hi guys ,
I cannot decide on witch device will be better 4 location sounds recording ( city, birds ,cars, etc ). Even though H2 is cheaper,many say it's recording at the same quality as H4 and I'm not really interested about H4's effects, or extra inputs. I just wanna build a nice sample bank for my ambient music,so can I also rely on H2? Does H2 have any big handling noises? In the end i wanna buy the one that's getting the best waw file quality. So, any suggestions?
greetings from the icy Finland

My experience of the H4 was that it was very prone to handling noise when using the built-in mics. I imagine the same would be true of the H2 but I cannot vouch for this.

For clean handling noise free recordings a separate recorder (the H4 will do for this) and a mic in a shockmounted cradle that you can hold (Rycote make good products in this area) is probably best. You'll look like a bit of a fool wandering around the forest with a big furry sausage held out in front of you but the sound will be much better (read: free of handling noise).

For outside recordings (see this article on Outside Recording) you might like to consider a hypercardioid microphone but be weary of phasey sounds if you move it around a lot.

There are dedicated 'fild recorders' such as the Fostex FR2 (and now, FR2 LE) which are relatively expensive compared to the H4 but if this is just for project stuff, rather than professional recordings, then any little field recorder with mic inputs will do.

Any word on budget or intended use?

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www.allyle.co.uk

The H2 comes with a 'screw-in' handle that can either be hand-held or placed in a conventional mic stand.

I use my H2 hand-held for interview work and handling noise hasn't been an issue for me. The manual for the H2 does give advice on how to reduce handling noise.

Whatever you decide on, be sure to get a proper wind-shield. The foam ones you get with the recorders are just about OK for breath sounds, but are useless in anything above a very gentle breeze.

I used my h4 to record a few songs from a festival I was working at, like any handheld recorder they can produce handling noise, I found it very hard to hold the recorder perfectly still for more then 20mins. I would suggest getting the new h4n and mounting it on a stand and use the remote to control it, that way you reduce the handling noise by not having to hold or touch the actual recorder, plus you won’t have to strain yourself trying to hold it perfectly still.

Also the windshield that comes with the recorder is rubbish. I’ve found an old windshield taped to the device (further down the device so that the tape doesn’t affect the sound) worked much better the one provided by zoom.

Thnx guys for the advices. Now everything is very clear. On the budget size i'm very close to the H4 (and i am dreaming at the H4n). But since it's my first recorder and i intend to use all the samples probably as 5.1 system in a theater show maybe H2 will be the choice (since it can record location sounds 360 degrees) i just saw a movie about how to put it on a shock mount so compared with a cardoid witch is very fragile to use i guess it's a win.On the other hand H2 looks more discreet and yes, I was a bit too picky about the handling noise at a pocket recorder. Is it big the difference of the waw quality between H4 and H2 ? (I will use the waw's with Live Ableton )

I know you said the H4N is out of your price range, but I just bought one, and they have encased the new model in a hard rubber that is supposed to help to reduce handling noise over its predecessors. I recently recorded a live performance where I had no choice but to hold the unit (I tried to brace my hand as much as possible on the back of the chair in front of me), and it gave pretty decent results. I was surprised as I expected it to be very noisy.

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James
"Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake" ~Napoleon Bonaparte~

Def the H2, for the price, it is a good bit of gear.
I used mine in York Minster last week, to record an organ recital, (and I know its not everyones cup of tea)
I would love to hear how it sounds in 5.1 tho
Peter

Edited by butcherpete (08/09/09 03:27 PM)