Haynes HBD2766 Bat Detector Construction Kit, Black

After using a borrowed bat detector on a night-time walk with our local ranger, I wanted to buy one of my own. The problem is that most are priced in the £80-£120 range. Not too great if it is discarded after a couple of night-time walks!This little kit is much more reasonably priced.Pros:o Does actually worko Excellent value for moneyo Easy to assemble (no soldering, just plug some parts together)o Could relatively easily be transferred to a plastic box if desired.o Built-in loudspeakero Runs on easily obtained 9V batteryCons:o Cardboard enclosure, so not ruggedo Battery not secure in boxo No headphone socketo Frequency is uncalibrated *o Battery not included* Even some of the expensive ones don't have a frequency readout.For the uninitiated: this consists of an ultrasonic microphone and amplifier followed by a mixer. The output of an ultrasonic CW oscillator is mixed with the (amplified) incoming signal to heterodyne it down to audio frequencies. It is then amplified and fed to a loudspeaker.Bats emit short bursts (not continuous shrieks) otherwise they would not hear the echoes coming back. So, as long as the oscillator is roughly in the right range, the bat's call will sound like a click when mixed down anywhere in the audible range. With a calibrated oscillator (which this does not have) you MIGHT be able to identify the type of bat based on the frequency setting - however I suspect that the bat's flight and other characteristics are possibly more telling anyway.

For the money, this should get 5 stars but there are a couple of improvements that could easily be made. Very easy to assemble and get running in no time at all. The cardboard box is sturdier than expected. Even though it's the end of September, I detected bats on the first evening. Be careful when assembling the mic - the connecters can push the terminals into the mic if they are too tight. I pulled them out and it still worked thankfully. What is needed is a calibration on the frequency dial. Also, it seems that for e.g. a pipistrelle can be detected across the frequency spectrum and this needs more explanation. How can you select for different species. But overall, very satisfied for the money.

It took me less than 5 minutes total build, good starter kit, its all plug together assembly, no soldering but seems to work well, needs 9 volt battery. Update (10 Aug 2021), i finally heard the bats around 9 pm just before dark, its very loud and clear, i wish i could give this 10 stars, the frequency dial was set to over half way, now thinking of fitting an external pickup transducer and mains power so i know when to look outside, there is no annoying fuzz when there is no bats, 3.5mm jack socket for pickup, screened two core cable, 9volt mains adapter to a socket

I bought this for my son a few years ago. It’s still going strong and I use it tooImpressive bit of kit for anyone . Big kids or small

A cheap functioning bat detector to identify bats. Changes the frequency of the bats to frequencies audible to humans which you must then look up to identify the type of bat. This is nice if you are curios to find out which bats live, say, in your garden.However, it is not very sturdy built in a cardboard box and feels flimsy/cheaply built which is expected for the price. However within one day the motherboard started smoking and ceased to function. It is unfortunate that it is so tatty/short term use.

Update July 2024 - 4th summer using this and, after my Uncle soldered some of the connections, this is still working as well as ever. A great introductory device! ORIGINAL 2020 review: Despite the Haynes label, this is the Franzis Verlag model, without soldering. Larger pictures (colour!) would have helped in assembling, the German text didn't help further - all OK until it comes to working out which is the ground pin. Thanks to Charlotte's answer (small black dot already marked) finally figured this out. Suggest cutting slits in cardboard to poke pins through (holding on so leads don't slip off) and securing all parts with strong parcel tape inside (speaker, 9v battery in half a small cardboard box, e.g aspirin) and out (mike). Surprised that no one has reviewed it in action - works absolutely fine, picked up my ultrasonic pest repellent and I have spent two evenings picking up bat calls in the garden at dusk. Great fun....

So disappointed with this, the case is made of cardboard and the overall quality is poor. Does it work ? well I had bats flying around me and the detector was making a crackling noise, but changing the frequency button made no difference. There is no way of knowing what frequency you are on, so even if it worked better, you still wouldn't be able to identify what type of bats you're detecting. My advice if you want a bat detector is send the extra money on a Magenta Bat Detector 4, that's what I had used a couple of nights ago, and they are great.

Could do with some indication of the frequency you are “looking at” as knowing that helps in identification of individual species. Gen v basic but works quite well when you get the hang of it