Field recording often focuses on the exterior world. We step outside with microphones in hand to capture the sounds that add dimension and meaning to our public lives yet there is a wealth of sound within our domestic sphere that is equally as valid.
During a moment of procrastination last night, one of many, I broke away from household duties to direct a microphone towards my computer hardware. In this 3-minute recording you can hear short samples from the computer’s external hard drive, mouse, keyboard and screen.
There are some beautiful rhythms, drones and high pulsating frequencies quietly emanating from these devices. The sounds in the recordings are reminiscent of early science fiction movies based in the imagined hi-tech world of the 21st century. The future is now!
SOUNDS LIKE NOISE 
Excellent material !!
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Thanks, I like the idea that these sounds are happening in rooms all over the world right now, a common but unheard experience.
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Here comes – in a very bad quality unfortunatly – another computer related sound, which has almost disappeared from our surrounding:
[audio src="http://ries.platformart.eu/Modem.mp3" /]
One day I’ll rerecord it with better equipment!
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Ah yes, I haven’t heard that sound in my own home for quite a while but it is still so familiar.
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Sounds great. I love the squeaky blips that punctuate the digital hash. I’ve found lots of nice stuff in the electromagnetic fields around computers. Also anything with a small motor is usually rewarding. I have a surprising track on this page that came from a portable minidisc recorder:
http://www.zachpoff.com/diy-resources/inductive-pickup-experiments/
Meanwhile, we should give a shout out to Christina Kubisch and her “electrical walks”:
http://www.christinakubisch.de/en/works/electrical_walks
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Hi Zach. You have some great recordings there, I love listening to the sounds between the sounds, those tiny grains of sand. I hope others follow this link.
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The coil mic produces some amazing, weird and sometimes worrying results. My favorite sound that I captured wash a microwave. Have a listen here.
Keep up the awesome work, I love hearing the sounds you capture.
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Thanks for providing that link Stephen, the sound of nutrients disintegrating in sharp bursts!
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