Zoom H1, H2N, H4N - Canon 7D?

M

mrpms

Member
Which would you suggest for recording audio using a Canon 7D? (Short Films, Company Ads)

I am on a small budget, although i could afford to buy any of them in this budget.

In the UK the prices are the following:

H1 - £79
H2N - £149
H4N (Refurb) - £199

Which of these would you choose and why? Or would you suggest going for something else?

Thanks.
 
Hmm - I can't speak to the H2N, or H4N, but I own the H1 - it's a handy little recorder, if you're looking for covert recording, or something that can fit in your pocket. It'll record decent audio, with something of a noise level that's higher then I'd like to hear, sadly... the major cons with it, are the cheap build quality - I've never dropped mine, but if I did, I'm not sure it would survive... it's entirely plastic. Second major con - no XLR inputs, not even a TRS jack. It just has a 3.5mm mic/line in....

Of the recorders mentioned, I might go with the H4N, but you should definitely check out the Tascam DR40 - lower priced alternative to the H4N. Allegedly it sounds very similar. I would also check the DR100 MKii - it's allegedly several steps above the H4N in a few areas too.... the big thing with these units, is that you would have XLR inputs, allowing you to add a shotgun mic at a later time, to boost your audio quality...

Hopefully this helps, and hopefully you can get some folks with actual experience, and not just hearsay about these extra recorders to chime in... :happy:
 
As Seth mentioned, I'd look instead at the Tascam DR-40, if that's the range of recorder's you're considering. Better pre-amps, the same or better capability as the H4n at a lower price point. I used to have a Zoom, and it was okay (the original H4, which was great as a line-level recorder), but it bit the dust a while back. I've used the H4n and the H2... they're okay, but not stellar. I keep a DR-40 in my kit (though not my primary recorder), and I have no complaints about it.
 
Alex H. said:
As Seth mentioned, I'd look instead at the Tascam DR-40, if that's the range of recorder's you're considering. Better pre-amps, the same or better capability as the H4n at a lower price point. I used to have a Zoom, and it was okay (the original H4, which was great as a line-level recorder), but it bit the dust a while back. I've used the H4n and the H2... they're okay, but not stellar. I keep a DR-40 in my kit (though not my primary recorder), and I have no complaints about it.
Click to expand...

Seconded (or third-ed?). If you wanna see how versatile this device is (and great for the price point), check out the video
 
For video, recording direct to the recorder mics is pretty futile for the most part. So the first question you need to ask yourself is what mics I plan to plug into the recorder. Neither the h1 and h2 have xlr inputs or phantom power. So if you plan to use and pro mics like shotguns or small condenser types, that won't work directly. The h1 has zero inputs. The h2 has 1/8 non-phantom powered input which leaves you with dynamic mics (poor choice for the low gain) or something like a videomic-pro, which could work fairly well for modest expectations.

If you haven't, read the sticky at the top of the audio section about under $300 recorders.

Grant
 
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