Customer Rating: 
Summary: great sound effect c.d.
Comment: I've recently purchased 3 sound effect cd's and this one is by far the best. The sound is unbelievably realistic for a recording and if you have a walkman, its even better. The 'jacket' explains how this recording was done--the techniques used. One of the best things is: no music, just a great calming T-storm from start to fade-away finish. The other great feature...the price. It's worth more than that low price. I'm not sure, but I think Gordon Hempton is a expert in this area. I will be checking out more of his work.
Customer Rating:
Summary: relaxing, realistic and immersive experience
Comment: First of all, contrary to a statement in another review, the entire 54 minute CD contains thunder. The title "Rolling Thunder" is a suitable description of what you will find: a superb binaural recording of a gentle rainstorm, underscored by a rich field of rolling, distant thunder. Though it's quiet (about the same volume as the rain), I don't know how one could miss it. Aside from the first couple cracks, the thunder is quiet enough to make listening to this CD a very relaxing and mellow experience. Towards the end, the rain subsides and is replaced by birds and running water as the thunder slowly recedes into the distance. The disc is concluded with a ghostly performance by tree frogs (?) during an evening wind-storm.The disc lists coordinates that indicate the recording location to be in Arkansas, USA.
I mentioned that this was a Binaural recording. This is a technique, usually employing a carefully designed, artificial head with microphones buried in each ear, that is used to capture, on a stereo recording, the 3-dimensional sound that a human would actually hear. To fully appreciate the experience, you should use headphones, in order to keep the left and right channels from mixing with each other. In a good recording, you can close your eyes and almost point to where the sound was coming from, as if your head was in the position of the recording device. For best results, consider using good quality equipment.
For headphones, try those made by Sennheiser, AKG, Grado, Etymotic Research, etc. A good quality CD player is important, too. True devotees may spend even more money and use a hi-fi amplifier designed specifically for headphones, however good headphones and a decent portable CD player (e.g. Panasonic, Phillips/Magnavox) should provide a satisfying and immersive experience at a much lower price.
I'm told that matrix surround decoders (Dolby Pro-Logic (r) ? ) work well, also.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Great way to relax.
Comment: I love this CD! It's completely relaxing and peaceful. Several times I've taken the headphones off to make sure it hadn't started raining outside.
Customer Rating: 
Summary: Only 2 mins of Thunder!!
Comment: I was very disappointed with this CD...when I first played it I thought something was wrong..there was about 30 seconds (seems like longer) of blank for Volume reference tone...then 2 mins of thunder and then simple rain for 30 mins...WITH NO THUNDER!! It's not a thunderstorm at all! If you want a thunderstorm...look elsewhere.
Customer Rating:
Summary: relaxation cd
Comment: This cd is a recording of a thunder storm without accompanying music. if you're looking for a good white noise generator to sleep with, or background sounds to relax by, this is what you want. the lack of musical accompaniment is a big plus as it doesn't lock you into a pattern
