R.Stafford
September 17, 2008

Rating: 9/10

I\'ve been using the Zoom H2 for nine months now and have no regrets about buying it. I\'ve been recording audio since I was a teenager in the 1970\'s. This is one of those products that makes me realise just how wonderful and inexpensive modern technology is when compared to the struggles and costs we had years ago.

I use the H2 for interviews (audio only and video). Also for recording atmospheres and sound effects for video editing.

To my ear, the built-in mics are great quality and the unit is very easy to use. Being able to record onto a standard SD card and with the H2 powered by AA batteries (or the PSU) gives maximum flexibility. I particularly like the fact that the PSU is supplied as part of the package.

On the minus side, the H2 is incredibly sensitive to handling noise and it\'s hard to find an external microphone that isn\'t too hissy. But some work OK.

And I can\'t understand why the H2 uses the slower full speed USB 2.0 rather than high speed. But transferring via a card reader is the easy solution to that.

To the person who complains about lack of sync during video interviews lasting an hour, just cut out a frame from the soundtrack here and there during gaps in the conversation. That\'s always been a part of film/video editing.

In conclusion, the Zoom H2 isn\'t perfect but it\'s still one of the best, most affordable little audio recorders produced to date. I can\'t wait to see what the company comes up with next!

will rollason
March 6, 2008

Rating: 9/10

I only bought this to record rehersals and it works a treat. Stick it on a mike stand , dont matter how loud it gets, and let it run. Get home and put it on puter for chopping up or whatever,put it up on myspace for rest of band to listen and work on. Job done.
Will allow you to record in stereo or two pairs to mix down, but why?? If you want quality, buy some good mikes or go record in a studio.

N. McGadie
January 8, 2008

Rating: 7/10

G. Limor's sync problem exists with the H4 as well if you transfer the file directly into your editor. I find that capturing realtime audio into my editor, while defeating part of the reason for digital recording, does at least keep sync for a reasonable duration and I use mine for over an hour with two cameras.

G. Limor
October 5, 2007

Rating: 6/10

On its own, it is a very handy piece of equipment. In the week that I have had the H2, I have tried it out in a number of different recording situations, and I have been generally pleased with the result.

Where the H2 fails is when you're recording audio to it for subsequent synchronization. In a recent event involving both audio and video recording, I recorded the desk output (3 radio mics) onto the H2 and a DAT recorder for safety, while filming the video onto two small handheld cameras.

When lining these up in the editing programme, the two video recorders' audio tracks and the DAT audio stream all lined up bit-perfect over a 60 minute segment, but the audio from the H2 had drifted by around 200ms over that period of time.

So the H2 is great for some of my requirements, but for others, it fails. It can not be used as a backup or an extra pair of channels for a multitrack recording due to this drift.

To be fair, this could be a problem with my particular model, but I would suggest that other users try this as well. And if you are going to require synchronized audio, better to rely on a different recorder, not the H2.

mark wellman
July 31, 2007

Rating: 5/10

Well it has time code in BWF files which is great but there are no XLR connections on it. You know how weak minijack connections are, not good. Its a pitty they didnt upgrade the H4 with BWF timecode file recording, maybe they will SOON !!!!!!!