Zoom’s H4 digital stereo recorder remains hugely popular and, despite a few reservations, is one of my favourites. With ‘combi’ jack/XLR inputs, 48V phantom power, a coincident stereo pair of mics onboard, and masses of extra functionality (from four-track mixing to guitar effects and a USB audio interface) it’s much more versatile than most recorders, and the sound is good for the price. The H4’s preamps could be better, navigating the menu can be fiddly, the casing might be a bit more robust, and so on, but on balance it’s an excellent portable recorder.
I’m a big fan of the H4N, and found very little to dislike about it. While there are more ‘professional’ portable recorders out there, you’d be hard pushed to find something that’s better on sound quality alone. This product is also aimed at a very different market, where it compares very favourably with the competition. The H4N is justifiably a little pricier than its H-series predecessors, given the improvements that have been made, but although there’s a lot of ‘bonus’ functionality I can’t imagine using, you’re not paying a premium for it. If you want a good handheld recorder, this should definitely be on your shortlist; and if you want simultaneous four-track recording thrown in, it will be a very short list indeed!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sound_recording_and_reproduction
http://www.wingfieldaudio.com/zoom-h4n-review.html
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