Zoom H4N

It should come as little surprise, then, that Zoom are continuing to sell the H4, while releasing an improved model that addresses many criticisms made of the earlier model. The H4N comes in at a slightly higher price but, like its sibling, boasts a feature set that makes other recorders look positively lightweight.

The H4’s four-track mixer enabled you to do basic overdubbing, and to apply effects to your recordings, but despite having two mics and two external inputs, it wasn’t capable of simultaneous four-track recording. With the H4N, you still get a multitrack mixer, but the onboard mics and external inputs can be used simultaneously. Because the onboard mics are configured for stereo, your four-track options can seem limited, but you could bypass them using the mini-jack input and a splitter cable for a pair of battery-powered mono mics. Even without this, there are plenty of possibilities. A number of applications are suggested in the detailed manual, and there is plenty more potential. Capturing jam sessions in stereo while, say, DI’ing keyboard and bass/guitar parts, is easy; or you could similarly take a feed off an FOH desk and DI a couple of instruments or set up a pair of ambient or audience mics to give you more options in post production. It also opens up the possibility of surround-sound recording, and it might prove useful for applications such as impulse-response capture.

There’s plenty more on offer too, from compressors and low-cut filters, to guitar amp and cabinet emulations (not the most authentic out there, but certainly passable for demo purposes), and distortion and delay-based effects.

In terms of ergonomics and functionality, then, the H4 has undergone quite a transformation to acquire the extra ‘N’ (which stands for ‘next’ — probably my only real gripe!). But what of the sound quality? Well, that’s improved too. Tackling the handling-noise issues of the H4 and upgrading the external mic preamps makes quite a difference. Using the preamps with a pair of AKG C451s, I was able to capture a perfectly usable sound in the studio. The onboard mics are definitely an improvement, and comparable with those on other portable recorders in this price range. The two stereo-width settings also give a useful option when trying to achieve separation between two sources, or simply recording something like an acoustic guitar part in stereo, while leaving a ‘hole’ in the middle for a vocal.

I’m a big fan of the H4N, and found very little to dislike about it. While there are more ‘professional’ portable recorders out there, you’d be hard pushed to find something that’s better on sound quality alone. This product is also aimed at a very different market, where it compares very favourably with the competition. The H4N is justifiably a little pricier than its H-series predecessors, given the improvements that have been made, but although there’s a lot of ‘bonus’ functionality I can’t imagine using, you’re not paying a premium for it. If you want a good handheld recorder, this should definitely be on your shortlist; and if you want simultaneous four-track recording thrown in, it will be a very short list indeed!  0