I’ve got a brook that runs thru my property…….about 200′ from the house. How can I get that water sound into my house.
Pleeeeeeeease don’t say to open a window. (It’s 24 degrees right now)
Years ago I set up a bird feeder that had a sound transmitter on it and a speaker/receiver for in the house………..but the sound sucked. It just sounded like static.
I’m thinking, ….what a great way to go to sleep, listening to the brook. I already have to pee 3 times a night, so …….no big deal, right?
Just looking for quality sound and hoping somebody might have some ideas, like walking into Radio Shack and coming out with a gizmo that works.
Maybe I’m in the wrong forum.
Rod
Replies
It may sound silly, but how about a baby monitor? The one we have has great sound and picks up every little noise (in a good way).
Somebody will have a suggestion for you, not me mind you.
Your post made me think of the scene in "My Cousin Vinny"
Imagine you're a dear,... you're prancing along,... you spot a little brook,... you put you tiny little lips down to the cool clean water..... BAM A................
sorry for the diversion, made me laugh.
carry on, consider this a bump.
How about an old time intercom. The duplex I just finished has a small funnel shaped thing sticking out of the wall at the top of the stairs. Its long since covered up but there is another one at the bottom of the steps. They're hooked together with what looks like BX type piping.
Maybe something along those lines would work. Grab a 200' roll of 1.5" vacuum hose (or something similar) and run it right into your bedroom.
I like the hose idea. There's a kids playground nearby with a couple of Dr. Suess looking, upside down horns sticking out of the ground. The kids talk (in regular voices, not shouting) back and forth using them and they must be at least 50' apart. Not sure what the buried tube is but I'm guessing black poly propylene hose. Low tech, but it sure transmits sound very well over quite a long distance.
There are directional mikes sold in catalogs--parabolic or whatever that you could probably mount on your house and aim at the brook and feed the sound through wires to speakers inside the house.
How about .... making your own sound, inside the house?
I set up an indoor "pond" (It's only 35 gallons), with a fairly quiet waterfall into it. Apart from getting the gentle sound of moving water (you don't hear the pump at all!), I find the added moisture in the air a real asset.
I don't want to hijack the thread ... anyone wants details of my set-up, drop me a note.
set up an indoor "pond"
Which is an excellent way to add watersound.
One note, though. If you have pets, put a couple drops of vinegar in the water, as having the pump burn out after the fancy "water bowl" gets emptied can be a pain.
For the OP, the baby monitor suggestion is probably the way to go. Only drawback to "live" sound is just that, it can be live. There are times when a person just does not need to hear muskrat love live and in person.
I'd be inclined, with live sound, to use a motion-activated switch. That way, it could cut off after a person left the room, or fell asleep or what not. (Works nicely for water features is how I know this.)Occupational hazard of my occupation not being around (sorry Bubba)
<There are times when a person just does not need to hear muskrat love>
Actually, I can't think of ANY time I'd want to hear Muskrat Love.
Forrest - always liked Shop Around better
Maybe I'm wrong about this but if you want good sound run a wire. It's not that hard. Once you have the wire run you just have to figure out what micraphone the toher end wiil need some sort of amp and speakers.
Call me old fasioned but this broadcast stuff is usually low quality.
I like your idea.
Actually what you want is kind of easy. You put a nice microphone at the creek and feed the sound to your house and then do what you want with it. One you might consider is this one from Crown:
http://www.crownaudio.com/pdf/mics/126839.pdf
Basically you need a 2 conductor shielded wire and also a single pair for the power. This particular mic will mount in a single gang box and it is weather proof so you should put it close to the stream, close to the ground. The wires could be buried or not but best if put in pipe. Maybe cheap sprinkler pipe. The power requirements are 24 volts AC or DC. The output of the mic should input into any balanced input on an amp or your stereo. If you don't have a balanced input, an audio balun will work. You will probably have to experiment with placing of the mic so a portable amp with headphones will be a great aid in the placement. Should be lots of fun.
Nah, he doesn't want that little mic plate - all he'll hear every night is -
"You want fries wit 'at?"
Forrest - used to work there
There are digital sleep machines made that make various sounds and running water is one of them. Other sounds are distant crickets, rain, and different types of white noise. If you get a good one they're quite relaxing. My wife is addicted to the white sound.
I like Popawheelie's response. I'd recommend a boundary mic (looks like a ping pong paddle has a natural condensing feature that makes sounds of equal intensity four feet away and 15 feet away sound like they are next to each other) it needs to be mounted on a flat surface like a flat board nailed to tree. You'll want to use regular mic cable (try http://www.carvin.com or http://www.musiciansfriend.com) and you'll need a mixer with a mic pre-amp to boost the signal to run into your stereo or speakers.
Sounds like a cool project.
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"You cannot work hard enough to make up for a sloppy estimate."
http://www.sleepwellbaby.com/Sound-Oasis-Deluxe-Sound-Conditioner-p/s-3000.htm
This is just a start but I think this is the direction to head.
http://catalogs.infocommiq.com/avcat/CTL1796/index.cfm/mlc_id/86/mrc_id/1796/NOTRACK/1/ProdID/2894.htm
Use some kind of low impedence microphone and 200' of cable. you'll need a microphone preamp to get you to a line level signal which will go to your stereo amp or receiver or whatever you'll use to feed the signal to speakers.
IMO wireless stuff will sound lousy, require battery changes more often than you want, and won't work long-term as reliably as a microphone (sheltered from the weather of course) out at the brook.
Sheesh - just reroute the creek through your living room... There is an old Inn near Boulder Creek, California, that has a a creek running through the dining room. Kinda neat. However, it reportedly comes with a ghost that prowls around at knight which you may not want to include...
Brookdale Inn dining room with creek:
View Image
How about just get a tape recording of the sounds you like and play it back.