Awesome.

Now just wondering about the audio wandering.

H4n sensitivity
 

Hi,

I am a new H4n user. I tried it with built-in mics in manual and auto level modes, I am very pleased... I also connected it to the line-out (tape-out) of the DJ board to Inputs 1 & 2 in auto level mode. When DJs play very loud (they almost always play very loud...) I got distortions: there was the min level 1 out of max 100 - can't go lower... Is there a way to switch sensitivity from mic to line level? Somehow, I did not find it... Or I just have to use pads or limiters/compression?..

You can set the record level to less than 1 when you upgrade to the new 1.40 firmware. Refer the the instruction manual for installation details.

Link to Latest Firmware

H4n BWF timestamp fixed in sys1.4
 

Got an email from Zoom - they wrote to say that the timestamp issue I reported has been fixed in the system 1.4 they released today. Yay!

Download Software

Downloaded, installed, tested, and it basically works close enough for rough Time-of-day timecode sync. Vegas now is able to interpret the timestamp info and drop the file in the correct location on the timeline - see the attached screencap.

This is no Sound Devices 702T or even Tascam HD-P2... but for $350 this is one handy little recorder. I've gotten a lot of use out of mine, and now, glad to get usable rough TOD timecode.

BTW, if you were waiting for the wired remote, it is now in stock at the usual retailers.

If you came in via XLR, the original H4 had an undocumented feature: The combo 1/4"/XLR jack was mic level at the XLR, and line level at the 1/4".

I've not had a chance to test this with the H4n.

If this doesn't work out, the next step would be 30db pads, I suppose.

I've heard it's the same with the H4n. This according to Neal Ewer's podcast.

Thank you, all!

I'll try 1/4", and since I used XLR - it was mic level... I also will upgrade to 1.40 version!

Audio Wandering
 

Randy: If by wandering do you mean "does it stay in sync with your video" then yes it does a very good job at that. I had a 1 hour clip in a musical I recorded and when I brought the H4N audio into the time line I was only a few frames off with the corresponding video from the carmera at the end of the hour.

mAmps of phantom power
 

A Zoom tech answered my question about how many mAmps of current is supplied for phantom power. At 48V, you get a total of 10 mAmps, 5 per channel, or any sum of 10, say a combination of 8 and 2 mA or 6 and 4 mA is also okay. I was concerned about some mics requiring more power to operate at peak performance, e.g., the NTG-3 requires a minimum of 5 mAmps per the Rode data sheet. So this is good news for the H4n!

Thanks Peter. What camera did you use and at what frame rate did you shoot at?

Can't speak for Peter, but I've recorded 40 minute takes with no loss of sync using my HF100 at 30p. H4n was set to stereo mode 96kHz/24bit.

Randy: The video was shot with a Sony VX2000 (SD NTSC). Peter

Any update on this Michael? Just to clarify, it DOES have the ability to send out sound from the 1/8 input (because it's just a headphone jack right?), either from the onboard channels, XLR channels or BOTH is not yet confirmed though? I'd like to know what you're findings are. I'm very close to pulling the trigger on this.

thanks

Thanks Nate and Peter.

Sorry Randy I thought that I updated this info, as I forgot about this post.
To make a long story short, when using either normal stereo recording (onboard mics, or XLR inputs), or 4-channel recording (built in mics + XLR inputs or XLR inputs + 1/8 stereo input on back of H4n), the H4n will combine all recorded audio into a stereo signal outputted from the 1/8 "Line Out" on the H4n.

Since you are outputting the H4n though the 1/8 "Line Out" as a stereo mix, when you take that signal and use a wireless to transmit to your camera, then your wireless will muxed that stereo signal into a mono signal to your camera.

Very nice Michael, thanks for updating.

One last thing, do you find that there is much delay at the zoom recorder before being kicked out to the cam or is the audio 'pretty close' to not have to worry about that?


Cheers

I didn't pay close enough attention to worry about it, but it seemed that it was pretty darn close to not worry about. Granted your not getting genlock audio video, but it's easy to adjust in post if needed.

Which BTW, the H4n keeps very good sync with audio over an hour, unlike previous Zoom recorders, which had sync problems due to cheap recording chips. Seems that Zoom used higher end chips, which is nice. The H4n won;t keep perfect sync, but what do you want from an inexpensive 4 track recorder. =)

2 GB File Size Limit?
 

I know this is a laughably obvious question, but I can't find an answer, either here, in the manual or on Zoom's website: When a file size reaches the 2GB limit, does a new file automatically start, and is there any loss/gap between files? Obviously this is a no-brainer in the camcorder world, but I was just wondering if it's the same with this unit.

According to this chart: Maximum Recordable Time, it's about 2 GB per hour (4 CH Mode, 24bit / 48kHz), and we often have to do shows of well over 2 hours with no intermission...

Yes. The audio will be split over multiple files, but there will be no gaps in the recording.

Sweet. Thanks for that; looks like this might be the recorder for me. If I can decipher the manual...

Line Level Inputs, below "1"
 

I recently did a test for using my Sound Devices mixer (outputs +4dBu line level) running the signal into the 1/4" inputs. Using the calibration signal (0dBu) at a recording level of "1" it hits "-8dBFS" on the H4n.

The mixer peaks at +22dBu, so I needed to readjust the H4n level to "0.6" to get the proper headroom.

Now, the "below 1" recording levels came in a firmware update, which makes me suspect that the levels are cheated with a compressor/limiter. I don't have a reliable way to test this, so I was curious if anyone knew anything about this.

Thanks,

Well - you can download it HERE and start reading now. :-D

Oh, no, trust me, I downloaded it a few days ago and have been valiantly trying to understand it ever since. There's a whole thread about the manual right here on this forum. I've criticized the Sony manuals in the past but this one reaches new heights of incomprehensibility.

Jim Andrada, in that thread, makes a great point about it being structured more like a Japanese manual than an English one, with bits of info scattered randomly about rather than flowing in a logical order, as we'd expect in an English one. But he says the actual translation is pretty good and I believe him.

I'm guessing it will take some hands-on playing with the unit with the manual open and a strong cup of coffee nearby...

Hi Adam - One thing I didn't perhaps consider enough when I looked at the manuals was whether the Japanese description was really clear enough in the first place. While the translation was fine, there's also probably also a second order structural issue with what's being said and or emphasized.

Japanese is not generally noted for its clarity of exposition, and a lot does tend to get left to the reader to figure out on their own - if anything, being overly precise is sometimes seen as insulting to the reader's intelligence. Engineering documents on the other hand can be incredibly precise.

And as a "by the way" I ran my comments about structure and clarity past my (Japanese) wife and she pretty much agreed.

Oh well, it can't be any harder to understand than Cineform's web site...