Frequently Asked Questions

Q: How can you power Pettersson D240x detectors for longer periods than can be supported by a single 9V battery?
A: The D240x can accept 12V. We use 12V battery systems for our field recorders. You can use any gel cell or 12 V battery up to your need. We get them from here
http://batterystuff.com/batteries/
You just need to attach a matching 9V connector (with the polarity appropriate: positive-male; negative-female) to connect to the D240x. Also, put an inline fuse (1A) on the positive line from the battery to protect the D240x. You can also integrate recording devices and a solar panel into such an arrangement. A D240x draws about 30 mA of current.

Q: How can I protect my detector from rain if I leave it out overnight, or for days at a time?
A: You can arrange the detector in a rain cover, pointing it downward toward a flat surface (e.g., a 25 x 25 cm plexiglass plate) arranged to cover the desired direction of coverage. Detectors can also be placed in looking down into 90 degree PVC elbows. Drill weep holes into the lower bend to let water drain; cotton or other fiber in the weep hole will wick water away to prevent a standing puddle. see image

Q: What are the hardware requirements for running SonoBat?
A: Windows: Pentium with at least 256 MB of RAM (512 MB or more recommended), about 120 MB of free disk space (more will be needed as you collect calls). To directly transfer audio signals from a bat detector to your computer, the computer must have a sound-in port, e.g., a microphone port.

Macintosh: PowerPC with OS X and at least 256 MB of RAM (512 MB or more recommended), about 120 MB of free disk space (more will be needed as you collect calls). To directly transfer audio signals from a bat detector to your computer, the computer must have a sound-in port, e.g., a microphone port.
Note: Macintosh iBooks do not have a sound in port, but you can adapt one to have a sound-in port with a Griffin iMic via the USB port.

In addition to the computer, a bat detector capable of processing time expansion sequences. As a basic unit, we recommend the Pettersson D 240. Two of the Pettersson units that work well with SonoBat have an autotriggering function that will automatically retain and deliver time expanded call sequences to a tape recorder. The taped calls can then be downloaded into the SonoBat program for processing and analysis. Those models are the D 240x and the D 980, with the D 240x as the more economical of the two. You can read more specifics about these units at the Pettersson web site

Q: I've followed the instructions in the User's Guide for setting the gain on my computer's sound card, but I still can't get the signal low enough to avoid overloading the signal level.
A: (Windows) First, make sure that you have enabled the advanced settings for your microphone volume settings, and checked these advanced settings to disable any microphone boost settings, e.g., +20 dB gain.
If that doesn't remedy the overload, you may have a laptop with an exceptionally sensitive sound card, and you will need to use an attenuation cable between your detector and computer. You can get one from

Trew Audio, Inc.
220 Great Circle Road
Suite 116
Nashville, TN 37228-1798
voice: 615-256-3542 or 800-241-8994
www.trewaudio.com

They will make a custom cable for you. Request a 20 bB attenuation. Just ask for the same type of cable that Joel Tigner ordered.

Q: Aren't time expansion bat detectors more expensive than zero-cross units?
A: Not necessarily. There is a greater variety of time expansion detectors available than zero-crossing detectors, some of which have special features and high prices. But a basic unit such as a Pettersson D 240 will yield excellent results and has a comparable cost to an Anabat detector together with the requisite ZCAIM unit needed to interface with a computer. No extra interface unit is needed to use a time expansion detector with SonoBat (see below). Most of the recordings displayed on these web pages and in the SonoBat demo were made using a similar Pettersson D 140.

Q: Does SonoBat require a special interface module to download call sequences into the computer?
A: No, SonoBat uses the built-in sound-in port on your computer. If your computer has a port with a picture of a microphone over it, then you are ready to go. A custom audio cable is included in the SonoBat package.

Q: But my iBook and my new titanium G4 PowerBook don't have audio ports?
A: Yes, silly thing from the company that pioneered multimedia. But the solution is simple: the Griffin iMic creates an audio port using the USB connection.

Q: Will SonoBat work with my Anabat detector?
A: No, because the Anabat uses zero-crossing, a different operating principle than time expanded detectors. Zero-crossing does not acquire sufficient signal information to render full spectrum, high-resolution sonograms.

Q: How can I use SonoBat in public presentations about bats?
A: SonoBat can add a great enhancement to bat talks. Go to our resources page, and follow the link there for suggestions.

Q: Would you like to read more questions?
A: Please ask one.