cell phone recording

[tigger08]

Hi,
I'm new to this and this may not be the right place to ask this question, but I don't know where to start.
I am trying to find or design a splitter to be able to record a phone conversation with a digital recorder.
I have seen one that works but can not duplicate it at this point.
I want to come out of a cell phone headset jack and go be able to use a headset with mic.
I want to be able to go into a splitter and go into a digital recorder.
I used a conventional stereo splitter and it records the incoming callers voice but it does not record my voice. I don't know if the problem is in my splitter or if its in the phone.
This is for a legitimate use. I am trying to use it to record conversations while talking to people while conducting crisis negotiations as I am a negotiator with a police department. If there are any suggestions or ideas I would greatly appreciate them. If more information is needed I can provide it or can be contacted offline.
Thanks

 

[Torben]

What splitter and headset are you using?

Are you recording to the left and right channels of a stereo recorder or trying to just record to one channel on a mono recorder? It may just be that when you set the recorder to match the rather high signal coming from the phone to drive the headset speaker, it can't pick up the very low signal coming from the headset mic.

Just wondering: can the police department not afford a proper phone recording setup?


Torben

 

[tigger08]

First of all the PD has a complete negotiatiors console. Its a very elaborate setup.
I am looking for something that can be used in a first responder type scenario. Something that I can pull up to a scene and immediately begin using until the rest of the team arrives with the equipment.

As I said before I am new to this so forgive me if I ask dumb questions. I am using a 3.5mm stereo Y adapter and the headset I am using is one of the headsets from my negotiators console. It has double headphones and a boom mic. It has an approximate 4 foot cable with a 3.5 mm stereo plug at the end of the cable. I do not know the name brand because I do not have it with me at this time. I also did have to use another adapter, (3.5mm to 2.5mm stereo) to go from my Y adapter to the 2.5mm jack in the phone that I am using.

 

[Torben]

First of all the PD has a complete negotiatiors console. Its a very elaborate setup.
I am looking for something that can be used in a first responder type scenario. Something that I can pull up to a scene and immediately begin using until the rest of the team arrives with the equipment.

Right, I figured that when you said "cell phone". I'm just thinking that since you can buy these things from any spy store or probably even Best Buy or something, maybe you could just pick one up and and expense it. It might be as simple as a three-to-four conductor splitter or adaptor, or it might take more than that.

As I said before I am new to this so forgive me if I ask dumb questions.

I was going to give you the old saw about "there are no stupid questions" but actually, there are. Don't worry though; yours is not among them. I don't think, anyway. I'm no pro, just some random hobbyist on the net.

I am using a 3.5mm stereo Y adapter and the headset I am using is one of the headsets from my negotiators console. It has double headphones and a boom mic. It has an approximate 4 foot cable with a 3.5 mm stereo plug at the end of the cable. I do not know the name brand because I do not have it with me at this time. I also did have to use another adapter, (3.5mm to 2.5mm stereo) to go from my Y adapter to the 2.5mm jack in the phone that I am using.

OK, so you're using a stereo recorder? If so, are you recording the received voice to, say, the right channel, and your voice to the left channel, or are you trying to mix them into one channel? Many recorders set up for stereo don't let you set different recording levels for right and left channels. Does your recorder?

What recorder are you using?

Again, I would expect that the signal from the mic in the headset would be too low to record if the recorder is expecting a signal like that coming from the cell phone's speaker output. You might need a small preamp circuit on it. Others with more experience than me may know for sure. If you can post the names of the products you're using when you get hold of them, it might be easier to give you specifics.

How many conductors do the jacks have?


Torben

 

[shokjok]

Cellphone audio is mainly monophonic. You could record each side of the conversation on different channels. You could also modify a PTT mic to act as a switch for each side of the conversation.