The Samson Zoom H4
I had the chance to take the Samson Zoom H4 portable digital recorder for a test drive in December (thank you to Steve’s Music in Ottawa). At first glance it looks to be a distant cousin of the Sony PCM-D1 — at a fraction of the cost.
The Zoom H4 has many of the same features as its direct competitors — the M-Audio MicroTrack 24/96 and Edirol R-1 (I can’t bring myself to consider the R-09 to be in the same league) which include internal mics that capture a great sonic spectrum and have nice stereo definition, and an interface that’s easy to understand.
There are significant bonuses with the H4. This device comes with two combination XLR-1/4″ inputs with phantom power (a huge feature), a built in limiter and other digital processing effects, and four-track recording with amp modelling (for all you musicians out there). All that and it fits in the palm of your hand.
The downside to the H4 is that the switches at the side of the unit are stiff, and I found the “joystick” control to feel delicate — I was concerned about breaking it.
The Zoom H4 is a great addition to the market and offers yet another great option for anyone looking to buy a portable recorder. Be sure to consider all features carefully and pick the unit that best suits your needs.
March 15th, 2007 at 5:42 am
Hey Mark, I’ve just bought a H4 from iMusician in the UK. I’ve only just got it so haven’t had much chance to test it yet, but I can’t wait to use it! I hear what you’re saying about the joystick, I’ll just have to remember to be careful with it! I’d be interested in your thoughts on the digital fx..
March 15th, 2007 at 5:53 am
I didn’t really play with the digital effects - partly because I didn’t have time and partly because I typically only use limiting as part of my input chain. I’m interested in hearing/seeing your thoughts on the effects, though.
Mark
March 15th, 2007 at 1:30 pm
is it true that the unit has automatic volume controls?
aren’t there faders of some sort that control the input volume?
December 2nd, 2007 at 6:02 pm
zoom h4 DOES NOT have an accurate internal clock and is a serious pain to use with video production
January 31st, 2008 at 1:55 am
I received the Zoom H4 for Christmas tried it a couple of live jams, and really easy to use, was 100 feet away on an angle blocked by a crowd of gabbers but it still recorded with very good results check out http://www.myspace.com/gerrypearson
I will find a better location to keepout the crowd sounds next time but boy I love this new toy.