Moible Voice Recorder

[nick.dejohn]

Need some help!!

I need to make a mobile recording unit to mount in my chiefs vehicle so that when he arrives on scene and decides to switch radio traffic off of our main repeater to our fireground channel so that we can record our fireground radio traffic. Currently our fireground is a simplex channel and it is not recorderd. I plan to add a mobile radio in somesort of box to the back of the chiefs vehicle and he will activate the system via a dash mounted switch.

My question is where can I get an inexpensive voice recorder, preferably digital so that I can download it to a computer. If it is going to be analog, then I will need something that tapes slow to that we do not run out of room.

Any ideas???

[spareparts]

I need to make a mobile recording unit to mount in my chiefs vehicle so that when he arrives on scene and decides to switch radio traffic off of our main repeater to our fireground channel so that we can record our fireground radio traffic. Currently our fireground is a simplex channel and it is not recorderd. I plan to add a mobile radio in somesort of box to the back of the chiefs vehicle and he will activate the system via a dash mounted switch.

The question is: Why? If it's to be used when something goes wrong, expect to be hauled into court along with the tapes. Then you get into the whole chain of custody issue for the tapes/media. (not to mention the headache archiving the stuff).

If you have a recorder at the dispatch point, it would make more sense to add a receiver for the fireground channel and record it there, and have it triggered by the PL used on your fireground channel.

[brian209]

The question is: Why? If it's to be used when something goes wrong, expect to be hauled into court along with the tapes. Then you get into the whole chain of custody issue for the tapes/media. (not to mention the headache archiving the stuff).

If you have a recorder at the dispatch point, it would make more sense to add a receiver for the fireground channel and record it there, and have it triggered by the PL used on your fireground channel.

The question of why, could that you want to use the recordings for process improvement and evaluate calls that don't go quite right. When things go wrong, you'll probably be in court either way. It could be to explain why there are no tapes or what is on the tapes. Take your pick. In either case, something has gone wrong and the tapes might keep it from happening again.

The headache on archiving... yup, that will be a headache no matter how it is done. In a perfect world the digital recorder would send all new files to a server every time the vehicle is parked near HQ over a wireless network.

The problem with recording Fireground at Dispatch is that you'll miss anything that doesn't make it to dispatch. If you're using a repeater and you have troulbe in the basement so switch to TalkAround, that won't be recorded. If you're Simplex you may reach the IC, but not hit Dispatch where the recorder is. Downside to recording at the vehicle is that if the vehicle is not there, it doesn't record.

Brian

[motorola_otaku]

Only two solutions I can come up with are a.) the Zetron Model 3022 instant recall recorder, or b.) a good ol' fashioned Crapshack shoebox tape recorder and some kind of scanner relay box like the old Nitelogger II. Neither one is really a solution because the Zetron unit will only record for 128 minutes (list price on one is $1,895 btw) and a tape recorder is, well.. crap. There really isn't a commercially-produced product for your application; virtually all of the commercially-made voicelogging devices are multi-channel computer-based devices intended for use in a dispatching center. If I'm wrong and there is a single-channel self-contained commercial-grade voice recorder that operates off 12V and will record for hours.. I'm open to suggestions.

[engvt]

Try one of the mobile digital video recorders that are used on school busses. They use a hard drive or flash memory. They also record audio. Some are not too expensive.

[res6cue]

Did a little digging and found this company that makes EXACTLY what you're looking for. Be sure the download the case study PDF brochures to see pics of this thing mounted in a mobile console.

http://www.exacom.com/html/vertical_mar ... safety.htm

http://www.exacom.com/html/products/EARS_IR.htm

http://www.exacom.com/html/products/EARS_PoR.htm