, it will take at the very least twice as long to listen and analyze as it took to record. Some of my more complicated and longer sessions can take a day or more to get through. And that’s just with one recorder. You get the picture.
Other techniques and tools that you can combine with your EVP session
So as you can see… there are so many things you can do with an EVP session. You can have a very basic session, or you can be very detailed, go crazy with it, and pretty much make a full-time study of it. But as I always say, as long as you’re being respectful and have good positive intentions, there’s nothing wrong with it. Just be smart and have fun.
Perhaps in a future episode, I’ll get into how you can listen to and analyze your recordings, in search of those possible spirit voices.
Listener Feedback
Check out Todd Moster’s Kickstarter Project – The Afterlife Files
Sneak Peak at next week’s episode with returning guest, Karen A. Dahlman!
The Big Séance Podcast can be found right here, on iTunes, and on Stitcher. Please subscribe, submit a rating, or share with a fellow paranerd! Do you have any comments or feedback? Please contact me at Patrick@BigSeance.com. Consider recording your voice feedback directly from your device on my SpeakPipe page! You can also call the show and leave feedback at (775) 583-5563 (or 7755-TELL-ME). I would love to include your voice feedback in a future show. The candles are already lit, so come on in and join the séance!
You may be familiar with my Annual Thanksgiving Ouija sessions. This year Karen A. Dahlman encouraged me to have one on Halloween, and so I did. I decided to call this one a Ouija Séance, because well… it sounds cooler.
My planchette partner was my mother. I was so very lucky to have them visiting us over the Halloween weekend. It was really nice, and I wish we could have extended it for several more days.
In this post, I will share with you a brief report along with some audio artifacts from the séance.
It was such an unseasonably windy and cold night for trick-or-treating, but along with the neighbors, we did our usual “schtick” out on the front sidewalk. I was sure that we’d have a much bigger turnout this year with it being Friday and all, but I think the cold kept many of the kiddies in… or it at least kept them from being out too late, unless your costume involved a winter coat, ski mask, and gloves. But my hot apple cider was a bigger hit than ever. I always offer it to the “big people” who accompany most of the little costumed goblins. (I even had one family show up and say “We remember your hot apple cider from last year! We were hoping you’d be out here again!”) Thanks to the neighbors’ fire pit, we managed to stay warm and enjoy ourselves for most of the evening!
Oh yeah… and my Halloween window dressings were a big hit this year too! I think we’ll use them again next year!
I was very tired from an incredibly crazy week and busy night, and my mom was tired from being on the road, but once we were sure the trick-or-treaters had given up, and after we had the chance to watch the original 1978 version of Halloween, we began our séance shortly after midnight.
Our séance began after the rest of the house was asleep and bundled in their beds upstairs. All the candles on the Halloween Altar were lit, and we sat with the board, which was surrounded by many of the vintage Halloween cards and photos. I recorded our session with a digital audio recorder, and was also prepared with the spirit box that I got from Stephen Hill.
We opened the séance by clearly stating our intentions and having a moment of silence for prayer/meditation. We discovered fairly quickly that we’d have to cut the silence short to keep from falling asleep. (Seriously… I was nodding off.)
Within the first 5 minutes, we were hearing many knocks and pops. I acknowledged that the water line to the fridge (for the ice maker) was making a few noises, and it was clearly our first really cold and windy night of the year. But the heat was not on, and other than it being Halloween and having two extra guests in the house, nothing else was out of the ordinary in our immediate surroundings. I have never before noticed or heard so many loud knocks and pops in the lower level of our home in such a short time. I really want to be able to explain them, but the curious timing of the knocks (almost every one happened after a question, as if in response) combined with how loud they were, makes them really hard to ignore. I don’t know why I always seem to be the Spirit Rapping Whisperer, but I’ll let you be the judge on what exactly this is.
4 minutes and 24 seconds into the séance
11 minutes into the séance
13 minutes and 5 seconds into the séance
I don’t know that I can make a guess as to what any of these possible messages say. All I know is that I don’t typically flag too many interesting spirit box artifacts, especially those recorded in my own home. Most of the voices in the audio artifacts below seem to be the same voice that crosses over several to many frequencies or stations. That makes it significant in my book. I was sweeping the AM frequencies.
17 minutes and 55 seconds into the séance
Original Audio with no enhancements
Slowed down
19 minutes and 3 seconds into the séance
Original Audio with no enhancements
Noise removal and amplification
20 minutes and 27 seconds into the séance
I had just asked, “What is today?”
Original Audio with no enhancements
Noise removal and amplification
Noise removal, amplification, and slowed down
20 minutes and 49 seconds into the séance
I had just asked, “Do I know you?”
Original Audio with no enhancements
Noise removal and amplification
21 minutes and 43 seconds into the séance
I had just asked, “What am I touching right now?” (Hands were on the planchette/Ouija board.)
Original Audio with no enhancements
Noise removal and amplification
Noise removal, amplification, and slowed down
One other interesting detail is that at 20 minutes and 27 seconds into the séance, the little skeleton man that was sitting up in the center of the buffet/Halloween Altar, fell over. I was sitting in a chair directly in front of him with my back facing him. My mom watched it fall. Paranormal? I’m not sure. It was probably a couple of inches away from the back of my chair, but I wasn’t doing much moving around.
When we stopped after 28 minutes, it was because I was falling asleep. Once again, I must point out that we experienced no movement or activity coming directly from the Ouija board. This has been the case for every Ouija session I’ve had in the last three years or so.
Spirits of Ouija with Karen A. Dahlman – The Big Séance Podcast #5
Why I pushed pause on EVP and Ouija, and why it’s time to get going again!
Thanksgiving Ouija Session 2013
Karen A. Dahlman, author, psychotherapist, and Ouija-ologist, talks to us about her book, Spirits of Ouija: Four Decades of Communication. It was an absolutely amazing discussion that covered the history of the Ouija, positive aspects of the Ouija, why some fear it, and why we should perhaps look at the board in a new light. She also gives tips for your sessions, talks about the upcoming Ouija movie, and answers a listener question about the “Zozo” phenomenon.
(Here’s a link to my post with the EVP we discuss a little later on in the episode.)
Get this episode on iTunes!
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Check out my review of The Spirits of Ouija.
Record your voice feedback directly from your device on my SpeakPipe page! Call the show at (775) 583-5563 (or 7755-TELL-ME). I would love to include your voice feedback in a future show.
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For more on Karen, visit:
Twitter: @KarenADahlman
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Thanks, Karen!
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The Big Séance Podcast can be found right here, on iTunes, and on Stitcher. Please subscribe, submit a rating, or share with a fellow paranerd! Do you have any comments or feedback? Please contact me at Patrick@BigSeance.com. Consider recording your voice feedback directly from your device on my SpeakPipe page! You can also call the show and leave feedback at (775) 583-5563 (or 7755-TELL-ME). I would love to include your voice feedback in a future show. The candles are already lit, so come on in and join the séance!
This post has been rolling around in my head for several months now. I didn’t really want to put it out there until it felt right, rather than being forced. And since I’ve been waiting for a long time to get my head in the right place to write about it, I decided I’m not going to stop until I get it all out. I’m not always great at verbalizing or making sense of my thoughts… or organizing them, so forgive me.
Some of you may find this fascinating, but others might want to skip this one (or look at the pictures… which means I should add at least one). Some of you might find it frustrating. Some of you will no doubt be annoyed with me (just as I am with myself sometimes)… but as many of you have complimented me on the fact that I question things and have an unbiased, openly skeptic approach, I hope it’s okay that I’m being honest here. But I felt I needed to explain why I pushed pause on EVP and Ouija a while back. And I think it really does have a good ending! If you’re reading on, you might need a bookmark though. Ha! (Actually, this might be one of those read it before I wake up tomorrow and decide to delete it posts.)
For a while now, I’ve felt like I’ve been slacking in contributing to EVP or Ouija research or experimentation, and really, spirit communication in general. I know that a lot of the earliest readers and supporters of this blog came here for exactly that. And I used to occasionally have a nice treat for these folks, like a report from a paranormal investigation, audio samples or possible EVP/Spirit Box/Ouija evidence, etc. from my sessions. Looking back through my posts, unless you count a few of my reports on my Belvoir Winery weekend, it has been since January that I’ve reported on any of my spirit communication research. Why? Well… because even as far back as a year ago, when I disappointed my friend and researcher (and long-lost cousin) Randall Keller by dragging my feet and dropping the ball on some joint EVP research, I started experiencing some serious burnout. So there really hasn’t been any research. I hope Randy forgives me, but as you’ll soon learn, I’m not the easiest partner to experiment with, so he may have gotten over it quickly.
This is me sitting and waiting for EVP.
First of all, it’s tiresome and time-consuming!
If you’ve ever conducted consistent and serious EVP sessions, for example, you know that you’ll spend at least twice the time it took to record it, to just give a basic sweep through to analyze what you have. If you decide to record every day for 30 or 40 minutes over the space of a week, you can expect to be sitting at a computer with headphones for at least 7 to 9 hours analyzing that week, and probably longer! That’s a nice full day of work with no paycheck. For me though, I get so focused and detailed that it takes way longer than that. And I’m incredibly OCD about organization and tasks, so it’s not easy for me to work at it for 30 minutes here, put it away for a couple of days, 30 minutes there. That drives me nuts and clutters my brain. So when I dig into this stuff, people around me usually just don’t see me for a while.
Secondly, there’s the problem of feeling let down or disappointed after not finding evidence, or at least not much of it, considering the time that went into analysis. Though some people in the field seem to find it way easier to claim and file EVP away, I cannot. I do have treasured EVP that I believe to be very special, and yes, paranormal. But those EVP are few and far between. Believe me. I WANT these noises and sounds to be EVP, but my heart and brain simply won’t let me claim something is paranormal or a voice from a spirit, unless I know deep down that it is. It’s almost never black and white for me. I will pour over the slightest flagged portion of an audio track for an hour or more, and though it may sound paranormal, and though I could force myself to hear a message, I almost always find that there are explainable reasons for what I’m hearing. That led me to recording sessions with two recorders, once again doubling the time it takes to go over the files. Through the use of that second recorder, I was ruling out most of what I was flagging as possible EVP from the other one. When life continues to move on around you, and when real life and a job doesn’t stop calling, coming up with zero evidence when you’re experimenting consistently, is a real downer.
Me again… waiting for EVP. A different day though, and I’m wearing a different outfit.
I absolutely believe that capturing electronic voices of spirits and other entities is possible and a legitimate phenomena. What I’ve begun to realize is that everyone does it differently. Everyone has different standards. Everyone has a different amount of patience. Everyone slept a different number of hours the night before. Everyone had a different lunch. Everyone possesses different abilities, knowledge, and experience.
On some of the many paranormal investigating team sites out there, an investigator might proudly share his “Class A” EVP and be confident that the whole world will hear a particular message. I might laugh and try to figure out a polite way of saying… Dude, did you just start trying out EVP yesterday? Are you sure that’s not a footstep or someone clearing their throat? Or gas? And I’m confident that other investigators have had similar chuckles and thoughts about my claims. I’m also pretty confident that I don’t personally know any fakers out there, but you know they’re there. So then I start thinking… What’s the game? And what’s the point if everyone plays differently?
Parapsychologist Mark Leary has conducted studies on improving the interpretation of EVP among investigators and researchers. In the Summer 2013 ATransC (Association TransCommunication, formerly AA-EVP) News Journal, Dr. Leary concludes the following in an article about his research.
“Low agreement in EVP interpretations is the elephant in the room among those who are interested in EVP. All investigators know that low agreement is a problem, but they hate to confront it because it casts a pall on the entire enterprise of recording and interpreting EVP. Yet, failing to confront the issue simply creates more difficulties. Consistently acknowledging the agreement problem and encouraging investigators to be honest and cautious in how they assert their interpretations is an important first step.”
Though I haven’t yet dived into the actual studies, the mentioned article is fascinating and frustrating all at the same time. But it resonates with me and helps to explain my burnout. It is difficult to find ATransC articles and news journals if you’re not a member, but if you’re involved in EVP at all, try to look for it.
Kirsten A. Thorne, PhD publishes a blog with fascinating thoughts as she travels on her own paranormal journey. In what seemed like amazing timing, a few months ago she published Are EVP Meant Only For the Person Recording Them? and Why Investigators Typically Don’t Validate Other’s Data as Evidence. I’ve kept the links in my e-mail inbox for a long time, just for this post. In a comment to Kirsten, I tried to explain some of what I have here, but also that most of the time I find myself avoiding commenting or validating other investigator’s evidence. It doesn’t mean I don’t listen, but if I’m so incredibly hard on my own evidence, imagine what my brain goes through when I hear someone else’s evidence, and knowing I wasn’t there to see the whole situation, or to use my second recorder (or to partake in the late night snacks!) And does it really matter what I think? Does the trouble that my crazy analytical, yet complete believer brain puts me through really matter to someone else? Not really… at least not in most cases. Kirsten doesn’t need that… and neither do you. Am I still talking? (Gosh! No wonder spirits stay away from me!)
Let me just add this before I move on. Though I don’t believe a haunted location is required to capture EVP, it certainly seems to me that my very comfortable and non-haunted home struggles to let voices in, making me believe that a haunted location certainly makes it easier. It has been suggested that I haven’t yet developed the ear to capture large amounts of amazing EVP. And it very well may be that just like sensitivity to spirit, our ears may all work at different levels. God knows that if my ears are going in the same direction as my eyes, I’m in trouble. In my case though, I do not believe that my lack of confident EVP samples is due to a lack of experience or knowledge… and I hope that doesn’t sound cocky.
So where are you going with this, dude? You sound pretty down and bummed out right now.
Well, I had to explain and describe the whole back story of my burnout, especially for those who may not know what goes into all of this, or for those considering it.
And you included “Ouija” in the title of this post. Are you ever going to get to that? Come on, dude! I’ve got dishes to do!
Meril waiting for EVP. He’s more patient than I am.
Sorry. Okay, so this past weekend I had the pleasure and honor of having an amazing and fun discussion with Karen A. Dahlman, a person whom I have much respect for. I was interviewing her for an upcoming episode of The Big Séance Podcast. Along with being a psychotherapist, a hypnotherapist, a business owner, and an author, she’s an expert Ouija-ologist with over 40 years of practice and positive experiences with the board. In the last year, I’ve contacted her a few times after reading her book, and she’s been very supportive and willing to give advice and tips. She is so amazing and genuine, and knowledgable of so many topics, that I could listen to her all day. (I call her my “life-ologist”.)
Though I haven’t put in the same amount of time into the Ouija board as I have EVP, it fascinates me just as much or more! But I’ve experienced a similar burnout and disappointment with the board. As most of you know, I’ve yet to have any movement from the planchette in any of my sessions, whether with a partner or by myself.
There is just something about Karen’s message that woke me up, I think. I really can’t wait for you to hear the episode. I was reminded of how patient and consistent I had to be with my first formal and consistent EVP experiment, which many of you were there for. Though I never ended up with a gold mine of voices, some tiny gems were recorded. And I thought back to the luck of capturing what I still consider to be my paranormal team’s greatest EVP in what was only our second investigation. What a rush!
Karen and I both agreed that I need to continue working with the board, only this time LET GO and have more patience. As much as it pains me to say this, I need to get my analytical brain out of it… not all of it… but I need to let go (Cue the Frozen soundtrack).
So I’ve had a break of several months now, and I may just be getting inspired to get back into the game, with the Ouija for sure. There’s a lot of time and patience involved, but you don’t have to spend 9 hours analyzing audio (unless of course you incorporate EVP into the sessions as I have in the past).
I think I’m going to look at this research a little bit different now. It’s going to be more personal, and not so black and white. That doesn’t mean that you won’t hear about any of it or see or hear samples, or be able to follow my progress, but it’s not so much about getting validation from others, or from myself even. And just know that I probably won’t comment on your EVP, and that doesn’t mean anything either. I’ve got to lighten up, let go, and just roll with this wave.
I really don’t think that the Ouija board and I ever really got to know each other well enough yet. I’m not done with that chapter. And yes, there may even be a new, yet simplified chapter with my old friend EVP as well. But I’m not pressuring myself.
Thanks for reading… and listening… and for supporting…
Peace out!
I was very honored that Debbie Black and Thomas Spychalski invited me to be their very first on-air guest for Episode Two of the brand new podcast, The Kiwi Psychic and the Midwest Ghost! I was very nervous, but excited. (Sometime I’ll have to tell you a funny behind-the-scenes story that happened while recording.) Both Debbie and Thomas have been great supporters and followers of this blog, and I thank them for giving me the opportunity. The YouTube video of the episode is below. The episode can also be downloaded HERE.
If you’d like to listen and follow along, the links to many of the topics and stories that I discussed in the episode can be found below.
My post on How To Record EVP
Final Report from the Friedens United Church of Christ investigation. The “It’s all over me” EVP is covered in the video at the top of the page, or you can scroll down through the report and find more details and further discussion just below the first picture of the fellowship hall.
My initial post on the “Can You Help Me” EVP and the Investigation Report from that undisclosed location. Also, here is the original, unenhanced audio and the enhanced audio.
A look back on my visits from the “Rapper” (with transcripts and audio examples) – My Rapper: Missing you, old friend…
Some spirit box examples: Belvoir Winery: Audio Highlights of Spirit Box and Flashlight Communication, and 200th Post and Fort Chaffee Prison Spirit Box Session.
For several posts about the Ouija Board, visit the Ouija Category Archives.
For a free download of Audacity, visit audacity.sourceforge.net.
All of the Belvoir Winery Posts:
Audio Highlights of Spirit Box and Flashlight Communication
The Brilliant Britt Griffith!
Ghosts can do that? The Evidence… Sort of… (Discussion of the mysterious disappearance of the video.)
Amy, Adam, Britt, and Chip!
New Friends!
The Photos
I’m Baaaaaaaaaack!
TAPS and Chip Coffey at Belvoir Winery in March!
For my cemetery photography, you can find most of the cemetery albums on my Flickr page, or visit the Cemetery Category Archives.
Adopting Graves 2013: My Thoughts and a Look Back on a New Tradition
Here’s Thomas’s very popular Amityville Ghost Boy Post
Facebook for Kiwi Psychic and the Midwest Ghost
YouTube Page
Twitter: @Kiwi_Psychic
Thomas Spychalski’s Blog – News From the Spirit World
Debbie Black’s Blog – Spirits and the Paranormal (debbiedakiwi.com)
