Hardware BirdNET

To identify the birds in your backyard, you need a microphone and a device that runs BirdNET. If you're new to BirdNET, read About BirdNET first.

Recommended

• Easiest: buy a BirdWeather PUC. Plug it in outside, and use Featherframe Cloud.
• DIY: a Raspberry Pi 5, a USB microphone, and BirdNET-Go. Run Featherframe on the same Pi.

Off the shelf

	What it is	Works with Featherframe
BirdWeather PUC	A weatherproof listening station from Scribe Labs. Two mics, Wi-Fi, BirdNET built in. No computer needed.	Yes, through BirdWeather
Haikubox	A backyard listening box, built with the Cornell BirdNET team.	No

If you don't have a station, you can use any public station on BirdWeather, like one near you.

Build your own

The computer

Computer	BirdNET-Pi	BirdNET-Go
Raspberry Pi 5 (2 GB or more)	Yes	Yes (recommended)
Raspberry Pi 4B (4 GB)	Yes	Yes
Raspberry Pi 3B+, Zero 2 W	Yes (64-bit Lite OS)	No
Linux PC, NUC, or NAS (Docker)	No	Yes
Mac or Windows	No	Yes (binary, not Docker)

• Use a 64-bit OS.
• Use a high-endurance microSD card, 64 GB or more. Recording all day wears out ordinary cards.
• Wired Ethernet is more reliable than Wi-Fi, if a cable can reach.

Featherframe can run on the same computer. See Install the server.

The microphone

The mic matters more than the computer.

Mic	Notes
Boya BY-LM40	Inexpensive, and plugs straight into USB. Less sensitive than the others.
Clippy EM272 from Micbooster + a USB sound card	The most recommended mic in the BirdNET-Pi community. Much more sensitive. Needs a mono USB sound card.
RØDE AI-Micro + a lavalier mic	A higher-quality USB sound card.

For more, see BirdNET-Pi's microphone guide (a work in progress) and BirdNET-Go's hardware page.

Outdoors

• Put the mic under an eave, not sealed in plastic. A sealed mic hears less.
• Add a foam windscreen or a furry "dead cat" to cut wind noise.
• Keep the computer in its own weatherproof box, or indoors with the mic cable run outside.
• Point it away from roads, AC units, and pool pumps.

There's no single right build. For examples, see BirdNET-Pi's discussions.

Then set up BirdNET-Pi or BirdNET-Go.

Next: Quickstart.