Product Comparison: Zoom H1 vs Zoom H4N PRO

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Zoom H1 Handy Portable Digital Recorder

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Zoom H4N PRO Digital Multitrack Recorder

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General Specifications

Brand

Zoom

Model

H4n Pro

Origin

China

About the Product

The ultra-compact H1 Handy Recorder brings new meaning to the term "portability." Small enough to slip in your pocket, it offers professional-quality stereo recording at an incredibly affordable price. Take it with you wherever you go—live concerts and band rehearsals, location video shoots, lectures and meetings—or use it to capture your musical ideas whenever inspiration strikes.

At Zoom we’re always developing new ideas to improve the performance and function of our Handy Recorders. With the H4n Pro, we've taken everything creators love about the H4n and brought it to the next level. The H4n Pro isn't just improved, it's superior in every way. With advanced X/Y microphones, incredibly natural-sounding preamps, and a super-low noise floor, you can record everything from the Indy 500 to the fluttering of a hummingbird with extraordinary realism.

Key Specs

Maximum Recording Time

10 hours

12 hours

Voice-Activated Recording

Yes

Recording Quality

96kHz, 24bit

Number Of Recording Modes

What customers say about "Key Specs"

Zoom H1 Handy Portable Digital Recorder

This is an incredible product; the superb sound quality one expects from Samson and amazingly simple operation (one button recording!)
I love it, have used it for live music sessions and interviews -- 69 hours of continuous recording at 128kps, that's 5 days!
This is really great sound quality for this amount of money. It is easy to use. You can either use the built in microphones or attach a lavalier with a 3.5 mm plug.
the sound quality is excellent for the lowest cost mic from the excellent Zoom product line.
My only real complaint with it is the high frequency response is about on par with a SM-58 - nowhere near as good as you'd expect from a condenser mic.
It's a good little recorder but you can't turn it off and come back to the same spot you left off at, you have to start from the beginning again unless you use markers.

Zoom H4N PRO Digital Multitrack Recorder

I even used a cheapo ratty microphone with it and the quality of the audio was phenomenal. The built in mics are so sensitive and can pick up a mouse passing wind in the next room.
It also has the ability to record four tracks of audio into a single recording, as well as be able to plug in multiple devices (guitar, mics, keyboards, ect) to different channels.
Monitoring audio levels from various miss as well as the ability to be used as an audio interface is a great tool.
The product offers many options, provides high quality audio and is easy to use.
The mics are high quality. It takes a little bit of getting used to, but it's awesome to be able to put together 4 tracks like this.

Size & Weight

Height

5.35 in.

6.19 in.

Width

1.73 in.

2.87 in.

Depth

1.22 in.

1.46 in.

Weight

2.12 oz.

10.37 oz.

What customers say about "Size & Weight"

Zoom H1 Handy Portable Digital Recorder

Super handy two track (stereo) recorded.
This is a great backup for my Tascam DR-100. It is perfect for most DSLR audio since it is small, lightweight, and has a big record button.
Its a compact recorder. easy to use and the quality or feel of the product is a 4 out 6.
If Zoom could have but a better body on this handy recorder then it would be perfect.
The body is very cheaply designed. It is difficult to say the least to open the micro sd door in order to get to the micro sd.
The bad part is it is made out of cheap plastic and the part that is around the mics, assumably to protect it, bends and breaks with the slightest pressure.

Zoom H4N PRO Digital Multitrack Recorder

This recorder is industrial grade and it feels like it right out of the box. The options were numerous and setup was quick. Be aware that this recorder is hefty in size.
The size of the H4n makes it handy without being too big or too small. The transport buttons are large enough for big fingers.
Kinda bulky, but nice cameras arent the size of a walnut either so I'd say good work!
This thing fantastic for its size, quality, options and its price. Many great features to explore.
The quality of the recorded sound is great for a piece of equipment this size. For me this has helped make live recordings a real easy job.
It is a little bulky but I do like the screen size and the rugged exterior finish.

Features

Display Type

127 segment custom LCD (with backlight)

Full-dot LCD (with backlight)

Computer Compatibility

Yes

Cue Marker Function

Yes

1-Touch Recording

Yes

Supported File Formats

WAV, MP3

Integrated Speaker

Yes

Interfaces

microSD card slot, Mic/line input jack, Mini USB jack

Line/phone output 3.5mm jack, Remote jack, MiniUSB, DC 5V AC adapter jack, SD card slot, Input jack for external stereo mic, 2x XLR/TRS combo connectors

Extras

Up to 99 marks per recording, Auto Level, Low-cut filter, Mounts directly to tripod, mic stand or DSLR, 90˚ X/Y stereo mic

Four-track simultaneous recording, Built-in X/Y stereo microphones, adjustable between 90˚ and 120˚, Record up to 140 dB SPL, +24 or +48V phantom power for main inputs, MS decoding function, Up to 99 marks per recording, Built-in effects, Variable playback speed, Mounts directly to tripod, mic stand or DSLR, Pre-Record

Cue Marker Function
Integrated Speaker

What customers say about "Features"

Zoom H1 Handy Portable Digital Recorder

It has a very widely adjustable input gain, the ability to plug into outboard mic or line level signals, and great battery life. It can record in WAV or MP3, and it's very easy to set up for recording and to extract the audio via USB or sliding the memory card into your computer.
It doesn't have XLR inputs like the higher end units do, but it's also much cheaper than those units. It does have a 3.5mm input for very basic microphones. It's also not very compact, so it's probably not best for hidden recordings.
I love this little 'take-anywhere' recorder. It is extremely easy to use and very light-weight, It cannot get any easier than this when it comes to using it.
Very easy to use right out of box, play back is super easy. Holds a lot of music in MP3 format
The record button on this device is large and easy to reach, even with gloves on. The audio is also very easy to sync with the GoPro video during post. The audio and GoPro sync well when the bit rate is set to constant, not dynamic.
"Auto Level" occasional does some weird level jumping, so now I just use "Manual".

Zoom H4N PRO Digital Multitrack Recorder

Need some recording device to connect to our Yamaha CL5. was easy configuration to connect and sound was perfectly recorded.
The recorder works as well as the other Zoom recorders, with clean preamps and nice features. Use it mostly for location and sound effects recording.
For so many years I was just using a long cable with a solo mic attached to my camera but with this one is just so much better to have it station closer to my subject and get better audio and then just sync it on post or record straight to the video.
The surround sound image of this device is incredible but if recording and simply touch or scratch the device lightly you hear it.
I like this recorder. but the only issue I have with it was that I use the max 32 GB sd card and it always takes forever to boot. it works well .
Great quality build and great sound. My only complaint is that it's the buttons and scroll wheel make things a little difficult to navigate. Other than that, it's great.

Warranty / Certifications

Manufacturer Warranty

1 year(s)

Certifications

FCC, CE

Other Information

Manufacturer

Link

Manual

Download