For a low-ish cost field recorder to record sounds in nature (which ideally can then go directly into my 1010music Lemondrop if I want) what do people recommend?
Zoom H1n?
Zoom F2?
Tascam something?
Something else?
Thanks!
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Please can you share your experiences with field recorders for recording magical moments? Every now and then I come up with jams I wish I had recorded, and it somehow proves impossible to keep a laptop ready for the moments of inspiration, and the process of starting ableton is too much of a distraction.
I am looking for something to be handy at all times, so it would be good if it could use usb powerbank and ideally the mains as well.
wav, ideally 32-bit though not essential.
could be fitted into a pocket and recorded at reasonable quality sounds with microphones
nothing fancy. Most importantly, positive user experience with this particular purpose.
Looking at Tascams and Zooms, around GBP 75 second hand.
What do you think?
The iPhone, with Just Press Record as a lock-screen widget, sounds ideal for this.
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Yep. Your phone. With you all the time (big brother likes this), and youāre going to layer it with techno drums, fancy fx, saturation, pads and chords, bass drones, compressors, eq, multiple tracks, Granulizers, reverbs, delay, modulations of every kindā¦
I attempted to record cicada noises with my iPhone a couple of years ago. Disappointing results and battery life was poor.
I havenāt tested my newer iPhoneās recording ability though very much. It has much better battery life too.
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If anyone gets the Zoom H1 make sure the ālow cutā is set to off or it will sound very tinny. I didnāt find this out until I had it for a few years.
The OP wants to hook their recorder up to microphones, which can be done with the iPhone. TBH an iPad mini would be better, with USB-C, and still super portable and immediate.
Iām just reporting my iPhone recording experience. It was a 6S. Surely you did not think I was recommending itā¦
Ha! Definitely not.
I have an iPhone 13 now. I am confident it will be better at field recording than the old 6S.
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Okay, nice (iph)one if you have or want to have, but it costs enough to buy a 32-bit 4-track.
How about field budget recorders - winning points and annoyances?
Tascam dr-05x vs Zoom H1N? Anyone?
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if you dont mind high noise floor both of them are fine.
from those two id go with tascam, has standart AA batts, better interface and wider dynamic range.
portable recorders is a niche market which is rather slow, and even if you get a flagship, sometimes its not an upgrade from just using your phone.
right now Zoom F3 is the biggest leap in affordable field recorders we had in about decade, if you can afford it, its safe to say its going to last you at least another decade, before something better comes out. You dont have built in microphones in it, but that just gives you more freedom to choose the one you like.
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I use a zoom h1 as a āutilityā recording device. Iāve
also made a two XLR cable to use the left and right input channels as independent mono inputs. The goal with that was recording voc and instrument, not exactly electronic music.
I didnāt expect the h1 to sound awesome, you have to pay for that. I just wanted a clear recording that could convey some of the energy of a jam. It does that well.
Bought a Sony PCM-D100 on Ali-Express a few months ago + an Aquarian Audio PA-1 for contact mic & hydrophone use.
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The Zoom h1n uses standard batteries as well, maybe youāre thinking of the older h1?
I picked up an H1N on Amazon for 75 bucks yesterday. Anyone think I should return it and just use my iPhone 12 internal mic? Iām not looking to do professional field recording, more so for interesting sample fodder for techno mangling. Iām not concerned about the cost, but mainly the convenience.
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I have the H1N, paid $80 a few years back for the red version on sale. Iād say keep it for $75. I use it all the time. Mostly use the the line in to record my DN or my mix from my SiX. Itās so convenient, small, and sounds great.
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Iāve got the H2n and use it frequently for field recording despite the 60hz cut and my iPhone.
Even though I know my iPhone is ancient, it still looks like a thousand dollars, so not something I want to leave casually in the corner.
Keep the H1, itās a useful thing to have around and wonāt die simply because of the whims of Apple.
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This. Thanks for the thoughts, I will keep it around for sure. At the very least I wonāt be distracted by a bunch of notifications when Iām trying to focus on capturing some sounds.
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Anyone tried one of these yet? I like the form, but a few reviews said it picks up interference.
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While expensive, Iām really enjoying using my new TX-6 as quick field recorder with usb drive after updating the firmware on mine.