All user reviews of 4/5 for the Zoom H2

Used in almost all rehearsals for 6 months to work at home, and qq lives. The sound is enough to hear all the beats and singing in our own atmosphere generally much messy and "bouncing". Were tested with a positioning of the amplifiers and a balance in real quick with everyone just for the creature, and immediately it sounds better is downright exploitable: we canvassed nicely with the result, once a Light reaper small passage just to recalibrate the stereo and redo a small equalizer. Mode "omnidirectional" exploiting the two pairs of microphone for that (record repeated) more absolutely undeniable, really qq c. not to be missed for musicians as a group.

Obviously the price has not been pro microphones, you can hear it anyway. But it remains a good thing as micro anyway to capture the amp, that's the joke in overhead as well, and not doing so bad for the bass. Never tried direct vocal mic, I think it's worth any "microphone singing" entry-level but no more.

Also note: it's cash heavy noise level, and it saturates when the digital is not immediately Niagara Falls - and fortunately for us, who have, shall we say ... peaks of musical tension as measured in decibels (scratch them to death).

In short, the risk of repeating myself, for a group that wants a tool for repeated, even a peaceful demonstration with no round is enough bonnard, why the Omni is awesome to take everyone in a room.

In addition, it is "sound card" for more broke: a good headphone, a small laptop or an EEEPC, a DI + adapter jack / mini jack, Reaper plugs qq + + asio4all chosen, and roll my chicken to "almost nothing "... (Cons with no USB charging, everything goes through battery or transformer is not the best)

I was looking for a digital recorder to make various statements sound without needing a computer at hand, mainly for the song (I can not register with me so I am forced to move away from isolating myself) but also for the field recording.

I hesitated between the H1 and H2, but it really seemed too fragile, I opted for the H2 that is affordable in light of its performance, it takes a lot of functions more or less interesting but the real plus is the possibility of varying configurations of microphones in different contexts.

Concretely, the device has 2X2 microphones that pick up sound in front and (or) the back, it opens up a lot of opportunities, especially when it comes to recording groups, Repeat '.

I mostly use the Config 2 microphones before (taken at 90 °) for 2 microphones and singing back (taken at 120 °) to capture ambient sound, the sound quality is impeccable for the price, we hear all kinds same details regarding the acquisition of sound in nature with low noise.

Management input level is fairly intuitive, it selects Low / Mid / High depending on the volume of the sound recording is then adjusted in finesse with the + / - depending on what the readout display (backlit).

Only defect of the device, the plastic shell is pretty cheap, the cover comes with the recorder is irrelevant, so I bought a silicone case which should enable the craft to survive a fall.

I use the Zoom H2 recorder as regularly witnessed repeated my rock band, occasionally recording of concerts, plays, or voices. I have since January 2009.

Overall I am very satisfied. The sound quality is good, for a sweet price. The major drawback for me is the poor quality of assembly: the plastic does not take very long, despite the protection provided. Another (small) default, battery life is not great, but since they are LR6, one can have a stock ... or connect the H2 area.

A report that integrated treatment (compressor, limiter ...) does not really interest me, so I am not commenting on this point. Getting started is easy, the object can be transported anywhere and very light (sometimes too much, fortunately, the rubber cover prevents slipping!), The sound is good. I use it more in terms of high volume, and it behaves well. Sometimes a few microphones saturation, but this is rare. At low volume levels, we can meet the blast, but the wave file will remain fully usable.

In short, it's a product I recommend a small cheap device to record anywhere without the fuss and with good sound.

I have the opportunity to use this device for 2 years and I love to use it for various situations: recordings of repetition of musical groups, interviews (well I made one) and taken to its equipment demos.
I never used this product to competitors, knowing that this model is getting old and that the latest models must be better led, I think. However it should be noted that the H2 is a true gas plant, I do not think I have gone around the beast, but the key for me being able to record simply and quickly, so I went around to these functions only and it suits me. I love the SD card feature is génialissime, I bought a 2 GB card and I'm really wide for large recordings. At the time I thought it was rather expensive to buy but now I think there are ways to find opportunity in not too expensive.
I totally regret not my investment because at every opportunity I serve.

I use it for 2 years, mainly to record rehearsals and work the songs.
It's still great practice, one branch, one that cares the middle of the studio and go!

Settings:

* The input gain is easily adjusted according to 3 presets (low / medium / high) and we can refine it in the menus.

* We choose the recording mode: front, rear or both (in a single file or two in order to rebalance the stuff by hand later). But use "repeat" it's hard to balance the front and rear, each transplanting a little sound from the other because we are in a small environment with sounds that turn.

* A lot of other more advanced settings are possible, but the menu navigation is not great and I did not really useful anyway.

* It can serve as an audio interface for recording directly to PC. Never tested but it may be useful for some.

Sound:

* I'm no expert but for me it highly enough. A little behind and treatment was sound about right. We could even use it to put zics on the net. Everything depends on the use to which it wishes to make.

Weaknesses:

* Already, it is plastic and not breathing strength. The SD card door is already broken home (thank you my friend who I lent it ). That said I did not have other worries than this, and it's not very penalizing.

* If you use it plugged in, like me, do not forget to turn it off before unplugging it, otherwise you lose the recording made. Or have to put batteries in to be sure.

* Not at all convenient for listening, the functions of fast forward / reverse is probably the worst I've seen and are on the verge of unusable.
Edit: I am advised that it is possible to update the firmware and it's worth the effort. I may therefore change this (and others?) After upd.

Conclusion:

For the low price, quality is more than adequate for my use. I had not tried other models before so I could not compare, but I probably would do the same choice.

There's already a lot of opinions here, but I saw that in asking others if you have any specific questions feel free to ask.

I use it for a year now.

Negatives:
The autonomy of the H2 is limited to 3 hours.
System folder from a good intention but it quickly mess with the filenames STE001.mp3, STE001.wav, STE002.wav etc. ... There is a possibility to rename files but it is long.
The wide opening angle is both a positive (for surround sound) and negative. For my purposes (recording sounds in the street or at home), it is quite difficiel to obtain a precise sound, especially when there are other noise (I would have liked a cardioid function but ...)

Positives:
Its mobility (requires 2 batteries and saves to SD card), its overall sound quality. This is not very high end but you can get good recordings. For example, I made this video: http://www.myspace.com/video/migoucorporation/improvisation-piano/106723194 I placed the microphone inside the piano, opened the hood (the video is also on youtube but less clear good quality audio).

(Originally written by FredDup/translated from Audiofanzine FR)
I bought an H4 almost one year ago and after reading the reviews about the H2 I bought it too.

I liked the difference in size: I was disappointed by the size of the H4 but very satisfied with the sound quality of the recordings I made with it. Considering the price, I hesitated a bit.

The H2 is much smaller and easier to hide for concert recordings.

I had big expectations regarding the mic input, I bought an old Sony mic to record concerts. The sound of the first recordings using the H2 was exciting. It was not the case with the small Sony mic, which worked much better with my Minidisc player (not enough lows with the H2!).

But I'm very happy with it, the sound with the integrated mic is very good.

I like most of all the surround mode. But I've been testing the H2 for only one week.

I've noticed several nice surprises with respect to the H4: files with hour and date. Easy setting of recording levels (which I miss on th H4). The forward and backward buttons (used for almost all settings...) allow you to set everything, even while you're recording.

I haven't compared recordings made with both devices.

I will keep them both: the H2 doesn't allow multitrack recording but its size, configuration (W mode is great for ensembles; 360° is also good), and easy settings are great for mobile recordings.