Re: New Zoom F8
 

Thanks Colin and always good to read the manual before you buy.

Re: New Zoom F8
 

Guy,

Like many other guys here I have a lot of interest in this device. But for those of us that can not test drive one the big question remains "how good are the preamps?".

Today's technology and even firmware enables manufacturers to make products feature rich. But features do not account for quality performance. Making high quality preamps costs money. We all know what sound devices preamp quality is and that is the big reason they are worth a kings ransom.

I want to know if Zoom produced a pro level product with the F8 or if, as someone else on this thread (who I respect) said "it will be a nice device with ten POS preamps". So lets not even try to compare it to Sound Devices, for a thousand bucks I don't expect that. But lets a take a Zoom H6 for example. It has POS preamps with audible noise at the setting of 5 and 7 is a desperate move as the noise ramps up quickly. Is the F8 just another prosummer Zoom device in that category or did they make a big improvement in the preamps?

A test recording where you ramp them up would be great if that is possible? Even your opinion on the difference will help.

I see you are a DVI sponsor. I appreciate that and try to support sponsors because otherwise this great forum would not exist!

Kind Regards,

Steve

Re: New Zoom F8
 

Well I listened to the demo and the various mic's being tested, I could not hear much noise and that is a pretty quiet studio!

Re: New Zoom F8
 

Guy was surprised by that too, but I assured him it was only due to my amazing voice.

Re: New Zoom F8
 

Hi, Steve: I'm obviously not Guy, but I was in on the test and have some experience with the Zoom H6, as well as recording VO's with Sound Devices recorders. Unfortunately, we no longer have the test F8 and won't have stock in until late this month. I'm happy to do another test and post it when we get one in.

That being said, to my ears, the Zoom F8 preamps sound very close to those of the Sound Devices 633 I have sitting here on my desk. I'm not a professional sound guy, but I have been a video producer for over 15 years. I hope this is helpful in some degree.

Re: New Zoom F8
 

Jason,

I have a ME2. The next time I need it to sound that good I will ether hire you for the VO or ask you who did the sweetening to make a ME2 sound that good! Mine never does.

Seriously though, under controlled circumstances in a quiet studio you can make almost any preamp sound good. In the real world I need to ask my preamps to provide some power once in a while. That's why I keep wondering if you can drive these?

Steve

Re: New Zoom F8
 

"I have a ME2. The next time I need it to sound that good I will ether hire you for the VO or ask you who did the sweetening to make a ME2 sound that good! Mine never does"

- If you can make a POS ME2 sound 'good', "You're a better man than I am Gunga Din!"
(exceptions may vary though)

Re: New Zoom F8
 

Jason,

Your post and mine above hit at the same time. If the preamps on the Zoom F8 sound even close to your SD 633 that would be incredible. That would make this an amazing field recorder.

Rick,

I knew you would chime in about the ME2. But that was the non serious part of my post. Like I said, my ME2 is a POS. What do you think about the preamps being "almost as good as a SD 633"?

Steve

Re: New Zoom F8
 

For the record, all the audio in that video is untouched, straight from the recorder, with the exception of a slight level boost to the DPA 4018 track.

Re: New Zoom F8
 

BTW, a NYC dealer has sent me a F8 to use on a 20 day indie feature film shoot (King Cobra), staring Christian Bale & James Franco) [ you did not hear it from me]. I will report my findings as time permits. Naturally, I will record in tandem with my SD 744.. but I will need more tracks in some scenes.. the F8 will be recording concurrency.. TC and otherwise.. Naturally, my boom op/mic will still be the key.
Don't expect any YT reviews.

Re: New Zoom F8
 

Would never expect a YT review from you for anything. As long as you can give us your opinion here it will be worth a million bucks, OK a thousand dollars. I will look forward to your input considering your glowing support of Zoom so far ;-) ;-) ;-) Gunga Din!

Steve

Rick, Do you know James Wirth? I hired him and his crew three times for some of my NYC gigs. It has been a while, I think the last time was in 2007. We rented a studio in the theater district and created a talk show type set. Peter Salvo MD of PBS was the host but it was a totally commercial shoot. James is a great guy and it was a professional production working with him every time I hired him.

Re: New Zoom F8
 

I look forward to reading about you practical experiences as you are a top man.

P.S I have two ME2 mic's with my G2 systems and have always found them to be fine, I wonder if some people have duds or different models?

Re: New Zoom F8
 

Hey Rick,

How are you getting along with the F8? When you have time I would like to hear your thoughts.

Steve

Re: New Zoom F8
 

There was a scheduling change (and a delay of new product.. my LI USA Zoom contact stated 'it's not built in the same place, or by the same entity/folks that build the other Zoom products' (crap), so I only had the one for a few days and never actually used it on set. I was impressed by the solid build/feel of it, multiple/mixable outputs, ect. The file naming architecture could cause problems for a PSM. It seems a bit complicated and overkill for a OMB shooter. The preamps are of 'questionable' quality.

Re: New Zoom F8
 

Thanks for the F8 update Rick. Did you see the quote below when I posted it above? Just curious. NY is a big city, but it is a small industry we work in.


Steve