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Post by Steverb on Oct 12, 2011 16:05:22 GMT
I know that you are an enthusiastic user of the Zoom H4n recorder Michael and I am considering asking Santa to assist in my purchase of one.
However, when I looked at the reviews on Amazon there were a couple of drawbacks pointed out:
1. The unit is said by one reviewer to go through batteries at a rate of knots and if the battery runs out during a recording you lose the whole recording.
2. Another review says, "When connecting an external microphone to the unit's 3.5mm line-in socket and whilst running on mains power, there is very audible mains hum, rendering recordings unusable. When running on internal batteries this problem goes away. The Zoom H4n's instruction manual clearly recommends running the unit on mains power - there is definately a major design fault with the supplied mains adaptor/and/or circuitry inside the H4n. "
So the combination of these two reviews suggests that battery power is limited but using mains power creates alternative problems!
I wondered whether these problems accord with your experience and, if so, how do you get round them?
Steve
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Post by Michael Messer on Oct 12, 2011 21:09:46 GMT
Hi Steve,
I have owned my H4N since early 2009 and I have recorded with all kinds of configurations plugged into it; good mics into the XLR sockets, keyboards and guitars with jack sockets, and direct into the XLRs with a mixer - plus of course its own built-in mics. I have recorded with a stereo mic into the mini-jack mic socket, but there was no point as my stereo mic did not record as well as the built-in mics. I don't remember any electrical hum. In fact I have never heard any electrical hum from anything plugged into it. I am currently mixing some tracks for an album that the live band tracks were recorded on the Zoom and the results are amazing. I often record in really good studios, so I am very well aware of what is good and what is not, and while the Zoom is not British Grove or Air Studio, it is an incredible machine.
Battery life - I have never pushed it beyond what I call reasonable battery life, which is one pair of batteries for a 2 or 2.5 hour gig recording in 96kHz / 24 bit resolution. I have never run out of batteries and I have recorded well over a hundred gigs with it, and I often listen to the gig in the hotel afterwards still running on batteries. I always use batteries at gigs because mains leads just complicate things.
I cannot speak highly enough of the H4N, for less than 300 quid you get a four track recorder that fits in your pocket.
The only downside, apart from needing my glasses to find my way through the menu, is that due to the quality of the casing, it picks up vibrations through the from the floor up the stand onto the recording, so it is important to have some sponge/foam pads to stand the mic stand on, especially if you are stamping your foot near it.
I don't think you can go wrong with it. I use it a lot and for a cheaply built unit it is very rugged, much more so than I originally thought.
I hope that helps.
Shine On Michael.
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Post by marcspark on Oct 12, 2011 23:08:29 GMT
HI Steve and Michael i am just wondering have you thought about a Sony PCM D50. I can't fault mine and they often come up on Ebay for £300. All the best Marc
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Post by Michael Messer on Oct 12, 2011 23:18:24 GMT
Hi Marc,
Thanks for your input.
The Sony is great machine, but sadly it is not a pocket-size four track studio, which is what the Zoom H4N is.
I have used Sony portable recording equipment for thirty years; a Sony Professional portable cassette recorder, then a few DAT Walkman recorders and then a Sony Minidisc recorder (which was a bit of a let down after the DAT machines!). Sony make great stuff and the PCM D50 is excellent, but it is only a stereo recorder. The Zoom has the same recording quality, plus multitracking and mixing facilities.
Shine On Michael
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Post by Steverb on Oct 13, 2011 21:24:48 GMT
Thanks Michael, that is all very reassuring. Maybe the guy I quoted above just had a bad one. I would certainly waste no time sending it back if I were getting mains hum on recordings.
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Post by televiking on Oct 14, 2011 6:26:16 GMT
Hello
I too use the H4 regularly and record my gigs and demos with it. Superb sound quality and I too often listen to myself after the gig using the same batteries. So, at least two to three hours worth of juice with good quality batteries.
But, just a thought: If you want to record a live gig two hours is a long time. But if you want to use the H4 as a multitrack recorder two hours might seem like a very short time, dependingh on your needs. It might be that the person who stated short battery life was used to working eight hour days in the studio. Who knows.
It's all a matter of perspective. I for one would not want to be without my H4.
Televiking
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Post by Michael Messer on Oct 14, 2011 8:58:25 GMT
Televiking makes a good point about battery life - the multitracking modes use much more battery power than the stereo modes. When I record gigs I usually only use it as a stereo recorder, but I have occasionally recorded gigs using it as a four track and the batteries held out. When I use the H4N at home as a multitrack recorder I always use mains power as it will eat batteries in the multitrack mode at high resolution.
Shine On Michael.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 14, 2011 19:24:51 GMT
Love mine. Battery life is pretty good really, much better than my boss micro br. I recorded this tune with my friend Angie and a Taylor GS mini, just using the onboard mics of the H4n. soundcloud.com/bottleneck-bob/reddressCheers Rob
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Post by resonatadog on Oct 16, 2017 16:58:12 GMT
Right I finally decided, I think. I'm going to get a Zoom H4N but now there's the pro version. Dose any one know if its a true improvement or is it worth staying with the well tried and looks like loved classic ? I Will appreciate input/advice. I've wanted a good recorder for a good while. Thanks
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Post by creolian on Oct 16, 2017 19:01:42 GMT
Hello R-dog, all
I've been lusting for one for a while.
The weakest link in any digital recorder is going to be the AD converters and pre amps. I saw your post, did some googling and the only thing I found was "improved pre amps" on the pro model. The only grousing I've heard is in regards to the line input capability not being true line level and that's no biggie unless you're looking to have an absolutely 100% optimized gain structure and s/n ratio across multiple devices which is rare outside of the studio.
I have a fear of built in obsolescence, firmware that won't update, lack of support etc...for those reasons alone and considering the price is not relatively expensive Ill eventually go for the newest model if and when I get one.
I'm using a loop pedal to record my noodling these days... Sufficient but not portable.
All best, Jeff
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Post by resonatadog on Oct 20, 2017 10:37:48 GMT
Thanks Creo, but think I may have answered my own question, ie 'the tried and trusted not pro version', I see a lot of them on ebay. Ive heard very mixed views of zoom products, I recall I met a guy who worked for zoom and he had nothing nice to say about them, but some users MM included give them a great write up. Just gotta try and see I suppose
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Post by Michael Messer on Oct 20, 2017 11:19:08 GMT
Resonatordog,
IMHO.... Zoom products are excellent value for money. What they offer for the price is amazing. The cost-cutting comes in the actual casing of the machine, it is a bit flimsy, but having said that... mine is eight years old, it's been used heavily and is still in one piece and works perfectly. For £170.00 you can't go wrong.
Shine On Michael
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Post by Stevie on Oct 20, 2017 16:07:06 GMT
Oh boy did I ever want an H4n.
MM and others have talked it up but I resented the fact that (as in so many other things) there is a rigged market regarding the price. You could search as much as you liked, but in collusion (probably) with the manufacturer, there was no appearance of any competition in the retail price which was north of £260 at all retailers. I kid you not gentle reader- this hacks me off big style.
Then all of a sudden, the Tascam DR100 Mk2 became available at BHP Photovideo in the USA for the equivalent of £140. My sister was in the USA at the time, and within her very favourable tax exempt BA employee's status a deal was done
The H4n can do four channels at once but hey! I struggle with one, so the stereo recording limit of the Tascam is no biggie here. The DR100 Mk2 is an extremely solid and well engineered piece of kit. If it lacks at all, it's the microphone XLR sockets not accepting 1/4" TRS like the H4n, but you can get adapters for that. In all other respects, I'm sorted. Just don't ask for any of the fruits of my acquisition!
e&oe...
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Post by creolian on Oct 20, 2017 19:10:07 GMT
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Post by Michael Messer on Oct 20, 2017 19:21:12 GMT
Creolian, preamp fever, hay, water... and a Zoom H4N Pro for $100 USD.... there's no dilemma, just buy it!
Shine On Michael.
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