Zoom H2 Handy Portable Stereo Recorder by Zoom
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List Price: Our Price: Calculated in a shopping cart Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: Musical Instruments See more digital camera details and other models |
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Digital camera reviews of Zoom H2 Handy Portable Stereo Recorder
Digital camera Review: From Quiet Harp to Crashing Drums - It's a Hit
Summary: 5 Stars
I'm three weeks into using my Zoom H2 and as a recording neophyte, I can happily say that this gadget is both easy and impressive. I tossed it in my gig bag and headed off for a drum circle, first. Recording in 360, it caught every tone beautifully. The controls were relatively easy, the quick start got me going immediately without having to plow through long manuals. Setting the mic gain on low was just right when the group got cranking on some "testosterone tangos". In contrast, when I played a soft piece on the harp and the circle backed me up, the medium setting picked up the full range. A recording with a six-piece blues band was equally satisfying, using the 120 degree setting to capture the full row of artists. Downloading to my laptop was a breeze - and I've already been able to share these digital files with the other musicians, family, friends, and potential clients.
The only area that I see room for improvement is in the manual. There are some occasions when simplicity of use is provided at the cost of throughness. But the answers to my questions eventually emerged with use of the product. I used the 8GB card and this gave more than enough memory to play at five different gatherings before I had to start thinking about either downloading or using a new card.
If you're planning on using this in a band, I recommend using a mic stand to hold the H2 - this makes it easier to keep an eye on the levels and controls and keeps the recorder from picking up ground noise.
Digital camera Review: Good product at a great price
Summary: 5 Stars
It works great, it's compact, quick delivery and all at a great price What more can you ask.Digital camera Review: Zoom H2 is excellent
Summary: 5 Stars
This product is great. I use it to record my sermons and it just does beautiful. I tried both WAV and MP3 recording and everything just sounded clean. I was just wondering if I should record in mono. I am yet to try working it through the PA system. I will try this on Sunday. I don't think I will be disappointed though. Great!Digital camera Review: Monster step up from basic digital voice recorders
Summary: 4 Stars
I haven't worked with the H2 much yet, the best test I have made is of some frogs at a nearby pond, but when I play back the recording it's just like I am standing there again this past Spring. And that was only recorded at 96k. Beginners may struggle with the features and settings, and pros may find some aspects limiting. I just registered HandyRecorder.org and later in 2008 you may find a user's forum there where we can all ask questions and share information and experiences.
The display is very hard to read, if you have weak eyes like I do and expect to work with it a lot you may have problems. Having said that it's very easy to work with. The light-blue ink manual will give you as much or more problems. It's also very low-contrast in an attempt to thwart those that would copy it to include with knock-offs, I guess. Note to Zoom: Allow registered users to download or order a NICE manual, your product needs it in my opinion.
I bought the H2 because I wanted to start doing podcasts, and I came close to buying a normal $35-120 digital voice recorder, but having some musical background I was dumbstruck when I saw the specs and features (it's stereo not mono and directly creates mp3 files if you want) so it wasn't long before I was able to justify the greater expense, which I would expect to have been easily $400-$500. At less than $200 it's not much more than the "business machines" we are used to seeing.
The other thing that sold me was the ability to change memory cards. And if you use the MP3 file format you can get many, many hours even on a 512MB or 1GB card. Prices per GB are about $5, so I have started watching for sales and have about 4 now, 512, 2-1gb, and 1-2GB. The long recording time of the larger cards could make this idea for dictating a book, which I hope to try this year. The auto-record function should help to increase the capacity once I figure out how to make it work.
The H2 has a mounting hole so you can put it on a camera tripod. I have two, a small 6-inch one and another that is about 5 feet. I have not tried them yet, but I am thinking of finding a small camera case where I can carry the recorder, the tripods, and all the other little things like cords and adaptors in case I want to record in the field somewhere. The tripod should give me the control in places where there is no desk or table to set the recorder.
Aside from the display the only things I wish were that the pause button really paused when recording. Not a huge deal, but you would expect that it would.
I would also like to have the ability to use a wired remote, if only to start and stop recording. Touching the recorder creates a little noise because the mikes are not isolated from the case.
And since the recorder has a USB port, I think it would take the usefulness to the next level if you could have a software application that could fully control the recorder. Being able to do that would give you an awesome 2-track recorder. Of course, if the application could work with more than 2 tracks, you would have an awesome multi-track recorder. I plan to see if I can use the H2 to create a number of recordings that I can bring into an application that will combine them into a multi-track recording.
So be aware of the H2's limitations and if you are looking for a digital voice recorder you will be in heaven with this one!
Digital camera Review: Pretty Amazing
Summary: 5 Stars
I bought this through Amazon, with the additional 4GB media and external media reader. It has worked great for live recording, as a computer recording interface for a laptop, and for recording from the radio (or any directly connected device). I heartily recommend this recorder. The external reader is really handy too, for speedily transferring files to your computer.
In another review, I saw that the reviewer was having trouble adjusting the input levels when the source was directly connected to the unit (other than recording through the microphone). The trick here is that, apparently by design you cannot adjust the level while the input plug is connected, so you need to disconnect the input to adjust the level, then reconnect it. Kludgey iterative process, but effective as a work-around. This may have been fixed in a software update by the time you read this.
Be sure to update the software online when you receive the unit.
Happy recording!