Introduction to Adobe Audition 1.5 for EVP

                           Introduction to Adobe Audition 1.5 for EVP Use

Adobe Audition is a great piece of equipment for the serious researcher. This software was formally named Cool Edit. Adobe acquired the company and made some great improvements to the program. Haunted Voices is currently working with Adobe to create a program that is focused on the
paranormal community and I will keep you up to date on the progress. The following information is some of the basics behind operating the program and learning how to process your recordings. I will break these down for you in a step-by-step process. Please be sure to read through all of the steps before beginning.

How to upload recordings to your computer using Adobe Audition
For this process you will need what is called a “Patch Cord”. These can be purchased at your local electronics store or in the electronic department of your local merchandiser.

Step 1: INSTALLATION - Plug one end of the patch cord into the “Ear/Headphone Jack” of your recording device and plug the opposite end into the “line in” jack of your computers sound card. This is how most uploads will be done. If you have any questions please feel free to email me.

Step 2: SETTINGS - Open the Adobe Audition software and click on File then New. This will bring you to the Waveform settings option. For your sample rate you should select between 22050 and 42100 (the higher the number the more space that will be taken up on your hard drive). Next you will want to select Stereo because this will upload your recording on both the left and right channel (better quality). For your resolution you can choose 16bit for most recordings or if you have a high-end sound card you can choose the 32bit float. After above is done, press OK.

Step 3: UPLOADING - Now that you have your software ready for recording, it is time to upload your data and record it to your computer. Some investigators choose to just upload the segment that they wish to process but I usually upload the entire recording and then remove any negative excess later.

For Cassette Recorders

• Press the pause button and the play button to pre-load your cassette recorder.
• Hover the mouse cursor over the record button of Adobe (little red button in lower left corner).
• With one finger on the pause button and the other on the left mouse button, press and release the two simultaneously. This will begin your recording to the program.
*BE SURE YOUR LINE IN FEATURE IS SELECTED* This can be done by clicking on your volume horn located by the clock. You can look to see if this is muted or not.
You may need to click on the properties then on the advanced tab to see some of these features. Click on options then properties and select “Recording” make sure the “Line In” option is selected in this feature.

For Digital Recorders
The process is pretty much the same for the digital recorder except you would just press play on the device when you are ready to record. There have been some issues with using the USB option that comes with the newest models of digital recorders. I personally choose not to use this option for a couple of reasons. One reason is that the USB option, in my opinion, cannot decipher the sound as well as the computers sound card can and may result in a lower quality recording. Reason number two is that there is more work involved with using this option.

If you are in the field and do not have your computer with you, you have to bring the software drivers that came with your recorder and install them on another computer if you wish to analyze them on site. With the patch cord you can upload them very easily to any computer and NO software or drivers are needed. Be forewarned that some models will automatically upload in mono if you use a Patch Cord. This would be normal for some newer models because the computer chip inside is only designed to decipher mono from stereo when using the program that is included with it. You can always change the recording to stereo with Adobe later if need be.
Step 4: AMPLIFYING - This process can be used if you feel you have captured an E.V.P. and wish to enhance the sound for better processing.

• Click on the Effects option located at the top of the program.
• Hover the mouse on Amplitude.
• Click on Amplify/Fade.

This will bring you to a Presets menu. Keep in mind that a little goes a long way in this program. I usually start with a 3db (Decibel) boost and then replay the recording. You can apply a further boost of 3db – 10db as needed. *DO NOT OVER AMPLIFY YOUR RECORDING* This can greatly reduce the sound quality and possibly damage your data. If this happens you will be forced to record from the recorder onto the computer once again.

Step 5: CLEANING - This process seems to be the most difficult for investigators to understand and I will try my best to explain it. If you wish to go over this section “hands on” then please contact me for a private lesson.

This process will differ between cassette and digital recordings due to the “hiss” (also referred to as white noise) generated by cassettes. You can either break down your
segments and clean them (explained further with private lessons) or you can clean your entire recording (this may take several minutes to complete). I usually clean my entire recording because you never know what may be missed or hidden in it once it has been cleaned.

• Click on the Effects tab once again.
• Hover the cursor over Filters
• Click on Scientific Filter
• In your Presets box locate Hiss Cut Above 10 kHz
• Click on this option and then press OK

This will filter out a small amount of the hiss. Be sure to listen to the entire segment after the reduction has been made.
If you wish to continue making small hiss cuts use this feature. If your recording has heavy background noise (usually cassettes) then I would recommend using the Noise Reduction option.

• Click on Effects
• Hover over Noise Reduction
• Click on Hiss Reduction
• This will open your settings box.

*Please read the following very carefully*
This is where many people tend to ruin or distort their recordings, so please read before doing anything.

In the Settings box you will see a graph of your recording and a box of Presets. The Light Hiss Reduction preset is usually the only one that you will be using.

• Click on the Light Hiss Reduction preset to highlight it. You will see your graph flat line (this is normal).
• Click on Get Noise Floor and this will quickly adjust your recording and load it onto the graph.
• Press OK and the light hiss reduction will be made.

When you listen to your segment after making this adjustment and you will don’t usually need to make another reduction. If too many of these are made your recording will sound extremely digitized and the E.V.P. will be unsuitable for evidence. I would recommend using only the Scientific Filter for your reductions unless you have heavy background hiss.

Removing Clicks and Pops
This is a nice feature that Adobe Audition has. It is also an asset for those of us who still use cassettes for recording. This filter will repair what is needed and reject what is not, so it is a pretty safe filter to use.

• Click on Effects
• Hover over Noise Reduction
• Click on Click/Pop Eliminator (Avoid using the Automatic option *Adobe Audition version 1.5 only)
• In the Preset options click and highlight your desired filter, usually the Hiss + Lots of Clicks filter
• Click OK

This process may take several minutes to complete with a longer recording. You should hear a significant difference after using this filter.

Step 6: REVERSE OPTION - This is a feature that can be used to see if your E.V.P. has a “Reverse Meaning”. ALL E.V.P. should be reversed to see if you have captured two different words or phrases. There have been several E.V.P. that have been captured that say one thing forward and something completely different in reverse. The reason that some spirits do this is unknown but it is a pretty common occurrence. To reverse your E.V.P.:

• Highlight the area you wish to reverse
• Click on Effects
• Then click Reverse

Step 7: ENHANCING SOUND – If you are planning to upload or share our evidence with others on the Internet, I would recommend using this next feature.

• Click on Effects
• Then Filters
• Select Graphic Equalizer
• Click on the tab that says 30 Bands 1/3 Octave
• You will see numerous presets at the bottom. I usually use the one titled Destination Home Theater select this filter.
• Click OK

This will improve the sound quality on some of your E.V.P. This does not alter your evidence but merely enhances it.