Zoom H2 or H4?

[Andy Sandoval]

I'm lookin at gettin one of these awesome little digital recorders but can't decide on which one. Would like to hear anyone's thoughts on either.

[Stu Schulman]

Andy,I guess it depends on how many tracks you want to record on?A friend of mine has a H4 and I borrowed it for a couple of days the screen is pretty small on both units but on the H4 it was hard for me to get around..it could just be me.I have the H2 and it's pretty easy to use.

[Andy Sandoval]

I'm still researching both of them. I thought I read where there's a firmware upgrade for the H4 that address's the small font on the screen.

[John McClung]

I bought the Zoom H2 a few weeks ago and am really thrilled by its ease of use and the very good sound recording quality. I'm so far just recording lessons with students.

I hope they do improve the navigation, you have to punch a little button to scroll down the pretty long menu list, a thumbwheel on the side would be much faster.

But that's just an interface quibble. In a class situation coming up, I'll record with the 2 mics on the front, and the 2 mics on the back, capturing my voice and steel, and any student questions or insults.

I recommend this gizmo highly, Andy!

[Jim Eller]

I have the H2, I really like it for it's size, ease of use and the quality of recordings I get. I've added an external mic.

Jim

[John McClung]

Just an update: I've had 2 serious recording problems in the last month with my Zoom H2. The first time files got pretty garbled downloading to my Mac, but the culprit turned out to be a new card reader.

Last weekend the H2 froze, and could only be restarted by removing batteries. Unfortunately, that also wiped out all audio on my 8GB Transcend HCSD card.

Looking for answers, but I'm nervous now, I use it to record steel guitar classes for my students, having audio go corrupt is not acceptable.

Anyone have clues, or similar experiences?

[Craig Stenseth]

Does Zoom support an 8GB card? I thought 2GB was the official limit.

[Tony Prior]

purpose is everything here, two totally different units with different fundamental purposes.

One is a stereo full spectrum front and back recorder, the other is a stereo recorder which allows folks like us to multi track if we are so inclined.

If you are nNEVER going to use it as a 4 track then the H2 is the answer. If you are GOING to use the 4 track feature than the H2 is out of the question.

that was easy..

I have an Edirol R-1 portable Stereo 2 track, Wave and Mp3 deal... I am at a loss to understand how I got this far in life without one of these little portable recorders. I take it to every gig, record countless hours of music off the net, take it to shows, concerts, the whole deal...I also have a Boss Micro BR 4 tracker which can do many of the same things and in the little case is a drum machine as well !. Amazing things.


I would have bought the H2 if I didn't already have the Edirol R-1.

ps:
regarding recording times, for example, 128 mp3 mode with a 1 gig card gives you 17 hours. 24 bit wave is 1 hour, 64 bit mp3 is 34 hours.

[Fred Martin]

The Zoom H2 is sure worth the money and I have not had any problems so far but I use it mostly as a scratch pad for working on songs. The ability to record from either side of the unit is nice and it is no bigger than a cigarette pack. It still goes through batteries faster than I expected. The USB always works and is easy to drag the files to the computer. Recording with a guitar and singing its great. The controls are pretty easy and straight forward. Havent been able to USB it into Power Tracks as a mike yet but it does a great job of capturing the moment.

[Bill Terry]

I bought the H4 because I wanted actual XLR inputs (2) with phantom power since I sometimes use remote mics. It can also double as an audio interface to a PC, i.e. the inputs can be routed to your fav PC recording app. Not sure if the H2 does that or not.

The multi-track feature wasn't even a consideration for me, I don't use it.

[Andy Sandoval]

I use two amps to practice with. One has my guitar runnin through it and the other has my BIAB rhythms runnin through it. All I want to do is be able to record myself and make a decent soundin Mp3 or Wav. Which one would be better?

[Tony Prior]

The recordings should both sound exactly the same .

If you have no need for the 4 track feature or mic inputs of the H4 then it appears the lower cost H2 is the answer.

thats my take.

t

[Larry Beck]

I just bought an H4. The new firmwareupgrade lets you use a 4 gig SD card. The existing mikes are in XY configuration but you can use external mikes from an sm57 to a newman U47 with phanton power.

for the extra bucks, I'd go for the H4

[Ron Whitfield]

This new unit has lot's of capabilities, and can be found around $300.

www.edirol.net/products/en/R-09/

Search youtube for - R-09 RH They have a trade show preview.

Per Joey Ace's reply below, I figured this would have been a new/up-dated model. Guess not.

[Joey Ace]

The Edirol R-09 has been around for a year or two.

I've had one for a over a year and am very happy with it. I looked at the Zooms, but the fonts were too tiny.

I know of three local musicians who purchased new R-09s after seeing mine.

[Mark Wayne]

Andy,

I use the H4 and even encourage my students to get one to record lessons...but...they are incredible recorders for shows, etc. I had a Marantz PMD670 ($600) and would take the H4 over it in all aspects, especially recording quality.

Don't really know the diff between the two, but for the few extra dollars it's better to have an H4, cause you know your gonna use them 4 tracks somewhere down the line, and I'd hate to see you 'wish' you had them.

[John McClung]

Update to my corrupt files problems on my H2:

turns out it was the 8GB SDHC card that crapped out, I think the H2 is fine. Others online report the same problem, so I'd say stay away from the Transcend brand, at least at that large capacity.

[Bill Leff]

I've had the H4 for over a year. Makes excellent recordings but I can't stand the user interface. Have never even tried to multitrack with it.

[Ken Lang]

I've had the H4 for a little less than a year. I took it back East in the fall last year to a country jam in my hometown. I recorded part of the day. It was OK, but not like a big recording rig. I too hate the interface, but I was able to download the files into my computer and now can visit the day when I want.

[Mark Vinbury]

I bought an H2 a couple of weeks ago and have used it a few times to record gigs and practice. I like it and don't see why I would need the more expensive H4. I also picked up a 4G card which should be plenty for my use.
It takes a bit of getting used to as far as setting levels etc. but produces a decent recording once you figure it out.
Next piece of business is figuring out how best to edit the recording and make copies for my bandmates.This can easily take more than an hour.
The wav files from a 2 hr. session can be very large and full of unimportant chatter.
I have Audacity and n-Tracks recording programs which can do the editing but the download time for 2 hrs of wav files runs about 30 min.
Then I still need to edit it and convert to Mp3 to get it all on one CD. Is this what others are doing?

One thing I wish I could do is manipulate the data right on the card via my computer screen and keyboard and not have to use the recorder with it's tiny buttons and screen.
Is there any way or website to download the software that is in the recorder onto my computer.

Another thing I would look for if I were buying a new digital recorder is remote control. The ability to stop and start the recorder from a distance would save a lot of downloading and editing time when using it to record and distribute band rehersal recordings.

[John McClung]

Mark, send me a PM and I'll clue you in on my process. I've had to experiment a lot, doing the same kind of recording you are, so I can save you some time, I think. Are you on a PC? I'm on Mac, but still we can figure out a workflow for you, I would think.