Who whistled

maccored

I'm just putting this up there since its a paranormal forum ... I dont think its a question that'll be answered all the same so fire away at whatever reasons you can think of.

I was in Carlow Shopping Centre recording data, and this happened:

http://leinsterparanormal.com/march14/Mar22-UpstairsCam1-whistle.mp3

There were four of us in the place and the centre was locked down. We were all in the same area.

I have no idea who whistled.

Theres no chance at all it came from outside - and I can say that because so far from the last batch of data recorded there in March, ive viewed almost 50 hours of video from that same place, and you just dont hear outside sounds bar low rumbles from cars. The second camera in the next room, also recorded the whistle, though lower. It even reverberates as if its coming from inside the centre. There has been other things recorded, but that whistle I find the most intriguing.

degrassinoel

any big heavy doors around? A draft maybe? creaking floorboards?
Just covering bases here

maccored

there are doors - and there are also door sounds that have been recorded. Because of that, we have tested the two main doors upstairs (fire exit and the entrance door) and the two internal ones.

The doors from downstairs cant be mistaken for sounds upstairs - again I have audio of how the downstairs doors sound (barely audible - in fact usually not audible at all).

The internal ones make no discernible sound, the fire exit has its own 'fire exit' type door sound (you hear the metal clanging on that one) and the main door makes a clump when you close it but thats about it - unless you slam it.

the thing is though, none of the doors sound like the doors recorded. We recorded loads of variations of doors closing Friday night. Theres no breeze either - its upstairs in a shopping centre. We tested that too with candles. No fluttering at all.

that recording though, at the time, really sounded like a segment of someone whistling. The door sounds are separate. As is a tapping sound (like tapping on glass with a coin) that happens as well. Thats happened both when people were in there and when the cameras were recording when no-one was there. Ive a ton of video to go through yet from the weekend.

maccored

no floorboards - its a cement floor. used to be a gym/fitness centre.

degrassinoel

what about the windows? anything that could rattle on the outside, window and door fittings, are they airtight (or no drafts, ye know what i mean) ? No old chimneys or anything? keyholes with a strong wind outside will do it too.

How high is the ceiling - is the room you were in cluttered with stuff or mostly empty? just thinking acoustics wise, a small sound could reverberate into something like what ye hear there?

maccored

this place is stripped due to the rates. everything is right back to being a bare unit. The only way I could make tapping sounds of any kind, was by physically moving things. and even then i couldnt replicate the sound. I took this off the camera 5 mins ago - classic example of the tapping. This example is from last night, though I have at least one or two examples from the past 4 times ive been in there. I havent been able to replicate it at all:

http://leinsterparanormal.com/march14/Mar22-UpstairsTap1.mp3

Theres nothing up there that makes a sound like that bar taking out a coin and tapping on the glass. The place is lined with windows - but its two floors up and they arent tappable from the outside.

degrassinoel

I immediately thought that sounded like metal fatigue, not taking the piss, but did ye check for interior and exterior temperatures?

It probably wouldn't account for the whistle but it might for that tapping

maccored

thats a definite option. the temperature upstairs is usually much colder than elsewhere (since its been stripped of all insulation). it would have to be pretty fatigued metal though surely to make that kind of racket?

degrassinoel wrote: »

I immediately thought that sounded like metal fatigue, not taking the piss, but did ye check for interior and exterior temperatures?

It probably wouldn't account for the whistle but it might for that tapping

maccored

only wondering about that as the shopping centre only opened 19 years ago.

degrassinoel

Not really, metal expansion and contraction can make loud "bangs" or small rapping/tapping noises regardless of age. The fatigue itself is from having two different temperatures on either side of it - doorframes, and windowframes would be prime examples of that, and girders to a lesser extent - though girders make a much heavier bang like the knocker on a door (especially in new buildings, and more especially during the summer when the the temperature drops after a really hot day)

Snow on rooves can have that affect too.

I'm not ruling anything out, as i said just covering bases. Might be worth your while checking the heating too, if there are rads, bleed them for a sec - if no water comes out it could be plumbing that's making the whistle noises. (dont bleed them for too long, if air comes out first, the radiator isn't full and can make odd noises, but most are like that, of no water comes out after 5 or 10 seconds and the air stops, it's empty and your most likely candidate for a whistle. You could rule that out for certain, might be worth it

maccored

i like that metal fatigue idea ... its the most viable Ive heard so far as there just isnt anything in there to make those sounds otherwise

maccored

degrassinoel wrote: »

You could rule that out for certain, might be worth it

All I can really do is have a talk with the centre manager in there and see what he reckons. Upstairs there is no heating or power - as I say they stripped the place as it is too expensive to rent out and costs too much in rates if its ready for renting. Nice one though - never thought of metal fatigue.

Doesnt explain the whistling mind you.

degrassinoel

glad i could help

maccored

back to the whistle ....

maccored

Just had a chat there with the Centre people, and even talked locally to a construction company.

Chances of metal fatigue are very, very slim. The interior of the roof is metal - the exterior is a rubber-like finish. Theres no heating upstairs so the interior temperature changes naturally. From the outside, the metal inside doesnt really get much of the days heat as its absorbed by the coating, which means the inside metal will probably have a steady average temperature. PLus we havent exactly been getting very warm days and then cold nights anyway.

If there was heating upstairs inside, which would then cause changes in the temp, then there might be a heating/cooling effect going on .... but as it is, there nothing to heat the inside in the first place and outside heat doesnt really get to the inside metal.

degrassinoel wrote: »

Not really, metal expansion and contraction can make loud "bangs" or small rapping/tapping noises regardless of age. The fatigue itself is from having two different temperatures on either side of it - doorframes, and windowframes would be prime examples of that, and girders to a lesser extent - though girders make a much heavier bang like the knocker on a door (especially in new buildings, and more especially during the summer when the the temperature drops after a really hot day)

Snow on rooves can have that affect too.

I'm not ruling anything out, as i said just covering bases. Might be worth your while checking the heating too, if there are rads, bleed them for a sec - if no water comes out it could be plumbing that's making the whistle noises. (dont bleed them for too long, if air comes out first, the radiator isn't full and can make odd noises, but most are like that, of no water comes out after 5 or 10 seconds and the air stops, it's empty and your most likely candidate for a whistle. You could rule that out for certain, might be worth it

Kettleson

I don't think anyone whistled.

Have you considered the echo/reverb that appears on the other voices and apply that to what sounds to me like an electronically produced tone?

maccored

who was producing the tone? That sound isnt from outside.

maccored

I have hours and hours of audio - there isnt anything around that makes electronic beeps (or any other sounds). the echo/reverb you mention is the sound created by anything inside the centre, so that observation kinda backs up the idea that its a sound originating from inside the place.

I actually went downstairs looking as I was sure someone was inside the centre - if you can imagine a circular roofed area surrounded by shops down stairs aand then upstairs area. this would be in a quarter of the upstairs area, a part which isnt rented out and is stripped back. The windows all look out into the centre area and it really sounded like someone can come in the central area and whistled a bit.

Kettleson

Whatever it is, using only my ears, I'd suggest that the source is (highly likely to be) from inside the space where you were recording.

maccored

I would agree. The question is where is the sound generating from. there were four of us there, all standing around facing each other. We all heard it.

Oryx

In work we have a fire door that can whistle so well it startles people that aren't used to it. Any kind of a draught can cause it. To say that a candle didn't flicker is not definitively ruling out all draughts. A small gap in a door or window can produce a loud whistle, our door is testament to that.

maccored

All I can say is that out of the mass of video Ive gone through so far, theres been no other whistling sound in that area. Plus I have never heard a whistling sound created by any of the doors any of the time Ive been in there. also, as already mentioned, theres no draughts (certainly no noticable ones).

i wish I could say 'ah yeah! thats what it was!' but I couldnt say that after spending the amount of time I have done, and viewing the amount of video that I have from that area.

Oryx wrote: »

In work we have a fire door that can whistle so well it startles people that aren't used to it. Any kind of a draught can cause it. To say that a candle didn't flicker is not definitively ruling out all draughts. A small gap in a door or window can produce a loud whistle, our door is testament to that.

maccored

and - Im sure sometime soon someone will come on and tell me how I dismiss every suggestion. Im only dismissing them as I have data that contradicts.

Oryx

Understood. The frustrating part for you, is that you must rule OUT all real world reasons before claiming a paranormal source, and that is nigh on impossible to do.

maccored

the only way to do that is to go back many times and keep checking. once I've finished reviewing the video I'll post up what I have. so far theres doors closing, the tapping, the whistle, someone saying 'yeah' and a few other bits.

maccored

... though its going to take me weeks to get through the rest of it. thats the fun side of paranormal research (not)

maccored

Im just wondering if anyone else hears what I hear in this. This is from the same upstairs area on the Friday night, 21st March.

You hear a womans voice, then me replying. In between me saying 'and' and 'at the same time ...' theres something in the background. I think it sounds quite similar to something we recorded in the same place a few years back around 2006 ish so I'm wondering if it's just me.

http://leinsterparanormal.com/march14/listentothegap.mp3

Kettleson

maccored wrote: »

Im just wondering if anyone else hears what I hear in this. This is from the same upstairs area on the Friday night, 21st March.

You hear a womans voice, then me replying. In between me saying 'and' and 'at the same time ...' theres something in the background. I think it sounds quite similar to something we recorded in the same place a few years back around 2006 ish so I'm wondering if it's just me.

http://leinsterparanormal.com/march14/listentothegap.mp3

It sounds like someone (human) clearing their throat, but at the same it doesn't sound like you (the main speaker), but it might well be you.

Working with vocalists, recording vocals in isolation, very often I hear weird sounds, almost "alien being" sounding, coming from their vocal chords/throat area. Sounds you/they don't pick up/hear ordinarily. Particularly vocalists who are not regular singers and whose vocal chords are not in good shape.

I would suggest this is actually your un-noticed phonation (at the time).

maccored

It sounds to me like a laugh we caught in there before. It's not me as I talk over the end of it

Kettleson

maccored wrote: »

It sounds to me like a laugh we caught in there before. It's not me as I talk over the end of it

I think (possibly) that noises/sounds can be emitted at the same time from different places in the same throat/voice box/chest or whatever the correct terms are.

Ie: you commence speaking when another sound/phonation is still being emitted for a different place in the same throat. So an over lap is possible?

I'm just suggesting that you rule that out and you'd probably need specialist knowledge to confirm that it is a possibility. Even if it is a possibility, it doesn't prove that that's what it is.

But it does sound like a different voice and from a different source. To me it sounds like a rasp.

maccored

Kettleson wrote: »

But it does sound like a different voice and from a different source. To me it sounds like a rasp.

I am quite certain its a different voice - its not me. Its very short as I talked over it - mainly because we didnt hear it (unfortunately). There no real way - in all honesty - to definitively prove any of it. Im just checking other people can hear it and its not just my imagination.