LINGUIST List 13.970

Mon Apr 8 2002

Sum: Recording Telephone Interviews

Editor for this issue: Marie Klopfenstein <marielinguistlist.org>

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  • Suzanne K. Hilgendorf, recording telephone interviews

    Message 1: recording telephone interviews

     Date: Sun, 7 Apr 2002 20:22:16 +0200
    From: Suzanne K. Hilgendorf <S.K.Hilgendorfwayne.edu>
    Subject: recording telephone interviews


    This is a summary to my query earlier this week (http://linguistlist.org/issues/13/13-926.html#1) about what means are available for taping telephone interviews/conversations. The reaction was immediate, and I received numerous responses (from Australia, Austria, Canada, Germany, Great Britain, Iran, and the USA), all with helpful suggestions. As an added benefit, I also heard from people interested in my research project or who are working on a similar subject, which made this exchange all the more worthwhile. LINGUIST is a remarkable resource!

    First I would like to acknowledge and thank those who replied to my query:

    Michael Erard - <erardlucidwork.com> Ian MacKay - imackayuottawa.ca Cory R C Sheedy - sheedytelus.net Maryam Bakht-Rofheart - Rofheartaol.com Nancy Frishberg - <nancyffishbird.com> Lynn Santelmann - santelmannlpdx.edu Stephen Miller - <Stephen.Millerassoc.oeaw.ac.at> David Smith - <david.smithsnafu.de> Will Lamb - Will.Lamblews.uhi.ac.uk Ingrid Piller - ingrid.pillerlinguistics.usyd.edu.au Julian Bradfield - jcbdcs.ed.ac.uk Charley Rowe - Charley.Rowenewcastle.ac.uk Andrea Golato - golatouiuc.edu Jeff Steele - jsteel1po-box.mcgill.ca edward garrett - eg3pvirginia.edu John Morrish - morrishblueyonder.co.uk Reza Yazdankhah - yazdankhahneda.net

    Recommendations/suggestions ranged from simple solutions (using an answering machine that still uses regular cassette tapes) to sophisticated technological approaches (using the pc, mini-disks, etc.) and even visiting detective/spy shop web sites (the Spy Shop in London http://www.londonspyshop.com/ Typing "telefonrekorder" at http://www.google.de) for the ultimate in surveillance equipment (if ethically somewhat questionable). Accordingly, the expense involved ranges from US $10.00 to thousands of dollars, depending on your needs in terms of sound quality and how you would like to be able to store/work with the data.

    In nearly all cases, one thing to remember is the possible need for a phone jack adapter, since most devices are designed for use in particular countries. For the USA, Andrea Golato pointed out "these adapters can be purchased online. I believe radio shack sells them, otherwise Best Buy does. (Best buy only sells them in as a whole adapter kit with adapters for around the world - those cost US $60)." It may also be possible to buy them individually through an online seller. Ian McKay suggested checking stores that cater to business travellers, since they are most likely to be looking for such adapters.

    Here are the recommendations:

    1. PORTABLE RECORDER WITH BUILT-IN PHONE JACK: The largest number of respondents (6) use a Marantz portable cassette recorder with a built-in phone jack, which by all accounts provides a top-quality recording. Judging from the replies, I assume this is the standard in the profession. It is not cheap, with prices ranging from US $300 to more than $1000 for the digital recorder. The manufacturer's web site is an excellent source for information: http://www.superscope-marantzpro.com/Marantz/portables.htm By e-mailing the company I also found out where they can be purchased in Berlin.

    2. SIMPLE DEVICES FOR CONNECTING A RECORDER TO THE PHONE LINE: Less expensive alternatives are various devices (ca. US $20 - $60) that can be hooked to the phone line.

    - For those in the United States, many people suggested a visit to Radio Shack, an electronics store that carries nearly every gadget imaginable. Andrea Golato has used the "Recorder Control" (US $19.99) (http://www.radioshack.com/searchsku.asp?find=43-228)in her research with good results: "The quality of the recordings is really good. While the person's voice who has the recorder (i.e. you) is louder, you can still hear the other person absolutely clearly. I use this stuff ALL the time." Unfortunately, Radio Shack does not take international orders. In Britain, Julian Bradfield pointed out that similar "devices are widely sold in mail-order gadget catalogues in the U.K."

    - John Morrish, who is a journalist, recommended: "a telephone adapter that plugs into your tape recorder. Olympus makes one: it's effectively a small microphone that sits just inside your ear. You place the telephone against your ear and the microphone records both sides of the conversation. They cost about 25UK here in Britain. You will need a cassette recorder with a microphone socket."

    - From Iran, Reza Yazdankhah does the following: "I have a socket which it could be plugs between phone line and phone set then you could receive the conversation in a FM band radio stereo which you could make it recorded."

    - Others suggested using a simple telephone answering machine that uses regular or mini cassette tapes. My experience has been that, at least in the US and from what I can tell in Germany, these are increasingly difficult to find. It appears more and more machines are digitized with no means for transferring the data in order to keep a permanent record, and they only record for a limited amount of time (sometimes as short as just a few minutes).

    3. MORE SOPHISTICATED TECHNOLOGICAL SUGGESTIONS:

    Ian MacKay, who works in the Phonetics Laboratory at the University of Ottawa provided the most detailed reply:

    "Minidisk recorders - I do not know if more modern audio recording devices such as minidisk machines can found that have a phone jack input. Minidisk recorders (often using MP3 compression) give excellent audio performance and a few extra minidisks are a lot easier to install than a replacement harddrive for your laptop.

    Direct to computer harddrive - If you're going to record direct to a computer hard drive and you're using a PC, CoolEdit Pro from Syntrillium software will permit recording plus a whole lot more. It's shareware, can be found and purchased on the web. If you're using a Macintosh, then a simple recorder such as SoundRecorder (which can be found at http://www.macdownload.com) is all you need to record direct to the harddrive and it's free.

    Now, that still leaves you with the problem of a box that will permit connecting a phone cord to a mini phono jack to go into the sound input port on your computer. I assume that whichever platform you're using, you'll be using a laptop. Generally, a mini phono jack is the input port for "line-in" sound. I'm sure that at some specialty electronic store you can find such a converter cable. IF the North American phone plug IS what you need, don't forget, of course, to obtain a couple of splitters at Radio Shack. A splitter is what you need to plug two phones into a single socket: you'll need to have the phone plugged in, as well as having a length of phone cable going to the tape recorder or computer. Be sure to get the right "sex" of splitter so that you can do the appropriate plugging in.

    4. WARNINGS

    Edward Garrett told of a bad experience with one type of recorder: "we were planning to record telephone conversations last summer in tibet. we bought a gentner microtel, which was a disaster. we could barely hear anything but interference. it's hard to imagine that they could market such a product, so perhaps it was defective or something"

    John Moorish had another warning: "Don't be tempted by an external telephone "bug". Those are the things with a rubber sucker that you attach to the telephone box or handset. They don't really work with modern phones, which have a very weak magnetic field. (But they are much cheaper.)

    And Nancy Frishberg related some legal concerns: "Of at least as much concern to me ... is that you make sure you know what the German law allows. Telephones like postal services are heavily regulated government agencies in European countries and the rules differ from one place to the next and often quite a bit from practice or regulation (in the US)."

    - ---------------------------------

    I hope this information is helpful to others, so they will not find themselves in "the field" without the equipment they need. As for me, I've opted for one of the inexpensive solutions and am having a friend mail me the Radio Shack device from the US, since I've been unable to find something similar in Germany and don't want to spend more time looking.

    Regards, Suzanne - ______________________________________________________ Dr. Suzanne K. Hilgendorf Asst. Professor Language Program Coordinator & Graduate Advisor, M.A. in Language Learning (MALL) Dept. of German & Slavic Studies Wayne State University Detroit, MI 48202 office: ++1-313-577-3152 fax: ++1-313-577-3266