Cheap, portable audio recorder - Is the Zoom H1 my best bet?

[skyy38]

Originally Posted by Bob V

The Zoom H2 has been useful for everthing from guitar and cello lessons to school concerts. Since audio memory is tricky, it was really useful shopping for a cello in different stores and then playing back all the choices later at home. Same thing for guitar saddle material - you can do your own blind listening tests for Tusq vs. bone vs. buffalo horn. And yes, you can make snapshot recordings of the cat purring. If you don't need the four-mic capability (narrow and wide pattern options) the new small H1 might work well for you.

As for handling noise, it comes with a little base to stand it on a table (which you really don't need, it will stand on its own) and a mic clip adapter. With the adapter you can put in on a mic stand, and you can further isolate it with a shock-mount mic clip (not the fancy birdcages for condenser mics, but just a mic clip that has a little rubber ring to isolate it so footsteps don't transmit through the mic stand base). If you need to, the manual recommends that you hold the mic adapter in a gloved hand and this actually does help to reduce handling noise. Wind noise, I'm not that experienced with, but it seems to be a difficult thing no matter what mic you're using.

Perhaps the detractors were surprised by how light the unit is, but that doesn't mean it's cheaply constructed. As far as being pocket-able, the H2 almost fits in a pocket comfortably; I usually carry it in a small zippered bag meant for a digital camera (there's an outer pouch that's nice for a spare set of rechargeable batteries and a flash memory card).

While I do recommend it highly, the Zoom H2 isn't convenient as a dictaphone because you can't pause a recording or restart easily. When you stop, it takes a moment to process and when you start recording again it will start a new file. For handheld voice recording that someone is going to transcribe, you'll want a rewind/replay/pause/record feature as you're making the dictation, and at the same time you don't need anywhere near the sound quality that you can get with a Zoom.

Just like boats, you don't know what you want until you've had one for awhile. If I had to do it all over again, I'd get the less expensive H1 which was not yet available when I got my H2. Either one is a very good value.

Of course, there ARE recorders that will either, divide or join files within the unit itself.

The H1 while really great sounding, needs some improvement.

For starters, Samsontech needs to find out where DISH Network gets THEIR remotes made.....

[fanriffic]

Originally Posted by skyy38

Agreed, WHY Omni's...?

Are these on ALL Sony Handhelds? .

No,the D50's mics are cardioid..not sure about others.

In the case of the M10,I would imagine the reasoning is because they're fixed,and so in that case omni's would be the most 'flexible'.

Of course you could always plug in external mics.

[skyy38]

Originally Posted by fanriffic

No,the D50's mics are cardioid..not sure about others.

In the case of the M10,I would imagine the reasoning is because they're fixed,and so in that case omni's would be the most 'flexible'.

Of course you could always plug in external mics.

-

H1 Mics are fixed and they're condensers.

I am aware of at least one model that lets you adjust the mics for "wider stereo"- Oh-that's the Sony PCM D-50 (Just looked in the Sweetwater Catalog)

[Peter Allison]

hi skyy38,
yes, I did record that with the zoom H2, imho its not too shabby, OK, so its not as good as using a good cardoid pair, or even better, a pair of omnis, but its what I had at the time.
The little wav file is the organ in Durham Cathedral, and comes from
Bach's BWV 565BVW 565, at a friends recital there, last year

Peter

[zinzin]

i have done a whole song recording with the zoom H2 and it's not to bad:
Fuzzy retro rock tune - recorded "very" cheap! recorded with zoom H2

[heva]

Product: DR-07MKII | TASCAM

[johnsound]

The H1 is fine for what the OP wants to use it for, except that you will need to use a decent windscreen and preferably the Rycote Lyre suspension mount and pistol grip, although they're good for almost any of the small hand-held recorders. The problem with battery drain on a batch of H1s has been resolved, with local distributors replacing where necessary.

I carry an H1 in my pocket and have made some exceptionally good effects recordings with it. For the money, it's pretty good, I think.

Regards,

John

[PlugHead]

I've had an H1 for a few months, and it's good, miserly with batteries (single AA) but keep in mind it can also accept 'line-in': when paired with GOOD mics/pre's, gets you 90% of what you could get with spendy converters, etc.

Omni's are handy for some things, but in any place that is big (reverberant) it makes for a very non-descript recording. Otherwise, it's a cheap, effective way to document stuff, and if you didn't want to drag out a laptop and more, a good set of mics (where you can choose patterns/characteristics tailored to your recording space) and a reasonable pre can yield damn good recordings.

I recently picked up the Q3 (non HD) to document live gigs - they're now just a couple of bucks more than an H1 ($139 Cdn vs. $115 for the H1!) - it also is a damn handy and reasonably good sounding device, WITH the added benefit of basic 640 x 480 video capture, so I'll be UL'ing files to boobtube and the like. Only caveat is there is no ext. line in, so - you use onboard mics.

I hope this helps,