 One of the best field recorders out there |
| Review Date: March 28, 2009 |
| Reviewer: Aaron Morris, Seattle, Wa USA |
Just like the customer above me, I have a fairly early model (serial 2211). I don't imagine them having any revisions or anything, because this unit is really solid. Let me start by saying that this device should not be considered a Mic in its own right. Sure, it has two condenser microphones stuck on top to record in stereo, but I wouldn't use these mics in any studio unless I had nothing better. This unit is for those people who want to record in the field, and be able to capture 4 tracks of audio in a handheld device.
First, the build quality. Obviously Zoom took a lot of criticism to heart from their first H2 and H4 models. The H4n sports a "rubberized" hardshell design that's easy to grip, and seems to stand up well to surface scratches. (Mind you, the rubber texture can attract greasy fingerprints which can get annoying if you're a gadget freak like me). The top of the unit where the mics are is metal. There is some plastic on the unit, but definitely better designed than the previous two recorders from zoom. The buttons are easy to press, and the screen is large, allowing you to see everything you need to very easily.
The poster above me wondered why there was no metal cage protecting the microphones (like the previous H4 had). The answer to this is the switchable pattern on the microphones. Each mic can be twisted and swiveled to change the directionality that the mic pics up. In its native position the mics pic up at a 90 degree angle, giving a pretty good stereo image. But when you twist them, the mics are then a 120 degree angle. This is good for picking up sources that are farther away, or even ambient sounds for a wider stereo image. If there was a metal cage over the mics, you couldn't reach your fingers in to twist them. Overall, I would rather have a switchable pickup pattern, than a protective cage. Just don't drop a $350 recorder.
Second, the packaging. Inside the box, the unit came with a hardshell plastic carrying case, usb cable, foam windscreen, ac adapter, mic stand adapter, manuals and cubase le software, and a 1gb memory card. This is leaps and bounds above the competition. Most other recorders won't come with any of this. Other companies will even make you buy your own ac adapter and memory card. And Zoom went even further and added a plastic carrying case (for those of you worried about dropping it). They were definitely thinking about the customers on this one.
Third, and most importantly, the sound quality. This is why you buy the unit right? The sound quality has to be good or nothing else matters. Overall I was surprisingly impressed with the sound quality. I am an audio engineering student, going to school for sound reproduction, and sound reinforcement. Needless to say, I know my way around a microphone. I was expecting this unit to sound average, just like a pocket (or handheld) recorder usually sounds. But in fact, the H4n sounds pretty decent. The high end is nice and defined, the microphones built into the unit sound really clear. The one thing I can say about the sound is that it is accurate. I have recorded a few tests using my voice, a guitar, and some other misc. elements. I did notice that the microphones gave off a little bit of condenser hiss when the input gain was turned up. This could probably be solved or lessened if you were to get closer to the object and turn down the recording level. But still, it worries me to have a little bit of noise floor coming from the mics, especially if I were to use the recordings for post production video work.
The other thing I noticed was a lack of bass response. This could have been because I was a foot or two away from the microphones, but the bass on the microphones was a little lacking. My voice sounded a little thin. My guitar sounded fine, but guitars don't really have a lot of low end in the first place. Also watch out for handling noise. If you think that you're going to carry the unit around and do interviews while holding it, forget it. All handheld recorders suffer from this (I've read), but its true for this unit as well. Anytime you hold the H4n and move it around, you can hear low end rumbling and handling noise. Just use a tripod, or the included hand/mic clip adapter and you should be fine. (Also get a better windscreen if you're going to use it outside, the one included doesn't do anything outdoors for wind noise. You should buy a fuzzy or "hairy" windscreen if you want to use it outside)
Overall I think this recorder is the best on the market right now. Although there are a few units that have better sounding built in microphones (sony), it's only marginally better. Plus the H4 is cheaper (by about $150) and has more build in features/functionality. Like the fact that the H4n can record with two built in mics, and two XLR mics simultaneously (4 tracks at once). This means that you can record with the built in mics, but also use your own microphones if you want to add variety, redundancy, etc. You can also just use the unit for a preamp if you only want to use your own microphones to record in the field. I won't name off all of the features, but some included features weren't even necessary and Zoom was nice enough to add them in anyway (guitar tuner, audio interface, stamina mode, MTR mode, 96k recording, etc).
Needless to say, if you need a recorder for any reason, even if it's just for a school project, or for recreation, don't buy the cheapest recorder you can find. Spend a little extra money and get the H4n, it's seriously worth the extra cash for something that will last you much longer. It's simply the best value for a handheld recorder on the market right now. |
Zoom outdoes itself
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| Review Date: March 23, 2009 |
| Reviewer: G. Lundberg, |
Among the many other recorders on the market today, I looked seriously at the H2 and the original H4. I ended up not buying anything for awhile because every single one of these devices seemed to be missing something or have a negative aspect that I just wasn't enthusiastic about paying for. Then I heard some rumbling that Zoom was coming out with the H4n, which was supposed to be their response to all the feedback they'd gotten about the H2 & H4. So after all the good things I'd read about those two, the H4n had me at hello. I grabbed one as soon as it became available, which was about a month after they announced it. (Serial # 1438!)
I won't review every little detail of the H4n but I'll tell you the three major improvements that made me buy this:
- The screen is now a healthy size and displays everything you need to know clearly.
- The interface overall is a pleasure to use. You can operate it easily with one hand. It's very intuitive and all the controls feel solid. I usually go through the manual once anytime I get a new piece, but for basic recording you really wouldn't have to. Even the 4-track mode is a breeze.
- Zoom has really stepped up the build quality on this piece. Unlike its all-plastic predecessors, the H4n's case is rubberized and the mics are solidly mounted on... what's this, metal? It has a nice solid weight and feels pro. One thing I didn't understand though: the original H4 had these protective pieces surrounding the mics and the H4n does not. But it's slightly top-heavy and if dropped I can easily imagine the mics hitting the floor first and I'm pretty sure they would be tweaked/broken. Or what if you had this in your back pocket and sat on the mics? It's like, for all the work they put into making this more durable, they left the most important part vulnerable. Which kind of makes me wonder whether the extra heft of this unit is just for feel, not for real. (Time will tell..)
I will primarily be using this to record DJ sets and sounds from the field. I did that this past weekend and the quality is just as good as the other reviews say it is. I'm looking forward to being able to record a stereo mix from the mixer, simultaneous with a room mix with crowd noise, in 4 channel mode. Also this is the first condenser I've owned and I look forward to using it in the studio. I leave some cables hanging off the back of the cable box so if I hear something on TV I can just plug in and hit record. I thought I wouldn't use the 4-track but already it has me exploring ideas in the car. The built-in speaker is really handy. The FX are very high quality and there are some interesting ones beyond the typical reverb and delay.
The H4n is like the Swiss Army Knife of field recorders. The big one, with all the weird blades and tools you'll probably never need. It's one of those rare moments of technical glory when a company collects a ton of great ideas from their customers, refuses to compromise, and you end up with a truly inspired product. |
Absolutely wonderful.
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| Review Date: July 15, 2009 |
| Reviewer: Adam Dachis, Pasadena, CA |
I generally don't like to rate anything five stars because I feel like there's always some room for improvement and a product is never really perfect. While I wouldn't call the Zoom H4n perfect, I think it set out to be something and achieved it fantastically. It exceeded my expectations, especially for the price, and I use it any chance I can get.
I'll start with something trivial...but not really. It records to SD/SDHC media. If you have something like the M-Audio MicroTrack II, you're stuck with Compact Flash. For an audio recorder there's really no need for larger and/or faster cards. SD/SDHC is larger and fast enough and it's tiny. Most laptops and desktops these days have SD/SDHC slots in them and I love any chance I get to leave the USB cable at home.
But on to more important things...
One of the wonderful upgrades in the H4n is that there is a mic level switch on the right side of the device. Previously this was achieved through a menu. But the new preamps in the H4n are really what make it a better device than its predecessors. The recording quality you get from the built-in mics alone is impressive, but when you hook up a nice microphone to the H4n it sounds just too good for a portable recorder. You can plug in XLR or 1/4" inputs as well. There is a lot I could talk about in regards to the versatility of this device but I'll only mention one other thing in the interest of keeping this relatively short. One feature I find really compelling, being that I travel a lot and it saves some room in my suitcase, is that you can use the H4n as an audio interface with your computer rather than just a stand-alone portable recorder. Most of the music I make utilizes sampled or synthesized instruments, and so I'm generally only recording vocals (with the exception of acoustic guitars). This makes it very easy to grab vocals just about anywhere with Cubase and my laptop. Zoom includes a free copy of Cubase LE but it works just fine with regular versions of Cubase.
Battery life is decent. It's certainly as good or better than anything else, but it's still less than I'd hope for. I does use AAs so you can just replace the batteries as needed, or use rechargeable batteries. I use those rechargeable batteries with the USB port as much as I can and those work quite well. Standard AAs tend to last for about a ten hour work day of use (that's been my experience, anyway). The battery life is definitely sufficient, but it's not impressive.
The zoom comes with a number of recording settings, allowing you to select various levels of quality in your WAV and MP3 files. If you're willing to bring your sampling rate to 44.1 Khz and your bit rate to 16, you'll be able to turn on a power efficiency mode that'll increase the battery life significantly. So, if you need to get that extra power out of your batteries, the H4n offers an option. While it won't always work for everyone, I think it's a nice addition.
A downside of the device, for some, may be the size. I definitely like the pocket-size of the M-Audio MicroTrack/MicroTrack II, but zoom definitely achieves a much higher level of quality (the important thing) and so I think the increased size is worth it. It's ultimately necessary for the XLR inputs anyhow. Still, this is not something you're going to put in your pocket. A cargo pocket, maybe, but not a regular pocket. I don't really care, but it is a fairly large device for a portable so that may be worth noting for some.
The H4n comes with a bunch of accessories. You get a screw in stick for holding or, I assume, placing in a microphone stand (it looks like the base of a microphone). You get a case, a 1GB SD card (which is often sufficient), a power adapter, a wind screen for the stereo mics, a USB cable and probably some other things I'm forgetting. My point is that they give you pretty much everything you need to get started out of the box, except for the batteries. I always like it when a company includes the batteries, because it says to me that they want their product to be usable as purchased, but it's obviously not that big of a deal. The accessories you get with the H4n pretty much say that already. In my experience, it's uncommon to even get an SD card.
There are a lot of things to talk about here and going into them all would take a long time. The H4n offers a lot of great options. It has a somewhat clunky but very usable interface. It's very simple to operate with virtually no learning curve. It would be great to go into detail about the interface and other features and so on, but it's all pretty good. They did an excellent job with the most important parts of this device and that's really what matters the most.
Overall...
+ Phenomenal recording quality for a portable recorder
+ Excellent built-in stereo microphones
+ Record level adjustment buttons on the hardware, rather than just on the software
+ Two combined XLR and 1/4" inputs
+ Battery save mode by recording 44.1 Khz 16 bit WAV
+ Replaceable batteries
+ Doubles as a USB audio interface
+ Comes with many accessories (most of which are actually useful)
= Reasonably fast operation
= Good but not exceptional battery life
= On the larger side |
more than you will ever use
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| Review Date: August 19, 2009 |
| Reviewer: C. M. Evans, Los Lunas, NM United States |
Watch Video Here: http://www.amazon.com/review/R19LMCN6RK6DSN I bought this for recording interviews and nature sounds. Works perfect on both accounts. I definitely recommend one of those furry windscreens to cover the wind noise (a quick search on eBay shows some different makers (it does come with a standard foam screen)
These are more worries and nit picks than complaints:
1) 25 second boot-up
2) The case printing in the menu/select area is rubbing off after only 2 weeks
3) The jog wheel/select button worries me a lot in a long range time frame as far as breaking
4) You're going to want the remote control to cut down on case noise if you're using a tripod(a little shopping around will get you a bundle deal)
5) The Cubase 4LE is certainly intense, but comes with a pretty obnoxious DRM license scheme (I know that it is free.) For all the complaining about the H4N manual, wait until you wade through the Cubase (non-printed) manual.
6) You can set the H4N for use with NiMH rechargeable batteries; this means the battery level indicator is calibrated properly, it does NOT mean you can recharge the batteries while in the unit (I verified this with zoom/samsontech)
having said that, it's so cool that it has a ton of features most people will never use (4 channels, music effects, metronome, multi-track). I've used it with a cheap 16GB transcend SD card with no problem. It actually came with a printed manual!(when was the last time that happened?)It has a case and a AC adapter! For only $350!! (I feel like Billy Mays Here) |
Great features for a musician
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| Review Date: April 16, 2009 |
| Reviewer: anonymoose, LA |
I am aiming this review at the guitarist or soloist on any instrument who likes to study/copy lines from recordings of their favorite musicians or create their own backing tracks out of anything from their cd collection.
After working with the H4n for a couple of weeks, I am truly amazed by the features of this recorder when you delve a little deeper into the manual, especially in the MTR (4 track) mode. The manual could be better written, but with a little experimenting, it's pretty easy to understand. The Karaoke section of MTR mode is really useful not just for Karaoke, and here are some work-arounds that the manual does not explain.
What if you want to change the key of a recording you have made, and then change its playback speed also? Changing playback speed is available only with a stereo mode file, while changing key in playback is only available in MTR mode. If you record a song off a CD in MTR mode, do so by setting "stereo link" which will record stereo on tracks 1 and 2. For playback, turn on Karaoke which allows you to change playback key as well as a center cancel useful for removing vocals or lead instruments if you want to make a backing track to practice over. When you are done, use the "bounce" feature to create a stereo file, and then the "move" feature to move this file from MTR project to a file in the stereo folder. You now have a stereo file in the key of your choice and can alter playback speed and use the A-B repeat to loop a section for practice. This will make sense and be easy to do if you have the manual in front of you.
For doing your own music transcribing, this recorder is great. If you have directv or cable, look for the OVTV (Ovation) station which is always running programs of the Montreux Music Festivals. You can find some great music to practice with here. On Directv it is located somewhere around channel 260.
Summing up--the H4n is a brilliant little device with great sound and a deep set of features. Musicians should check it out. |
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