Software
The DSG comes with two Windows software utilities, DSGschedule and DSG2wav, for programming and using the data stored on the DSG.
DSGschedule
DSGschedule is used to configure recording sessions prior to deployment of the DSG recorder.
Set duty cycle (duration and interval) of recordings.
Block scheduling enables nesting of different recording schemes. For example if you were interested in a dawn chorus, one could record 10 s every 10 minutes all day long, and 10 s every minute from 5 am-7 am.
Record for all or parts of a day.
Arbitrary sample rate
Threshold record (e.g. record if over 120 dB re 1uPa)
Calibration data stored with file
Typical Recording Schedules (Download the free software at right to test other settings).
This table shows example recording schedules using a 128 GB SD flash card. The sample rate should be at least twice the highest frequency to be recorded.
| Target Species | Sample Rate (kHz) | Schedule | Days | D-Cell Packs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fish, Baleen whales, Seals, Shipping Noise | 20 | Continuous | 36 | 8 |
| " | 20 | 1 min every 10 min | 365 | 8* |
| Dolphin Whistles | 50 | Continuous | 14 | 4 |
| " | 50 | 30 s every 5 min | 145 | 6 |
| " | 50 | 15 s every 5 min | 291 | 8 |
| Echolocation | 160 | 5 s every 5 min | 273 | 5 |
* Using low-power recording firmware.
DSG2wav
DSG2wav will convert .dsg to .wav files. This process removes the DSG header and timing information from the files to create the .wav files.
Free Software Download
DSGschedule, DSG2wav, Firmware
Release 2.5
Updated 20 December 2011
To allow low sample rates, DSG oversampling with anti-aliasing filtering and decimation has been added. This minimizes aliasing and reduces the noise floor when using low sample rates.
Requires SC1 signal conditioning board to use programmable gain settings. Contact Loggerhead if you have a BD1 and would like a free upgrade.
New Features
- Software Low-Pass and Decimation
- Record when Power On
- Record when Signal Exceeds Threshold
A MATLAB m-file for reading DSG files directly.
MATLAB file demonstrating use of DSGread and how to use calibration of hydrophone to output calibrated plots. Woo Hoo!