Files From the Edge (27 page)

Modern Technology and EVP

Electronic voice phenomena (EVP) refers to an inaudible voice (or voices) being successfully recorded on tape recorders or heard on some type of communication device like a radio receiver. Also, we have to consider EVP being heard on computers, television sets, and telephones. I have experienced EVP a number of times while recording a telephone interview. When you play the tape back and hear something your physical auditory system did not hear, it can send a chill up your spine!

The voices that are picked up give some type of message and very rarely can an actual conversation take place. People experimenting with EVP think the voices originate from the spiritual plane and are actually messages from discarnate people who have “passed over.” I don’t agree with this theory; it seems more reasonable to me that the voices are coming from another nearby dimension in our physical reality. It could also be that in some cases, entities in this other reality (Djinn perhaps?) are using identities of deceased humans to gain trust and establish communication with our world.

Back in the early seventies, I used a tape recorder with magnetic heads to record interviews and on more than one occasion, picked up voices and sounds that were not audible in the room. It seems the magnetic properties of those now-outdated recorders seemed more suitable for picking up EVP than new digital recorders of today. The digital recorders can pick up some sounds, but the voices are not clear and sound more electronic.

The “Ghost Box”

The most popular equipment for receiving EVP by radio is the “ghost box.” Basically, it is an AM receiver set to rapidly scan up and down the commercial bands from about 550 to 1640 kilocycles. According to the paranormal researchers who have used this device, it creates audio bits and white noise that ghosts and/or spirits can manipulate into formed words. I have my doubts about this explanation and the truth of the matter is that no one really knows how the ghost box works.

I have used several versions of this device belonging to paranormal researcher Rosemary Ellen Guiley and have had mixed results: although you can hear words quite clearly, who or what ever is communicating seems to be able to answer one question only and very briefly. For example, when the researcher asked the question, “Is anyone out there?” the answer came back, “Spirit bodies.” When another question was asked, the paranormal researcher didn’t receive any more answers. On one occasion, the question, “Can you see?” was answered with, “It’s too dark.” When using the ghost box, the main problem is that only a very small percentage of questions answered actually make sense. Although the responses are clear, they are usually short; most skeptics feel it’s just a coincidental mixing of words formed when the receiver is scanned through this crowded radio band.

Is It Real?

The question of whether or not these transmissions are from some type of spirit or dimensional entity is difficult to answer. My personal response would be: I believe so, but it would take a great deal of evidence to completely convince me of its origin. The voices on the radio seem to be coming from somewhere and, in rare cases, they are apparently responding to questions but usually only one question receives an acceptable answer. The only recording of EVP I’ve heard that gave answers to several questions was done by Rosemary Ellen Guiley in the basement of the Lincoln Theater in Decatur, Illinois. Some EVP recordings made from the ghost box have intrigued me so greatly that I used my background in science and technology to try to understand what had taken place.

The biggest question about the ghost box I have is
who
is coming through the devices and why are their messages only two or three words long? Some people feel that EVP are from demons, fallen angels . . . some even think they have received messages from extraterrestrials. Most of the paranormal community believes the voices are from ghosts, or the spirits of people who crossed over to the “
other side
.” Although I can’t discount any of these theories, I personally do not agree with them. It is my opinion that the voices are coming from beings from another dimension: they are not human and have never been human. The EVP messages received are for the most part non-threatening, but at times the “communicator” on the other side can become malevolent and just plain nasty without cause or warning.

My Analysis

The ghost box operates by scanning through an entire band with the EVP being received over a number of adjacent frequencies in the AM, FM, and upper and lower sidebands. This means the EVP is not on any particular channel; it is a signal with a very wide bandwidth. In my mind, this is what makes it so unusual. In order for the device to work and pick up a “spirit voice,” a strong standard signal is required, so the more crowded the band with radio stations, the better chance of getting EVP. It seems the EVP part of the signal is so weak that it needs a stronger standard AM signal to piggyback itself on in order to be heard. The piggyback effect is simple to understand since one weaker radio signal on the same frequency rides on another stronger one to reach the receiver. I have seen the same effect in amateur radio when a signal that normally would be much too weak to hear will piggyback itself on a stronger and closer signal and be heard. By throwing a “dead carrier” (transmitting a signal with no modulation), you can actually hear stations in the background hundreds and even thousands of miles away riding in with the carrier wave. This is what seems to be happening with the voices on the ghost box; they are riding (or piggybacking) on standard AM radio station transmissions to the receiver. This seems to be done by design, indicating intelligence with a purpose.

To check this theory, I took a number of EVP recordings obtained from a ghost box and ran them through an oscilloscope. I discovered there were two basic signals in the transmission: the first is the standard AM radio station signal erratically modulated due to the band sweeping. The second signal was aligned with the first and could be separated by changing the sweeping rate. After this was done, the signal showed two independent transmissions that had continuous modulation very similar to an FM source.

Light and radio signals will follow the curvature of space so theoretically, these messages should not be able to reach our reality from another dimension. Also, what makes matters so puzzling is that the questions are asked by voice using no transmitting equipment at all. Is it possible that whoever is responding can hear us but we can’t hear them? The only way an electromagnetic wave is going to pass through the barriers of alternate dimensions is through a wormhole or perhaps a very strong magnetic field that can actually bend space and allow the signal to reach a hidden reality.

It should also be noted that, despite optimal conditions, sometimes the ghost box doesn’t work at all. The person operating the device seems to play an important part in its success since some people never get any results while others frequently do. Is it possible that the psychic makeup and attitude of the individual operating the ghost box is an important component to its success? We have to consider the possibility that the intelligence on the other side may only want to communicate with certain people. There is a considerable amount of research and analysis that still must be done in this area, but the one conclusion that I have reached is that the ghost box, although limited in its performance, does work.

Building Your Own Ghost Box

I always encourage my readers to experiment and report any findings to me. Constructing a ghost box is inexpensive and quite simple; you really don’t need a background in electronics to put one together. There are a number of individuals who build ghost boxes and sell them, but they are quite expensive. Most devices use simple AM radios modified by cutting and connecting a number of wires together.

The older the radio the better, but RadioShack makes an AM radio that is very easy to convert into a sweeping band AM ghost box. RadioShack model 12-820 is the easiest to convert: all you have to do is remove the four screws in the back exposing the circuit. You will see quite a few gray wires, but the bundle you want will be on your left. Carefully cut the third gray wire from the left of the red wire; this wire is the mute or squelch and will cause your receiver to scan up and down the band. The next thing you might want to do is set up an external speaker so the sound will be clearer and louder. It’s that simple! You now have a working ghost box to possibly receive EVP transmissions from another realm of reality.

Improving the EVP From the Ghost Box

My analysis indicates that the signal from the EVP is actually “piggybacking” on a standard AM signal, however since this is a very noisy part of the radio spectrum, it usually results in the EVP signal being distorted and very difficult to hear. Since a carrier signal of some sort is required, it would make sense to try a different part of the AM band. The long wave section of the electromagnetic spectrum between 100 and 400 KHz is very quiet, but the problem is that we need to generate an unmodulated signal in order for the EVP to be received. The solution would be to transmit what is called a “dead carrier,” a signal with no voice modulation. The dead carrier would have to transmit over a very wide band area; this can be accomplished by a modified radio frequency (RF) signal generator. I believe such a generator would produce a clear EVP signal that might result in the ability to eavesdrop on the intelligence at the other end. This improvement may also result in our ability to have clearer and longer EVP conversations not limited to just a few words.

My attempts to suggest this method of improving radio EVP reception to those building versions of the ghost box have been ignored. It seems that some people are actually making a large profit by selling ghost boxes that are nothing more than very cheap AM radios that sweep the commercial bandwidth. In using any EVP device, remember that if you don’t get any results, it doesn’t mean that the system isn’t working; it just indicates that whatever it is causing the EVP does not want to communicate. You must remember—conversation is a two-way street!

Direct Communication with Another Plane of Existence

In rare cases, “alien” intelligence from another reality may choose to communicate directly with you. This kind of contact does not require a ghost box, voice recorder, or any other technological device—it is bizarre and will often take a person by surprise. I believe this happened to me on at least one occasion after I had my last meeting with Mr. John Gray (see the chapter Psychic Powers . . .). The contact was not only face to face, but also over the telephone. Although it took place quite a few years ago, I have never published the story because it has taken me a very long time to accept that the experience was indeed some type of communication from an alternate dimension.

A Message From Babaji

I was at the Port Chester, New York, train station on the platform waiting for the train to go north to Stamford, Connecticut. It was early summer of 1983, mid-afternoon, and as I looked up and down the ramp, I noticed I was alone, unusual for that time of the day. I then felt a little dizzy and closed my eyes for less than a second. When I opened my eyes and looked around, a strange little person approached me from the left. My first thought was, “Where the heck did this person come from?” As this person came closer, I could tell she was an elderly woman about 4 feet tall dressed in a white one-piece dress wearing a pith helmet similar to the ones worn by people on safari in Africa. As she approached, I continued to notice how strange and out of place this person appeared. She was heading in my direction, and I knew this person was going to stop to talk with me. The first words out of her mouth were in an accent that I could not identify: “Mr. Imbrogno, I have a message from you from Babaji. He wants you to know that this earth is in very grave danger from those forces that call themselves the fallen
angels.” Her skin was pale white and she had a great amount of makeup on her face to give it color. I think what made this little lady look so creepy was the amount of bright red lipstick she had on; it gave her face a clown-like appearance. I was quite surprised and asked her how she knew my name. She replied, “My friend from outer space told me you would be here and I must also tell you the message from Babaji: he said it is very important that you go to India and study with him.” I tried asking more questions, but she would not answer.

I then asked where she came from since there was no one else on the platform and it looked like she appeared out of nowhere. She replied, “My friend, who is not of this world, made me appear here. I must tell you, Mr. Imbrogno, I am also not part of this world, but I used to be.” She told me her name was Freda and she used to live in Connecticut before she “ascended to a higher plane.” Freda then said, “I am only here for a very short time and have to go now.” She then started to walk away from me and at that exact moment I heard the train approaching. I looked the other way and then looked back to ask her more questions, but she was gone. There was no way this person could have moved out of my sight in that short period of time!

I boarded the train and tried to rationalize what had just taken place: there was no way this “Freda” could have known who I was and have personal information like my whereabouts that day. The story does not end here: two days later I received a telephone call from a woman who said her name was Freda and that we met at the train station. We talked for about fifteen minutes and she repeated the same message word for word from our conversation on the train platform. I then asked her where she was calling from and she quickly mentioned something about the Greenwich Senior Citizen Center. Then, I heard a great deal of static and the connection was broken. Two days later, I paid a visit to the senior center in Greenwich, Connecticut, and asked for Freda—I was shocked when a staff supervisor told me that Freda used to live there but had passed away almost six years ago. The news really caught me by surprise and made me feel like I was in a
Twilight Zone
episode. Did I really have contact with a person from the other side? Luckily, I taped my phone conversation with Freda, but only recently played it for paranormal researchers who have come to visit me simply because it is just too incredible to accept.