Skip the drum solo

I swear by my Zoom H2 digital audio recorder. It’s an inexpensive unit that does several things a songwriter needs.

First, it’s a way to record ideas (melodies, titles, rhymes, concepts) on the fly. Sure, you can carry around a notebook, but you can’t easily record a melody with pencil and paper, unless you have staff paper and you’re good at notation. And even so, I think it’s faster to just sing it into your handheld recorder.

Second, it works well for recording live performances. It contains two pairs of xy pattern stereo microphones.

Third, it can be used as a direct audio interface to your computer. Connect it your PC via USB and use the H2′s microphones and recording inputs to record audio directly to your PC.

Fourth, it works as an external USB drive. Turn off the H2, plug it into your computer and transfer your recorded wave and mp3 files from the Zoom to your computer for further tweaking, editing, organizing.

Fifth, everything is included: ear buds, wind screen, tabletop stand, mic clip adapter, 1/8 inch stereo to RCA cable, AC adapter, 512MB SD card and USB cable.

Other features – settings for low-cut filter, automatic microphone gain control, compression presets, sound-activated recording, track splitting, a two-second prerecording buffer, metronome, an instrument tuner, and A-B audio looping.

See a six minute video demonstration from Portland Music Company (scroll past the first minute to skip the drum solo, really).

Or read a CNET review here with photos and video.

Street price is in the neighborhood of $130- $150, nearly half the price of its competitors.

Finally, check out the Zoom H4n, the latest offering from Samsun.

Tags: audio interface, digital audio recorder, H4, live recording, USB mic, Zoom, Zoom H2