Zoom H2, Handheld Digital Recorder

by Samson

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 4.3 x 2.5 x 1.3 inches ; 3.8 ounces
• Shipping Weight: 2.1 pounds
• ASIN: B000WA368Q
• Item model number: H2
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #19,526 in Electronics (See Top 100 in Electronics)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: July 7, 2004

Product Description

From seminars and conferences, to electronic news gathering (ENG) and podcasting, to musical performances, songwriting sessions and rehearsals, the H2 provides amazing recording quality.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very handy tool, October 17, 2008

By 

Kevin Davey (Chicago IL) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Zoom H2, Handheld Digital Recorder (Office Product)

I was given this as a gift (at my own suggestion.) I have begun writing songs in recent years, and had nothing to record my songs or fragments thereof except some alarmingly low-fidelity cassette recorders. The Zoom H2 has a surprisingly large number of functions for such a small device. It is a little difficult to navigate at times, but it records very accurately, and can record sounds from the front, the rear, or both. One thing I wish it could do is allow multi-tracking, but for the size and price it is a bargain. Highly recommended for anyone who needs to record away from a studio.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great device for musicians or recording public meetings, October 27, 2009

By 

Cat Mann (Minneapolis, MN) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Zoom H2, Handheld Digital Recorder (Office Product)

Usage #1: Recording live music. I've used the Zoom H2 for about 2 years for recording practices and performances of my classic rock & roll band. I wouldn't be without it.

I use the built-in compression feature (set to DRUM or VOCAL) to prevent overmodulating. I start the Zoom H2 when we are setting up, and just let it record all evening. With a 8Gb/12hr chip, don't bother shutting it off between sets. For indoor practices, I use the Low mic sensitivity, with DRUM compression setting.

For outdoor performances, between songs it's sensitive enough to pick up the ambiance: a crackling bonfire, crickets, or crowd comments (a good use of the 360-degree Surround feature. I usually set the Zoom H2 to Medium mic sensitivity, put it on a microphone stand back near the sound booth/tent, with an extension cord for AC power, a small night-light (is AC still on?) and fresh batteries in case someone trips/unplugs the power cord.

I've even set the Zoom H2 in my open guitar case on the floor in a nightclub, maybe 15' from the stage, and it picked up the between-song comments of the musicians, as well as dynamite recordings of our sets.

I have a whole pack Memory Card Carrying Case, Black of SDHC cards: 2Gb (3hrs recording time, in CD-quality), 4Gb (6hrs), and my favorite, 8Gb (12hrs Transcend 8 GB SDHC Class 6 Flash Memory Card TS8GSDHC6) so I can always pop in a new one at a moment's notice. Each card has a tiny label with my name & phone, plus a card index (SD-01, etc); I keep a small printed spreadsheet to show what performance is on what card, which is available for use, etc.

Once home, I back it up the files to my laptop, then process the WAV files with Audacity (free, open-source, multiplatform utility) to do fade-in and fade-outs, pull out individual songs, normalize tracks, make demo tracks or MP3s for listening on the go.

Usage #2: Spoken audio. My spouse goes on business trips and interviews groups of people. She's used it to capture the group comments for later transcription. Here's where other Zoom H2 features are nice: the Automatic Gain Control (AGC), which bumps up the volume if the input gets too low, and the Surround feature, so you can hear everyone talk, in the audio location where they were actually sitting. I've used it for large conferences to record multi-hour presentations or speeches. Handy.

Usage #3: Converting vinyl to digital. This is a future task, but with the Zoom H2's Line-In jack, you can record from other devices (perhaps a turntable or stereo amp output?) to digitize and save records or other media for posterity. If you already have a turntable, why pay more for an additional single-purpose digitizing device when the Zoom can handle it already?

All-in-all, a great little device! Buy it!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Zoom H2 Handheld Digital Recorder, November 3, 2011

By 

Katrina - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Zoom H2, Handheld Digital Recorder (Office Product)

Great item, will be of great use to our paranormal team. It produces better quality audio recordings than handheld digital voices recorders, and comes complete with tripod stand, wind buffer, electric adapter for saving battery power, earbuds, hand tripod, and audio connections. I highly recommend this item.