Among the great products previewed at NAMM, few got me as excited as the new Zoom H2 - the newest addition to Zoom's line of quality portable recorders!
I wasn't shy about my love of the Zoom H4 in my previous review; in my opinion, it still reins as the best value in portable recording out there. But at NAMM, I got a close-up look at the next generation: the Zoom H2.
Value-Priced but Feature-Rich
Again, wow. Priced at $199 (but the way things work, I'm sure you'll be able to find it for less), this recorder is quite a bit smaller than the H4; in fact, it's a little over half the size. This recorder doesn't have the XLR inputs like the H4, but it makes up for it in portability and expanded features.True Surround Sound
One of the coolest features is the ability to record in true 5.1 surround sound. Using 3 built-in mic capsules and special mid/side processing, you can render a four-channel recording which can be summed into 5.1 in any mixing software. This is perfect for gathering audio to be used on DVDs.The mic capsules also offer software-switchable polar patterns, from cardioid to super-cardioid to omnidirectional. That's really impressive, in my opinion; that gives you unparalleled flexibility for various acoustic situations.
Expandability
The H2 offers the ability to go up to 2GB in SD Card storage, but as tests have shown, 4GB cards do work in the H4. You can also record all the way up to 24-bit/96kHz resolution, meaning you'll get the absolute best sound quality possible. You can also record up to 320kbps VBR mp3, as well.The H2 has 1/8" inputs for both mic and line inputs. Along with USB connectivity for file transfer, it also features the ability to be used as an audio interface or a USB Microphone.
The H2 also has a cool timestamping feature, to help better organize your recordings.
The Zoom H2 will be available this spring or summer, depending on a few small technical issues being worked out. Again, priced at $199, you can't find a better deal anywhere.
