Zoom H4 Handy Recorder
The H4 Handy Recorder is a handheld digital audio recorder from Zoom, featuring built-in condenser microphones in an X-Y stereo pattern, priced from around US$280 depending upon memory capacity.
Recordings are stored on an Secure [Digital card|SD card], or via a USB cable to a computer running digital audio workstation software.
Applications and recording formats
The H4 can record in stereo or four-track mode. In stereo mode WAV or compressed files may be made. A 2 GB card will store 95 hours of speech-quality or 3 hours of CD-quality recording. With device firmware from version 2.0, SDHC cards up to 32 GB in size are supported, storing 16 hours at the highest-quality setting.Basic four-track recordings can be made in the field with the built-in microphones and two additional input ports which accept external signal sources via XLR or 1/4-inch connectors.
Stereo mode
In stereo mode, the user has a wide choice of sound quality, with lower quality requiring less storage space. Only 44.1 kHz 16-bit recordings can be imported into four-track mode. All stereo recordings share a single folder, and on playback are sequenced as one continuous output stream with no pause between files.Stereo recording can use the built-in microphones or external input via 1/4-inch or XLR plugs.
4-track mode
Four-track recordings can be made of one or two tracks at a time. When recording in stereo, only tracks 1 and 2, or 3 and 4, can be chosen. Four-track recordings are limited to 16-bit/44.1 kHz WAV files. WAV recordings made in stereo mode can be imported into a project folder.When recording on one or two tracks, the other tracks may be played back simultaneously. Each track can be individually panned, to create a stereo image.
Any or all tracks can be mixed down to a stereo bounce file. This can be the last step in mixing, or an intermediate step to free up other tracks.