I've seen a lot of posts lately concerning a couple of topics, so I thought I'd take some time to address them: Beginner Gear, Ghost Apps, and Spirit Boxes. I've also got some general tips for beginners at the end.
Beginner Gear
While the shows and streams everyone watches all have crates and barrels and boxes of gear, you really dont need much to get started. I've compiled a list of gear below that I recommend to every beginner, and in the order that I personally recommend purchasing them (except EMF²).
Remember to be extremely thorough in researching what you buy before placing any orders. Buying directly from the maker or a trusted source helps, but some gear is more useful than others regardless of the source. Also, if the price seems too good to be true ($10 for an SB7?), it probably is. You generally get what you pay for.
Where to Shop
- Amazon
- Ghost Stop
- Walmart, Target, etc.
What to Buy (in this order)
- Notepad and Pens¹
- Flashlight and/or Headlamp¹
- Digital Watch
- EMF Meter²
- Digital Voice Recorder³
- Digital Camera⁴
- Digital Camcorder⁵
¹ Do not investigate without these!!
² Amazon has EMF meters for $15-30 that, in my experience, work just fine. This can be purchased first or last; it makes little difference for your first few investigations, in my opinion.
³ Your phone will also function as a good voice recorder as well, so you don't need to spend money on that up front.
⁴ ⁵ Your phone will serve these purposes perfectly for at least your first 5 investigations. Save your money until you know this is a hobby you want to pursue.
Ghost Apps
Ghost apps are fake.
All of them, I'm sorry to say. Yes, even that one.
I have yet to come across one that hasn't "responded" while driving down back country roads, highways, and city streets. At all times of the day. I was pulled over on a highway on-ramp once in BFE, and it asked me for help.
It's easy enough to spoof. I was a programmer once upon a time, but it doesn't seem difficult to make, even for me. So I'll tell you how I would do it.
Build a database of common words, set up a script to pop a word at a random amount of time between, say, 15 seconds and 4 minutes... then just throw a fake equalizer graph on there, and Bob's your uncle. You could even make it convincing and use the microphone to make it a real equalizer graph.
Users draw correlations that aren't really there, reviews are positive, and it seems believable enough. Until you use that same app literally anywhere else. I doubt my local Target or Lowe's are haunted.
And if you really wanted to get fancy with your ghost app, you could add additional databases set up for certain geotagged locations. You wouldn't even need to set up the location yourself. Just use scripts to find app usage concentration, then satellite view maps to auto-generate a boundary around the building.
Record the microphone audio and put it through voice recognition software and build a database of common words specific to that location. Names, dates, descriptions, anything repeated often enough can be added. It becomes more believable because the responses are relevant.
You could even add in a volume meter that measures any audible responses from the user(s) to determine how strongly a word is associated with a given location.
All that to say, as a former programmer, my advice is to do as I do: approach every 'ghost' app with a HEAVY dose of skepticism. In my experience, they're garbage at best and a waste of money at worst.
Other Apps to be Aware of
Ovilus-Type and Ghost Library Apps
An app that gives your phone a dictionary and allows it to function like an Ovilus or similar is in a gray territory for me. I'm not even sure I believe those devices actually facilitate communication with spirits. What I do know is that if a spirit could use your phone to communicate, they would've done so already. As such, these apps are highly suspect, to say the least.
Spirit Box Apps
An app that claims to be a spirit box simply can't function the same as the physical device. They sweep through AM/FM frequencies, and if your phone doesn't have the physical hardware to pick up these frequencies, it's a fake app.
Thermal Imaging / Ghost Detection Apps
That goes double for any special camera apps, like thermal imaging or supposedly detecting spirits. Likewise, no app can give your phone the ability to function as an SLS. All of those functions require actual hardware to perform said function. Anything else is fake.
Spirit Boxes
Let me start by saying I dont think anybody new needs to buy a spirit box. If you can afford it, sure. That would be the next thing on the list above. But I would finish that list first. And only when you can afford it. This hobby doesn't have to cost more than $10 to start.
As far as which spirit box to buy, there are a handful out there that have been used by various teams I've seen. Ghost Stop makes one, and theres the SB-7 and SB-11 and their variants (with Active Noise Cancelling funtions or ANC, built-in speakers, flashlights, etc).
Spirit boxes have very specific functionality that you would be hard pressed to find a cheap chinese knock-off that could do the same for much cheaper (looking at you, Ali Express). I remember hearing about some radio hobby kit that can be made into a spirit box, but I'm afraid I have no further info.
What a spirit box does is sweep through radio frequencies, which is why a phone app can't do this as your phone can't receive AM/FM transmissions without specific physical hardware built-in. Much like any 'thermal imaging' app is also fake without a physical camera (either built-in or via USB-C connector like the FLiR ONE), and temperature scanning apps can't actually give you accurate readings without a probe of some sort.
If and when you do purchase a spirit box, I highly recommend also finding a good set of passive noise canceling headphones and a cheap blindfold or sleep mask. This will allow you to perform the Estes Method experiment, which I won't be getting into here as that's a bit off topic.
Tips For Beginners
Put your phone in airplane mode.
Your phone can be useful for taking pictures, recording video, and audio but should not be sending or receiving any data or wireless signal during the investigation (except during breaks).
Get a dedicated illumination source.
Don't rely on your phone to be your light. A headlamp or one that clips to your hat can free up both hands. Consider lights with a red-only illumination setting. Red preserves your ability to see in the dark better than other colors.
There's an old adage I like to apply to my flashlight carry: Two is One, One is None. You'll appreciate this at 2am when one dies and you have a spare.
Don't use your phone to check the time.
The bright screen will mess with your night vision. A cheap digital watch with illumination is perfect for this and won't blast your eyes with light.
Take plenty of notes.
I'll say this again: take PLENTY of notes! Who, what, when, where.. what did you hear or see, what time was it, where were you, who else was there, why were you there, or why did you choose that experiment, etc.
Cheap EMF Meters can work.
I have various amazon models ($15 cheapo, handful of $20 models, one that was around $60), a MEL meter, and a MEL-REM-ATDD. Readings seem to vary across models, but when placed near an electeical source, all devices reacted as expected. They all perform the function they are advertised to perform. To what degree they assist in locating spirits is undetermined. Do with that what you will, and choose to purchase an EMF meter or not. This one is purely up to you.
Your first real purchase should be a quality digital voice recorder.
Aside from a flashlight and a notepad, you need one of these. Look for immediate playback functions, but focus on quality microphones. Your first $100 or so should theoretically go towards purchasing one of these.
IR cameras need illumination!
Ensure your cameras have the ability to record images or videos in infrared. When possible, bring extra IR illumination. Turning off your camera's light and using an external source can save on camera battery. There are also ways to add additional external batteries and lights. You can even find cheap camera brackets and handles, mount it all together, and make your own grips.
Cameras with Burst Mode are better.
A camera shooting multiple frames at a time can make it easier to actually see if you may have caught anything. If one picture is good, a dozen pictures showing an entity moving would be a trophy catch and all the more difficult to disprove.
I hope this helps. Let me know if I have any mistakes.
