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Post by frecklepaw on Aug 16, 2018 11:21:33 GMT
Strap yourselves in for this one, and, please, if this is not allowed in this forum I apologise and of course delete it and let me know the reason. However, I am on my last nerve and in need of some expert advice.
My neighbours (irresponsible pigs) have, amongst other antisocial hobbies, got themselves an aggressive Doberman that is often left on its own for periods of time to roam around in their enormous garden that backs onto our tiny outdoor space to bark and bark as much as it wants, disrupting the whole neighbourhood over the last delightful year and a bit.
As is to be expected, these people are getting away with it. The Council want nothing to do with it, the property owner wants nothing to do with it (the people living there with the dog are tenants), the property agents responsible for looking after the property want nothing to do with the problem. Mediation process was entered into by us but the tenants refused to cooperate (big surprise), leaving myself and all the disgruntled neighbours in the surrounding area affected by the constant noise with nothing other than court action as a final alternative.
Hence why I am asking on this forum as I need as much evidence as I can possibly gather. I need some sort of device to record the noise outside (the Council apparently can provide this but have refused). I'm glad in a way as I can control exactly how and where to place any recording equipment to best gather the evidence of 1) how often the noise occurs and 2) to record it in the best possible quality. We live in a very sleepy, rural village and the sound echoes. Can anyone give any recommendations for something that will be waterproof to leave outside for long periods (between 8-6) and not pick up any wind noise?
Thanks, FP
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Post by Michael Lawrence on Aug 16, 2018 11:28:40 GMT
Hi frecklepaw -
Welcome. I'm currently headed out of the office so I can't answer your question right now but I did want to let you know that we did see it, so hang tight. You'll get some suggestions shortly.
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Post by rock on Aug 16, 2018 11:40:43 GMT
I have an idea but may not have all the answers but together we might be able to help. In general, my crude idea is to use a video recorder (sorry, I don't have any specific brands or models in mind) with a time and date stamp and shoot the SPL meter in the frame. That's it. Maybe others here can help to refine this idea or come up with a better one. Here's a link to stuff about SPL meters: www.songsimian.com/best-spl-meter-sound-pressure-level-slm-decibel-meter-slm-review/Good luck! |
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Post by Hexspa on Aug 16, 2018 14:52:36 GMT
People seem to like a Foscam. It accepts audio and even transmits it. You can probably rig up a basic Zoom recorder for sound.
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Post by frecklepaw on Aug 16, 2018 15:30:36 GMT
I'm not looking for a camera per se, the main focus is on detecting the noise not the movement. However, a camera with good audio could perhaps be something I could consider; legally, however, pointing a camera into my neighbour's back yard might be breaking some sort of privacy law! So really my focus is on picking up the audio and date/timestamping it would be helpful. If your forum is not the place to ask this suggestions of any other audio forums would be helpful??
I'm also based in the UK - I see from your product recommendations they are in US Dollars.
Also, thanks for the previous suggestion of decibel meters; however, it's not the loudness of the noise, but rather I need to pick up to prove to the court the frequency and duration of the dog barking, so they can see how often it is occurring. Date and time-stamping any records would also be useful.
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Post by patate91 on Aug 16, 2018 15:31:34 GMT
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Post by Michael Lawrence on Aug 16, 2018 18:17:15 GMT
Frecklepaw- There are purpose-built noise-logging solutions that deal with this type of thing, but they tend to be targeted towards industrial applications and pretty pricey. I doubt an SPL meter would be much help because of the fairly long integration times...dogs barking likely wouldn't have a lot of "area under the curve" and result in a reading that is lower than the perceived annoyance factor. Just like a gunshot. Won't really move the meter much because it's so short but it's very loud and annoying. I would direct you over to the reddit audio engineering forum, as well: www.reddit.com/r/audioengineering/Simply because there are a large number of international users so you might find a solution closer to home. |
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Post by rock on Aug 16, 2018 18:25:17 GMT
Maybe you should look for forums dealing with surveillance and security. Since you're not sure about the laws, I'd also check with someone at law enforcement or the legal system there. They might even give you some idea of what you can use for evidence for your case.
You might also check with vendors. I think B&H sells security cameras and recorders.
This forum is really not for your kind of problem but as you see, we are willing to help.
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Post by flyingv74 on Aug 26, 2018 16:24:44 GMT
Whatever you do, don't throw an liquids over the fence! I had a co-worker in the same situation. He became so frustrated that he cleaned his BBQ grill and through the waste over the fence. The dogs showed signs of being poisoned. So the neighbors set up cameras and caught him doing this. He was arrested. Not sure of the final outcome. Probably just a fine and the dogs still barking.
My opinion......fight fire with fire. Get some small PA horns that are highly directional. Put them on the fence on your side of the property line. Every time the dogs bark. Turn on an equally annoying and louder sound. If the neighbors say anything, tell them deal with their dogs and the sound will stop. If they destroy your property, have them arrested for trespassing and destruction of property.
Perhaps you can get drivers that respond in the upper HF and play a 40kHz sine wave. Then, only the dogs would hear it!
Perhaps this isn't the best advice. But if the authorities are not going to do anything about dogs barking, they probably won't do anything to you for solving the problem.
To directly answer your question......for the mic you will need one of those big fuzzball windscreens on any mic that you use. The bandwidth of the mic does not have be all that good since the dog bark is not wide in frequency range. I would probably stick with a Shure SM58 becuase it is a very robust mic. Connect this to an audio interface and then record directly to a computer. In order to prove that the sound pressure level is excessive, this would require an expensive SPL meter. But you could use an app on an iPad to look at things and give the local authorities an idea of how bad it is.
Hope this info helps.
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